Canning 101: Tall Jars for Asparagus, Green Beans, and More

June 27, 2013(updated on October 3, 2018)

pickled asparagus in different jar styles

Whenever I’m about to start a canning project, I spent a few moments thinking about what I’m making, to ensure that I grab the best jars to do the job. This means that when I can jams, jellies, and fruit butters, I reach for the half pint (or smaller!) jars, aware that it will take me awhile to move through a sweet preserve.

When I pickle vegetables or can whole fruit that have a tendency to float, I use a regular mouth jar, knowing that the jar’s shoulders will help keep the veg positioned under the level of the brine. I do  tomatoes in quart jars, since I’ve found that’s the most useful size in my day-to-day cooking. And I frequently reach for a pint & a half jar when making pasta sauce, as a pint is never quite enough and a quart is always too much.

pint & a half jars

And when it comes to pickling tall, skinny things like asparagus, green beans, and garlic scapes, I reach for lanky jars that will give me plenty of real estate for the vegetable’s full length. I’ve found that there are three readily available versions of the long, tall jar and so thought I’d do a little show and tell post, to make everyone aware of their options.

First is the Ball Pint and Half Jars. They are sold in boxes of nine, hold 24 ounces and are 6 3/4 inches tall. Like all traditional mason jars, the jars and rings are reusable, while the lids need to be replaced with each batch.

Depending on where you buy them, the price on these jars starts at around $9.99 for a box and tops out around $20. The best deal I’ve found online is through True Value. The jars cost $11.99 a box and if you select their free “ship to store” option, you don’t pay any shipping fees. The only hitch there is that you need to have a True Value store nearby.

Weck asparagus jars

The next option is 1/2 liter cylindrical jar from Weck. It holds a little more than a traditional pint jar, but instead of having that space in a short, squat jar, it’s been stretched out so that you get about 8 1/4 inches of canning real estate.

These jars are beautiful, feel substantial, and are endlessly reusable. According to the US directions, the seals need to be replaced each time they are used. However, European instructions say they can be reused until they start to crack or show signs of age.

The price for a box of six of these jars ranges from $18.25 (from weckjars.com) to $29.95 (that’s the regular Williams-Sonoma price. However, these jars are currently selling for $23.96, because they’ve got their canning stuff on sale). Shipping varies for jars bought through Weck Jars. Right now, shipping is including on Williams-Somona, but I don’t how long that will last.

16 ounce Paragon jars

Finally, we have the dark horse jar. It’s a 16 ounce Paragon jar. It is 6 3/4 inches tall and seals with a one-piece lug lid (make sure to get one with a button, so you easily tell that it has sealed).

Made in the US and sold through jar distributors like Fillmore Container, this is the style jar that commercial producers are using for their tall, skinny preserves. Home canners can reuse these jars, but do need to replace the lids with each new batch.

They cost $5.61 a dozen. However, the lids are sold individually and cost $.25 a piece, which adds $3 to the total. The shipping can also add up, particularly if you’re buying just a single box. In the end, a dozen of these jars with lids would cost around $22 to get to me in Philadelphia. If this is the style you want to go for, see if you have friends who’d like to go in on an order with you, as it can save you cash in the end.

five jars

There you have it! A round-up of tall, skinny jars! Which one will you choose for your next tall project?

Disclosure: Fillmore Container gave me a box of the Paragon jars for review purposes. They didn’t pay me to write this post and my thoughts and opinions remain entirely my own.

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28 thoughts on "Canning 101: Tall Jars for Asparagus, Green Beans, and More"

  • how long do cook greens canned in 8 oz. jars I am using smaller jars this time not sure how long to pressure cook them

  • I was wondering if the one-piece lug lid is used in the same manner as the two-pieces lids from ball? I have a maple syrup equipement selling store near my house and they happen to also carry dozens and dozens of beautiful commercial style jars, I’ve been dying to know if they work the same way as the one I’m used to. Thanks, I just LOVE your website, all the tips and recipes are a wonderful addition to my collection of canning books!! 😀

  • Speaking of jars, my husband just bought some Quattro Stagioni 8.5 ounce jars which I love the look of but I’m very nervous about using them for canning. I am new to canning and I have been using the ball jars with two piece lids/bands following Marisa’s recipes and directions to a tee! Are these jars safe? Thanks! I LOVE your book!!!

