Home Canning Hack: Sterilize the Lids and the Rings

I used to sterilize my jar lids in boiling water as directed by the canning experts, but I always fumbled to get them out of the water with tongs. Nowadays, those experts recommend a magnet for easily lifting jar lids out of the water. Pah. One more expense, one more piece of equipment to store, one more bit of packaging the world doesn’t need.

Instead of buying a magnet for your home canning, try this: put your lids and rings together before you put them in the water to sterilize them. When you’re ready to put them on your jars, it’s easy peasy to grab hold of each set with tongs and place it on your jar. I learned this little trick courtesy of the Master Canners at my local extension office a number of years ago. Brilliant!

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Tags: canning, kitchen, preservation, preserving