Trailrunner cans.

In my old house I did a lot of canning, mostly jam making. The huge sink was a blessing. I would often say that I couldn't can in the quantity I did without it. Great for washing bushels of fruit and big pots. I would sterilize jars in the oven on a baking tray. Loved my soapstone countertops and set the jars on stainless steel utility shelves to cool.

I had a hood with cabs over the range and never had any problems with the pressure canner. Plenty of clearance. I guess it depends on your ceiling height, but most likely you will have two feet of clearance between stovetop and hood.

Here is a link that might be useful: Me making jam

korney - I used to can on an electric coil stove. When we remodeled our kitchen last year, one reason I wanted a gas cooktop was to can, but after seeing an induction cooktop demonstrated, and listing the pros and cons of gas and induction, we went the induction route. I considered adding 1 or 2 gas units so I could still pressure can in my kitchen, but I didn't want a huge hood. I now can on a CampChef on my porch, which has many advantages (the biggest one is that it doesn't heat up the house), but on the other hand it has a few disadvantages too. It was a trade off I was willing to make because I only can 2-3 months out of the year.

My old canning set-up sounds similar to sabjimata - vent over cooktop with cupboards above. Never had any problems, but did that ever make the kitchen hot for the rest of the day!

My Mom used to can a lot. We routinely harvested 300+ ears of corn for ourselves, bushels of tomatoes, beans of various sorts, peppers, squash, etc. When the kitchen was remodeled, Mom picked out a 42" 7-element coil cooktop under a matching Ventahood. And a double oven. The ovens were used to sterilize. The cooktop had 2 large coils for her pressure cookers, 4 medium size for other things.

The ovens to the right, landing area to the left, sink after that (in a L-shape). DW was in there too but I don't know if its possition was part of the plan.

I do -- but not in huge quantities. All I need is a good prep space and room to either side of my cooktop -- same as for my other work. I do prefer the gas cooktop.

Thanks everybody! I only can a few times/yr, and try to do double batches each time. I usually do 50+ jars of Annie's Salsa (do a search on GardenWeb, it's the most often used recipe!) I never had a boiling water bath canner and jumped right in to a 17qt pressure canner, sold it 2 years ago, and then bought a 23qt pressure canner. I canned on the same gas stove we had for over 50 years, an old 1940's-1950's Universal gas-on-gas, until I "modernized" last year (a Frigidaire convection gas slide-in range.)

On the old Universal, we never had cabinets on that wall, nor a hood. so the ceiling was about 4-5ft above the burners. It had a roomy top, with enough space in the middle on top for all the jars & stuff. The new gas range has a grate that just fills in between the side grates, so need to put a cookie sheet on it to hold anything.

My remodeling plans call for an over-the-range microwave as well as 2 narrow 30'' tall cabinets surrounding the MW and a double-door cab or plate rack over the MW.

I know typical wall cab height is usually 18'' and I think I'd probably need more--the 23qt canner is big--15.75'' tall with the gauge!! My ceiling height is about 94''.

Do I try setting the wall cabs & microwave higher just on that one wall? Those are the only things on that wall, plus a doorway next to everything; it's a short wall, only 4ft between the doorway & chimney indent. The kitchen is really small and the current microwave is on a cart around the corner from the chimney indent--I purposely bought the matching OTR convection micro that matches the range, hoping to get rid of the cart!! The new micro does have an exhaust fan feature. I have not installed the new MW yet, of course it's now not returnable either, so have to make it work.

Thanks for any help.

I would definitely make sure you have enough clearance with the microhood. I had one in our first house and cursed it every time I set a 5 gallon pot on the stove.

I can quite a bit.

I also decided on an induction cooktop - gas is not an option where I live (well, it would be if I wanted to install a propane tank in the yard).

First, I have an outdoor kitchen for doing the bulk of the fall canning when the garden is ripe. But since I live in SD it is not usable during the winter months. I needed a way to can indoors when it was too cold to can outdoors.

My solution was a big Cadco 220 hotplate and a 220 outlet next to the stove.

I'm putting in a 36" vent over a 30" cooktop, and the hotplate can be set right next to that. The upper cabinets in that spot will be shorter to accommodate the height of my 21 qt AA canner. I also have a small movable island in that end of the Kitchen so I can wheel it over and use as a staging area when I'm hotpacking something.

I also plan on putting a pot filler next to my regular faucet (can't get plumbing to the stove wall) so I have the height and volume for filling large pots quickly.

