It used to be that Weck jars were precious things, hard to come by outside of Germany. Then people started discovering how pretty and useful they are. Suddenly, stores from Crate & Barrel to Williams-Sonoma and beyond began stocking them.
No explanation is needed when it comes to storing dry goods in Weck jars, but when it comes to the actual act of canning in them, newcomers sometimes need a little help. A couple years ago, I wrote a step-by-step guide to using Weck jars, and while I have no intention of reinventing that particular wheel today, I do want to pluck out a few of the most commonly asked questions about canning in Weck jars and highlight them here so that they’re easy to access.
How do you tell if Weck jars are sealed? You can tell that Weck jars are sealed because the little tab on the rubber seal will point downwards. You can also test your seal in much the same way that you do with Ball jars. Once the jars are cool, remove the clips and grasp the lid of the jar. Lift off the counter an inch or two. If the seal holds fast, you’re golden. If it starts to lose its seal or breaks the suction entirely, that’s a jar that needs to be refrigerated.
Can you reuse the rubber seal? In all printed materials available in the US, they don’t recommend that you use the rubber seal for Weck jars more than once. However, I’ve been told the instructions printed in other countries tell you that it is reusable until it is stretched out or begins to lose its elasticity. Because I don’t like to take chances, I replace the rubber seal with each use.
Can you pressure can in Weck jars? I have not tried it personally, but I was told that it can be done, provided you add a third clip to the lid, in order to help prevent siphoning during processing.
Is it possible to buy replacement clips? It is! You can actually easily buy replacement clips, rubber rings and even lids for Weck jars. MightyNest, sponsor of today’s giveaway sells all the replacement parts in their canning section.
Because Weck jars are quite a bit more expensive than traditional mason jars, I tend to save them for my favorite preserves. These are the recipes that I like so much that I tend to either keep them all for myself or share them with only those people who are truly deserving.
Plum jam is one of my most beloved preserves, because its flavor reminds me of the rummy jam my mom used to make with the fruit from our backyard trees, in Southern California, when I was very young.
For this jam, I combined 5 cups of chopped plums (a mixture of yellow and red) with 2 1/2 cups of sugar. Once the juices started to run, I cooked the fruit and sugar over high heat until the fruit broke down and the syrup thickened enough to hang off the spatula in little pink windows. A squeeze of lemon juice went in at the end for balance. Processed for ten minutes in an array of Weck jars, this is one preserve I’ll be rationing this winter, to ensure it lasts until plum season returns.
If you’ve been contemplating adding some Weck jars to your kitchen, you’re going to love today’s giveaway. It’s provided by MightyNest, an online shop and community hub designed to help people find a world of products (everything from kitchenware to personal care) that are healthy and non-toxic. Here’s what MightyNest has put together for this giveaway:
20 quart canning pot with a rack designed to hold 7 quarts
6 1-liter asparagus jars
6 1/2 liter tulip jars
6 160ml mold jars
Weck jar lifter (these are great, because they don’t catch on the clips the same way that jar lifters designed for Ball jars can).
MightyNest is also hosting a giveaway of my book over on their blog this week. If you’ve not yet gotten your copy, make sure to click over to enter!
If you’re interested in entering this giveaway, here’s how to do it.
- Leave a comment on this post and tell me what one change you’d like to make to your kitchenware to make it healthier. If you’re stumped for ideas, head over to MightyNest and browse their many lovely kitchen items. You’ll be chomping at the bit for something new in no time (I want everything they sell).
- Comments will close at 11:59 pm east coast time on Friday, August 24. Winner will be chosen at random and will be posted to the blog on Saturday, August 25, 2012.
- Giveaway is open to US residents.
- One comment per person, please. Entries must be left via the comment form on the blog, I cannot accept submissions via email.
Disclosure: MightyNest provided the jars, canner and jar lifter for this giveaway at no cost to me. I have not been compensated for my time or this post. My opinions remain mine entirely.
Founded by two parents, MightyNest is an online store, resource center, and community dedicated to helping parents create healthy, safe homes. Our mission is to give families the ability to research, get advice, and buy natural, non-toxic products all in one place. From kitchenware to skin care, MightyNest’s safety experts have built the web’s broadest selection of products that are free from known toxic ingredients such as BPA, PVC, Phthalates, Lead, Melamine, Formaldehyde, Parabens, and more.
MightyNest is a place where people feel motivated and welcomed, not discouraged or judged; somewhere people are empowered to make changes in their lives, whether large or small. For the growing number of parents seeking high quality, healthy and safe alternatives to everyday products for their family, MightyNest is their most trusted resource.
I would love to replace our small plastic dishes with Little Bites Silicone Bowls.
I began phasing out plastic containers for food storage a while back and it is an on going battle/project. My glass jars do not fit all occasions & foods.
We’ve been looking for an alternative to chemically-treated, non-stick pans for quite some time, so it’d be great to find something that is both eco-friendly and safe for us!
I would like to get more home canned goods on my shelves! I just started canning for the first time last week. Picked too many blackberries while on the farm and thought it would be the perfect time to start learning! I started easy with Blackberry freezer jam and then made some blackberry syrup. When I started hearing my jars of syrup “pop” after coming out of the water bath I was hooked! Today the adventure continues with Pickles and pickled green beans! Soon my pantry will be full…….but I am going to run out of jars soon too, hmmmmmm.
Switching over from plastic containers for leftovers/storage to glass is a change I would love to make.
I would love the square cast iron griddle pan and the cast iron scrub brush!
I would like to start canning! We planted a huge garden this year in the hopes of being able to put up some of our homegrown goodness. Each year we let the kids pick their favorite vegetable and a new vegetable to plant-This year the purple “green beans” were very popular.
For a healthier kitchen I’d replace all the plastic containers with glass, preferably with Weck!
