Homestead mailing list

[Clansgian AT wmconnect.com]

> When the 
> USDA set the guidelines, they had to have some kind of lab based study 
> to back it up

Now, I was declared to be Satan Spawn when I brought this up before, but most 
of canning zombies aren't on the list any longer, so it might ("might", I 
says) be safe to bring this up again.

The USDA guidelines are safe, but they are an overkill so that some rube 
doesn't poison himself.  To give a parallel example, raw milk is much more 
healthful than cooked (pasturized) milk, but usning raw milk isn't for the 
untutored. 
For example, I'd never buy raw milk at WalMart even if it was legal.  I would 
get some from a neighbor, however.

I've always advocated to learn all one could about the canning process and 
WHY the USDA came up with the guidelines they did, then make your own 
informed 
choices.  There are, if I am not mistook, no longer any USDA guidelines for 
using half gallon jars in home canning, the whole concept being declared 
unsafe.  
Yet by using the formula (and the old former guidelines as a double check) we 
up up things in half gallon jars with no problems.

Says I, if you are informed as to what is going on in the canning process 
rather than just following guideliness, you are less apt to make a 
potentially 
fatal mistake.  By having a sort of "canning sense" about you, if you misread 
the chart or some such, an alarm will go off telling you "something about 
this 
just isn't right".

And get some lpH strips, they aren't very expensive.  I got hold of a 
calibrated elecronic pH meter (worked in a chemistry lab as well) and it 
takes a lot 
of guesswork out of food preparation.  

James, standing back in case there is another rending of garments and heaping 
of ashes with cries of "you can't deviate from the guideliness ANY ... your 
house will fall down and your daughter will marry a used car salesman!"  

Or the even more idiotic response of ....... no ..... got a dinner out riding 
on this one ,,, Denise says no one will say it, but I have confidence, so 
........