Cathy

I can! I don't pressure can, I do the water bath technique. My stove is in my island with nothing over it. While I didn't plan for canning specifically when doing my reno, it was part of my planning process. I think that when you have a stove in a bank of cabinets, the access is much higher. One of my few regrets in my almost done kitchen is the lack of a pot filler. However, my pot does fit below my faucet. When purchasing my stove, canning was part of that decision-making process. It's a GE Cafe dual fuel, the center can either be a griddle or a long burner, which works out really well for my giant canning pot.

I'm glad to hear there are other canners out there. I love it but often get strange looks when mentioning it.

I used to can quite a bit -- always water bath -- first on a gas stove, then on an electric coil. When we built the 2001 lake house, I got a smooth top range and, because I wouldn't be able to can on it, I put my just-replaced coil stove in my garden/seed starting room in the garage. It was one of my favorite things in that house. In addition to canning there, I did smelly things, overflow Thanksgiving baking, and when we had summer company -- which was often -- I could do 4 pots of sweet corn at a time without heating up the kitchen. I have a smoothtop range again in the new house, so eventually we'll have a garage stove here as well.

BTW, I have an OTR MW and find it okay. Even though this kitchen is large, there just wasn't anywhere else I wanted it, so OTR it is. It's certainly high enough to accomodate anything I'd put on the stove. I know most of the people here are very anti-OTR but there are those of us who find them no big deal. My biggest worry is that someone will get careless and drop something on the range, so we're extra cautious about that. If it weren't glasstop, it would be even less of a big deal.

Thanks for all the replies! I'm not sure if everybody here knows GardenWeb has an EXCELLENT canning/preserving forum here, I'll post the link below!

Cathy, you got me beat! I grow about 75 heirloom tomato plants and 40+ peppers (plus corn, beans, a dozen or 2 garlic varieties, onions, herbs, etc) and don't preserve as much as you have there! That looks like the back room of a little factory!

The old Universal brand gas-on-gas (side heater) stove I replaced there really was nothing wrong with it other than not being very energy efficient--the pilot lights were always on 24/7 making the house warmer in the summers. Also, the garage is not attached to the house and a considerable distance away & cluttered storing things, so putting the old stove in it, especially in the winter with snow on the ground, was not an option!

{{gwi:1331199}}

Here's a pic/sketch of my tiny kitchen plan, the range is in place but the cabinets aren't finalized yet, and that island to the left is only happening if I can remove a load bearing wall currently right there now. The ceiling light is that globe interfering with the view of the range cabs.

{{!gwi}}

Currently, I have a GE Profile convection MW on a cart between the range and large window on the right. There are no cabs or countertop along that window wall yet, just the chimney indent in the corner, which makes designing around it quite difficult. That's why I'd really like to go with the OTR MW.

As for canning, I thought canners were a dying breed but think it has made a huge resurgence in the last 5 years, especially with the costs of food on the rise and the availability and resurgence of heirloom veggies!

Here is a link that might be useful: Garden Web's HARVEST FORUM for canning, drying, preserving, etc.

Very glad this topic was introduced in the kitchens forum. It's refreshing to find workshop kitchens and garden produce processing.
Thanks to all posters! Keep 'em coming! And if you include the compost/waste part of the prep for canning, that would be helpful.

Macybaby I am drooling!!!

Korney 19 - that is a very nice garden area! Great use of limited space. If I still lived in town I think I'd have all garden and no grass to mow.

This is where I do the bulk of my canning.

I also love to see kitchens that are set up so to accommodate canning. As far as composting, I live in a rural area and some scraps can go to the rabbits, but most gets tossed on the compost pile where the chickens, barn cats and dog pick through and eat what they want. The rest eventually ends up on the garden in a year or two.

It's been a real challenge to design the kitchen for dual purpose. I was doing fine until I fell in love with induction -

Cathy

korney - next time someone tells me they can't have a garden because they live in-town or don't have dirt, I'm going to show them your photo. That's wonderful.

and

Cathy - I love your photo of the canned goods. What a feeling of accomplishment you must have. Regarding the Cadco hotplate - does it take longer than your coil cooktop to come up to the right pressure? Do you like your pressure canner? I have a 23 qt. Presto canner with a pressure gauge that I need to constantly monitor, which is a pain. After your canner is up to the correct pressure, do you need to make any adjustments?

I know all too well how difficult it is to try to plan a kitchen with dual purposes. I basically gave up on that when I decided on induction. I just posted in the 2 kitchens - 1 house thread about how we're thinking ahead to our next project of an 'auxiliary kitchen' mainly for canning.

I'm also glad and encouraged to see others keeping the tradition of canning alive.

hahaha! I didn't get a chance to comment to florantha about composting--I don't have much room nor enough scraps to compost, but I do BUY a LOT of compost from a town within a half hour drive from me. Matter of fact, behind that thing that looks like a coldframe with the cover rolled up, I grow sweet corn right on top of the blacktop driveway by dumping some of the excavated dirt and LOTS of purchased municipal compost made mostly from grass, leaves, plants, etc. It's less than a foot deep and in that pic, that sweet corn got about 7ft tall! I fit about 60 or more plants in a 6ft x 8ft pile on my driveway!