    1. I’ve used those jars and they are safe. However, I’ve had some seal failures with them, so make sure to read the instructions in the box thoroughly.

  • Great post. I’ve been canning a long time and until this post I didn’t think about the “keeping the pickles in place” with the regular mouth jars – of course! I always thought regular mouth v. wide mouth was about aesthetics and how hard it was to put stuff in/out of the jar. However – that “floating to the top” pickle issue – of course – is solved by a regular mouth jar. Duh!

    Also – I’ve found ordering jars from hardware stores is always the best bet. I now order from Ace Hardware (which is the hardware store in my town) and I can order the exact jars I want – no shipping cost because I have them shipped to the store – and I go pick them up. What’s actually available in the store is often slim pickings, but online they have all sizes. I just ordered the blue heritage jars from them and saved the $14 shipping charge from other sites.

  • Interestingly enough, I just set the dishwasher to sanitize a whole load of old jars my neighbor found in her barn. Ive a couple of interesting sized taller jars, they are not quite as tall as the pint +1/2 Ball freezer I found at the flea market yesterday, and they are quilted..Ill probably do a water measure test when they come out I’m curious now.
    And one jar I was concerned maybe an old ‘mayo’ jar was plain but the bottom says in quite small ‘ball’ so Ill use it

    1. Those are the 12 ounce jelly jars. Because they’re not really any taller than a standard pint jar, I opted not to include them in this round-up.

      1. Yup, I just got done checking 12oz. =)
        Still an interesting jar I’ve only 2 thanks to the neighbor, and I’m thrilled, glad all my jars are not ‘off the shelf’

  • I bought the tall Weck jar back in Spring to pickle asparagus, but realized when I got it home it was too tall for my canning pot (it wouldn’t get covered by the requisite inch+ of water). Do you have an extra tall canning pot for these jars? Any recommendations on pots? (I don’t think my local Ace has any other than the type I already have…)

    1. I came on looking for an answer to the exact same problem…I’m all ready to go, but I just realized my canner isn’t tall enough, and filling my huge pressure canner with that much water for 4 jars seems ridiculous. Crap! Help!!

      1. I use a really tall, skinny pot I picked up at a thrift store to process these jars. Remember that any tall pot can be a canner, so look around your kitchen and see if you have something that might do the job.

        1. They make a tall skinny pot to cook asparagus in, that would probably work for canning. I saw it in the William Sonoma catalog a while back but I’m sure other places sell one similar.

    2. did anyone get a better answer to this. I did some canning last night and the tall jars fell over and the wreck tops came off. It was a mess. If I use another pot, do I have to have something on the bottom to elevate the jars? I won’t use my regular pot again with these. Carp and Help!

  • I keep eying the pint and a half jars but haven’t bought any yet. So far I’ve had success cutting my asparagus in half when I pickle it – so half my spears have the tip and half don’t – not quite as pretty but still a decent sized pickle. I also take a cue from a local jam & pickle producer in town and make a jar of leftover pieces.

  • I covet those Weck jars with a passion previously reserved for yarn. Oddly enough they don’t carry them at the farm supply store. The pint and a half jars hold a lot of asparagus though!

  • Have you found proper processing times for the Ball pint and half jars? I pickled asparagus in them, but all the processing times are for pints. When I use those jars, I usually use the processing times for quart jars, but NO WHERE could I find processing times for quart jars for quart jars of pickled asparagus! I even messaged Ball and never got a response.

    1. The rule of thumb is to add five minutes to the processing times when you go up in size. I did all the pickles in this post for 15 minutes.

    1. I LOVE Weck jars. I am still using jars that are more than 10 years old. …which is good because I haven’t seen the tulip shaped ones available anywhere in years and years and years and they’re gorgeous and fun to use.

      I reuse the rubber gaskets until they don’t feel supple anymore. That can be quite a few reuses.

  • Hmmm. I’ve been using Ball 12 oz. jars (5 1/2 inches). I might have to break down and buy the 24 oz. jars for the extra height. It seems unlikely that I will stumble across any of these specialty sizes at garage/estate sales (my favorite source for jars)

    1. I bought some tall ones at Christmas Tree Shop for 89 cents each…I think they’re 20oz. but tall enough for aspargus I think…not sure where you are located…