I need to get rid of the Teflon. I just haven’t figured out scrambled eggs without it.
We’re addicted to plastic locking-lid containers and zip-top bags for leftovers. Glass ones seem to chip as soon as you look at them cross-eyed! Shifting to stainless steel might be in store.
I would love to eliminate plastic containers from my kitchen… but it seems they make their way back to my house on a regular basis. You can’t even give the stupid things away – no one wants them! 🙂
I’d love to shift from plastic storage containers to glass or stainless steel.
I would like to replace my aluminum pots and pans with high grade stainless steel.
I would love to get a canning pot and start canning! Yes, that’s right I haven’t even tried hot water canning yet. Oh woe is me.
I’d love to replace the remaining leftovers containers and lunch-taking containers with stainless and glass – they’re the last remaining bastion of plastic in my kitchen. And I’d love to use more Weck jars! 🙂
I’m trying to use more glass for storage, and much less plastic in the kitchen altogether.
I love snack taxi for my kids snacks and lunches! Having these has been fantastic, we are using much fewer ziploc bags. Still need more glass storage though, to get rid of the remaining plastic we still have in our kitchen! Thanks for the opportunity to win great prizes!
I love Mighty Nest! I would love to switch to a healthier pan than my Teflon-coated skillet.
Ooo I want to trade out all of my kitchen food storage containers for the ones I saw on that site. I’m fairly new to canning, but what I’ve done I’ve enjoyed. 🙂
So many things, but I definitely would like to move towards bpa-free home canning. And away from single-use lids at the same time!
Using cast iron seems like the ultimate in friendly kitchenware. With proper use, it can last forever!
I would love a better quality set of cookware. I hate useing the non-stick and it cant be put in the oven. I am also learning there is no such thing as too many stock pots.
I’d like to replace plastic storage containers with glass one.
I’m not buying plastic snack baggies anymore. Switched to the reusable washable kind! Hurray!
I’d love to replace my nonstick with cast iron! Heavy, yes. But worth it!!
I would like to use more glass storage containers. I reuse plastic yogurt containers, but maybe I should start making my own yogurt.
I want to be done with nonstick pans. They’re high maintenance and they I never feel quite sure that they’re not passing off weird chemicals into my food. Up with well seasoned cast iron!
I’d like to stop using as many plastics, since right now I heat things in them and probably shouldn’t.
i would like to use cast iron more often. i have one smallish pan, and i’m always very pleased with the results. but it tends to collect cat hair if i’m not careful to keep it (loosely) covered. i like that it requires little oil (as long as i keep it well seasoned) and add iron to my diet!
I’m trying to reduce the use of plastic and reuse it when possible. David Lebovitz had a great blog post about washing Ziploc and other plastic bags, hanging them out to dry and then doing it over and over again. I aspire to that!
Eventually I hope to sub out my old plastic tupperware for nice glass ones, so I can reheat my lunches without wasting a paper plate for the microwave. Of course, throwing out what I already have, and purchasing all new stuff, sounds pretty wasteful too, so it’s a gradual process (as the old plastic ones get cracked/lost)!
I’d like to get rid of the last bit of teflon pans by trying the ceramic alternatives or a carbon steel pan. I’ve already started using cast iron more, but sometimes resort to the nonstick for certain things.
I’d like to stop using so many plastics in our food storage and preparation.
I would like to get rid of plastic…storing food only in glass.
I would use less plastic ware for leftovers.
I wish I used fewer plastic products
I would like to get rid of my plastic containers.
To make my kitchen healthier I want to get rid of the last of my “non-stick” cookware. I’ve been phasing it out, but still have a ways to go.
I love this! I would use the juice containers and small jars. My 5 year old son was diagnosed with epilepsy a year ago and I have changed his diet around to organic, dairy and gluten free as possible. This diet changed has proven to be medication free. I would love to have convient but small jars to take items that I know are organic and locally grown. Even when we are away for testing, I could feed him non hospital food that was not pre packaged!
I’d like to have stainless steel baking pans, and non plastic cups for my daughter.
I need to stop using ziplock bags.. the guilt is slowly outweighing the convenience of using them.
Use less plastic containers, for sure!
I would love to replace all my canned store bought veggies with ones that I have canned myself. I just started canning and I am loving it!
I wish that i used more of the vegetables I buy – I am trying to start canning and preserving so that during the winter, we can eat great veggies, not out of season or BPA filled ones!
Where to start…green cookware (we have one nice skillet), recycle all the plastic containers for stainless and glass, and most importantly, replace all the plastic kid stuff with stainless. We recently bought a farm and are spending these last gasps of summer canning and freezing and preserving…what a task! But my little guys are great helpers.
To make my kitchen healthier, I’d like to make sure the first snack me or my children reach for is a fruit or vegetable. I want to always have wholesome and healthy food, that I know the ingredients to, and where it came from. I started a small garden this year and my whole family has been enjoying the tomatoes, green peppers and cucumbers. I can’t wait until I have raspberries and strawberries, hopefully next year!
I have taken a small step and made the lunchboxes healthier and more environmentally friendly by replacing baggies and individually-packaged snacks with a set of containers that I fill from family-sized boxes. I dream of replacing my “tupperware” containers, that I use to store all things from dry cereal to leftovers, with glass ones…
On a side note, I just tried your recipe for marinara sauce from your book and I’m in love! Thanks! 🙂
I would love to replace my plastic leftover containers entirely with glass and metal. I’m chipping away at it, but I swear the plastic has babies while I’m not looking and I can’t bear to throw them out.
Cool giveaway!
I would love to learn how to use a grilling basket and what herbs go with what! That would make my life handier!!
I wish I used fewer paper towels… but draining bacon on kitchen towels just doesn’t feel right!