Beyond that area and a little to the right, I grew Atlantic Giant pumpkins. That was early in the season in that pic. My biggest so far was around 485lbs. At one point, the plant reached the car as well as climbed some extra 5ft tall tomato cages I had and went onto the roof of the shed! I had a pumpkin growing mid-air! hahahaha!

{{!gwi}}

Instead of growing AG pumpkins the last few years there, I grew about 500 heads of nearly 25 different garlic varieties! And last year I grew more corn and onions.

I have since cleared some of the stuff from in front of the car and instead grow 15 more tomato plants in 5 gallon buckets with drip irrigation on the driveway.

{{gwi:1309914}}

As for cutting grass, there's only a little strip acting as a path about 18'' wide near that blue tarp! I dumped 3 or 4 pickup truckloads of compost back there to a depth of nearly 1 foot!

Country Smile - The cadco takes maybe a little bit more time to heat up, but it is not significant. My coil stove has a 2500 watt burner and the cadco is 2000.

I have both a 16q presto and a 21 qt AA. I converted my presto to a weighted rocker this summer and that sure is nicer than watching the gauge. Then I put a few washers on it as I need to can around 11-12 lbs pressure. I also taped two pennies to my AA weight so it also holds at 12 lbs instead of 10. I don't like canning way up at 15 when I don't need to.

Usually as it gets near pressure, I start turning the burner down. I know about where I need to go on each unit, so I go down a bit every minute or two until I get down and the pressure is holding with gentle rocking of the weight to keep it there. The Cadco I have to leave turned up about 3/4 and the coil cooktop goes down to about 3 and the glass top (presto only) I have to turn down to about 1.5. That was a real pain with the weight, I was about going from off to 2 to try to keep it constant. That particular range has very poor adjustments at low temps. It does have "accu- simmer" but not on the big burner where I could use it. The Cadco hot plate has much finer control at the lower temps.

They have talked about the weight set for the presto (fits on the tub the regulator fits on - no modifications needed) on the Gardenweb forum listed above.

Cathy

just bumping this because this thread is a personal fave of mine ;P

Mine too! ;)

Korney, I just love your garden! I have a blog. It is very simple and i am not so active with posting right now because I am doing school....but would if you ever have time, I would love to have you as a guest blogger, telling about your garden and canning. And I love pictures.

Actually, anyone who cans, if you want to share some of your beautiful pics on my blog, just shoot me an email:

sabjimata at gmail dot com

I will check it out once I get back into gardening mode--I'll be starting seeds in a couple weeks!

You can check out some of my pics of some of the 'maters & peppers I grow at the link below. I had thousands of pics but can't get one of my external hard drives to boot, will have to see if I still have them on my flash card.

I haven't updated that page in about 4 years and the 2nd half that doesn't have links to pics, many of those I've since grown and photographed. The e-mail at the bottom is no longer valid.

I have grown or have had seeds for over 500 tomato varieties and over 100 pepper varieties.

You might check the specs or call the manufacturer if you're planning on a microhood. Lots of them require the hood to be mounted fairly low. It could be aggravating low for you.

I adore your garden. Such wonderful ideas!

Duh, stupid me, I lost the link with all the varieties while having login problems!

For more pics like these & variety descriptions,

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....then see the link below. Hope you all enjoy!

Here is a link that might be useful: Some of my seeds, varieties & descriptions, pics, etc.

Does anybody have, or have plans for, a Pot Filler?

I am not planning for a pot filler but I am planning for a 60 " custom soapstone sink (one 40" basin and one20" basin) with three wall mounted faucets, two regular and one a cold water/pot filler faucet. But our kitchen is a galley...a bit narrow. Sink and stove will be more or less across from one another.

I think a pot filler for canning makes sense. Or a sink nearby :)

Those tomatoes are heaven!

I do have a pot filler an d canning was one of the reasons we decided to put it in. The pot fills a lot faster as well as being easier. True -- you still have to dump it out, which is why my prep sink is right across from the cooktop and we made sure it wasn't too small to dump out large canning or pasta pots of water without slopping as well as for colanders.

Thanks sabjimata & lascatx!

About how much was the labor to install one? I've seen various pot fillers from as little as about $79 all the way up to $379 or more! I'm having contractors & plumbers come to give me estimates on plumbing & wiring the kitchen job and one I asked about adding a pot filler and he didn't know what I was talking about!