Few of us do not like delicious homemade preserves, pickles and jams. However, the procedure for their preparation is a very troublesome business. In addition to vegetables and fruits, it is worth preparing a container for the product. Many housewives want to know how to sterilize jars in the least hassle. And we'll show you how, all you need is a microwave oven in your house!
Why sterilization is needed
This stage is one of the most important in food preservation. Skipping it can be fraught with damage to the workpiece and even serious he alth problems.
Washing the jar thoroughly is not enough. This, unfortunately, will not kill all the harmful microorganisms living on it. Perhaps they themselves are not dangerous to our he alth. But this cannot be said about the products of their vital activity, as well as about the infections that these creatures carry. In a space without air (namely, it will be a jar with a twisted lid), the poisons of their secretions accumulate in quantities that are harmful to us.
It's important to note that a product doesn't have to look lost if it contains toxic emissions. The most dangerous of them is botulinum toxin. As we know, botulism can lead tofatalities.
That's why it's important to know how to sterilize jars the right way. And one of the easiest ways is to carry out this process in a microwave oven.
Preparing jars
Before you sterilize the jars in the microwave, prepare them for the procedure. To do this, glass containers must be washed under running water using dish gel or baking soda. Don't ignore this step, even if the containers look clean.
After washing, dry the jars. Be sure to carefully check them for chips and cracks. Even the slightest damage makes the container unsuitable for preservation!
Microwave Sterilization Methods
Many of us know only one way of this process - over the pan. But since most fruit and vegetable preparations are made in the summer, the method is somewhat inconvenient. Water bath, steam, high temperature, coupled with summer stuffiness. In addition, such sterilization takes a lot of time.
Therefore, it is important to know how to sterilize jars in the microwave. There is only one prohibition - you can not close the container with a lid! Up to 5 small jars can be processed at one time in a standard oven. If sterilization of a three-liter container is needed, then it is placed on its side in the oven, having previously spread a towel to fix it. Can also be used to hold a large dish or plate.
Your choice of three methods:
- Dry processed (steam).
- Treatment with water.
- Processing withblanks.
Let's look at each in detail.
Water treatment
How to properly sterilize jars here:
- Pour water into a pre-washed container - a couple of centimeters above the bottom is enough. Use bottled or filtered e-liquid to ensure it doesn't leave limescale when it evaporates.
- Microwave uncovered. Activate the device at 700-800W.
- How long does it take to sterilize jars? On average 2-3 minutes. But the larger the container, the more time it takes to process. A three-liter container, for example, should already be in the microwave for 5-6 minutes.
- So how long to sterilize jars? Focus on boiling water. As soon as you hear a characteristic noise, see bubbles, count 1-3 minutes, then turn off the microwave. The steam that is released during this time is enough to sterilize the container.
- Use only dry oven mitts or towels to remove the jar. Wet will lead to a temperature drop, which is fraught with broken glass. Take the container by the neck and preferably with two hands.
- Pour out the rest of the water and immediately fill the container with food.
- If you need a lot of cans at once, then spread out a clean towel and put them out of the microwave, putting them on the neck with a cloth. Turn only before filling with food.
- Put hot jam-picks into hot containers, cold ones into cooled containers. This will also protect against cracked due toglass temperature difference.
Dry processing
We continue to consider how to sterilize jars in a microwave oven. For some preservation methods, only completely dry, processed containers are suitable. For this case, the following instruction:
- Load the already washed and dried jars into the microwave. But so that there is free space in it.
- Place a glass in between, filling it about 2/3 full with water. It should not be completely filled with liquid - it will overflow over the edges when boiling.
- Turn on the device - watch the glass. The microwave should be turned off when all the water in it has boiled away. It takes approximately 5 minutes.
- Use towels and oven mitts to remove the jars from the microwave.
Processing together with blanks
And now we will tell you how to sterilize jars along with jam pickles. After all, some recipes require processing not only containers, but also blanks with them. Such sterilization will be necessary for:
- mushrooms;
- juices;
- vegetable salads;
- compotes.
But with regard to jam, pickled (with the addition of vinegar) vegetables, including pickles-tomatoes, such processing is not required. For them, you can limit yourself to the first two methods.
Before sterilizing canned blanks in the microwave, many will wonder if this will affect the quality of the product. Suddenly instead"crunchiness" will turn out "cooked"?" No, you should not be afraid of such an effect - the container with food will be processed in the oven for a short time.
How to sterilize products
How to microwave sterilize jars in this case:
- Fill containers with food and add some water.
- Never close the lids, put the jars in the microwave oven for 5 minutes.
- Take out the container and add boiling filling.
- Now you need to roll up the pre-stored lids as quickly as possible.
That's it!
Pros and cons of the procedure
Let's take a critical look at this popular method used by many housewives.
| Dignity | Flaws |
| Fast and convenient procedure compared to traditional methods. On average, it takes no more than 5 minutes. | Difficulty in sterilizing large sizes, for example, a three-liter jar can only be placed sideways and in a single copy (sterilization with blanks can no longer be applied to it). |
| If the jars are small, then they can be sterilized at the same time, in one go. | Lids will still have to be processed in the traditional way and separately. According to the instructions, it is contraindicated to place metal products in a microwave oven! |
| Neither high temperature nor humidity with this method will create uncomfortableconditions in your kitchen. | You pay extra for the energy consumption of processing cans. |
But not everyone has a microwave at home - we also offer you an alternative method.
How to sterilize jars in the oven
The method is in many ways similar to the above. Such processing will not only save you from hot, wet fumes, but will also allow you to process more containers (including large ones) at once.
So, how to sterilize jars in the oven:
- Check the container for chips and cracks. Even the slightest defect makes the container unusable.
- Then wash the glass container with laundry soap or baking soda, rinse under running water.
- Washed jars can be placed in a cold or already slightly warm oven.
- If the containers are dry, put them upside down, wet ones upside down on the wire rack. So the evaporation of the liquid will go faster.
- Close the door.
- Now set the heat to low. Gradually it should be increased to 150 degrees. When you reach this maximum temperature, then note the time - after that, the jars should be sterilized for 15 minutes.
- If the capacity is large, the processing time can be extended up to 25 minutes.
- Then, be sure to put on dry mittens-tacks (wet because of the temperature difference, the glass will simply burst), remove the containers.
- If you won't be using the cans right away, spread out a towel andput the container upside down on it.
- Don't forget to prepare lids too. Discard those with stains or rust. Lids are also washed in warm water with soap or soda. While the jars are in the oven, they are boiled for 15 minutes.
- Hot contents are placed in warm jars, cold contents are already cooled.
In the oven, you can sterilize jars with contents. To do this, they must be laid without lids in a cold oven. Then it is heated to 100 degrees. Minimum processing time is 15 minutes.
So we have analyzed new ways of sterilizing jars for vegetable and fruit preservation. Unlike traditional ones, they take less time and do not create noticeable discomfort in the kitchen.
