Canned pears are preserved by peeling, slicing, and hot packing them into canning jars with a light syrup. The jars are then processed in a water-bath canner to make them shelf-stable.
How to Tell When Pears are Ready to Harvest
Pears are different from most fruit because they’re harvested before they’re ripe. If you leave pears on the tree to ripen, they will ripen evenly throughout. This makes the center of the food have a mealy and mushy texture. While pears are great for making jam or sauce, they’re not the best for fresh eating or canning.
To tell if a pear is ready to be harvested, the easiest way is to slightly lift it and roll the fruit at an angle. If the fruit is ripe it should come away from the stem easily. If it needs more time, it will cling to the branch. Wait a few days and try it again.
If you want your pears to be ripe, let them sit at room temperature for 4 to 7 days.
To tell if a pear is ripe, look for a slight change in color, yielding flesh near the stem, and a sweet smell. If you have ripe pears, store them in the fridge so they don’t go bad before the others are ripe.
Best Pears for Canning
Fruit that is slightly under-ripe and mature is perfect for fresh eating or cooking. Firm pears will not turn to mush during the canning process. The best pears to use for canning are Bartlett pears, but Anjou, Bosc, and Comice pears are also good choices.
Use whatever type of pears you can find or harvest from local trees. If the canned food ends up being a little mushy, it is still safe to eat. You can enjoy them mashed up and spooned over yogurt, ice cream, or pancakes.
Asian pears, also known as apple pears or oriental pears, can be canned as well. However, an acid must be added to make them safe for canning.
-Depending on the size of the pieces, you will need ____ pounds of pears for a canner load of 9 pints, and ____ pounds for a canner load of 7 quarts.
Choose a Preserving Liquid
Pears can be preserved in different types of syrups or juices.
Canned pears in syrup will stay in better shape and taste more flavorful. I use very light sugar syrup in this recipe, but feel free to substitute any of these options:
Syrup for 9 Pints:
- Very Light: 6 1/2 cups water and 3/4 cups sugar
- Light: 5 3/4 cups water and 1 1/2 cups sugar
- Medium: 5 1/4 cups water and 2 1/4 cups sugar
- Heavy: 5 cups water and 3 1/4 cups sugar
- Light Honey: 7 cups water and 1/2 cups mild honey
Steps to Canning Pears
Step 1: Gather your canning supplies
- Water bath canner and canning rack
- 9 pint-sized canning jars
- Canning lids and bands (new lids for each jar, bands can be reused)
- Canning tools: jar lifter, canning ladle, funnel, and bubble popper
- Plus basic kitchen supplies such as a large sauce pot, large prep bowls, towels, a large slotted spoon, tongs, a knife, and a cutting board.
Step 2: Prepare the canning equipment
Check the jars carefully for nicks and cracks. Discard any damaged items as these will break in the canner. Wash the jars, lids, bands, and canning tools in warm, soapy water and rinse well. This will remove any dirt, food particles, or residue that could contaminate your food. Put the lids, bands, and tools away to dry until you are ready to use them.
Jars must be heated before they are filled to prevent the jars from breaking due to thermal shock. Put the canning rack in the water bath canner, then set the jars up on it. The water should come up to the level of the jars. Bring the canner to a simmer of 180 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes and keep hot until ready to fill.
Step 3: Make the syrup
To make the syrup, add sugar and water to a large saucepan and heat over medium-high until the sugar has dissolved. Then, reduce the heat to 180 degrees Fahrenheit and let it simmer.
Step 4: Prepare a lemon water bath
To stop the pears from browning, you can put them in a bowl of lemon water after peeling and slicing them. In a large bowl, mix together cold water, lemon juice from one lemon, or 1/2 cup of bottled lemon juice. You can also use Fruit Fresh to prevent browning. Follow the instructions on the container.
Step 5: Prepare the pears
Wash the pears well under clean, running water. To prepare pears, first peel them, then remove the core and cut into halves, quarters, or slices. As you work, add the pear pieces to the prepared lemon bath.
After draining the pears, add them to the sugar-syrup pot. Put a lid on the pot, turn up the heat, and wait until the contents come to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and fill the jars.
Step 6: Can the pears
Spread a kitchen towel on the counter. Use the jar lifter to remove a hot jar from the canner. Drain it and then place it on the towel. Keep the remaining jars in the canner, so the canning process continues.
Use tongs to place the hot pears into the jar. transferring the pears and syrup into the canning jars Use the canning funnel and ladle to pour the hot syrup over the pears, leaving a 1/2-inch headspace.
Use the bubble popper to remove air bubbles from the jars. Rub a damp towel around the rim of the object to remove any leftover residue. Put the lid on the jar and screw the band on until it is snug. Repeat the canning process with the remaining jars.
Bring the pot of water to a boil and make sure the water is covering the jars by several inches. Then, process the jars. After the jars have cooled, check to see if the seals are intact. Then label and date the jars before storing them in a cool, dark place.
Pour out the liquid from the can and use the pears for pies, crumbles, and other baked goods as if they were fresh. You can add this product to oatmeal and yogurt, or enjoy it as a snack straight from the jar.
Can You Can Pears Without Sugar?
You sure can! Sure “can”. The traditional amount of sugar recommended for preserved pears is too much for me.
Although sugar is often demonized, it does have some benefits when used in canning. These benefits include improved flavor, preservation, and color. Sweet food tastes better, lasts longer, and keeps its bright color.
Pears don’t need any extra sugar added while canning to be safe. The final product may not look as expected and may not last as long.
I walk the line between no sugar and low sugar for canning peaches and preserving pears. Canning is a great way to preserve food, but please use your best judgment when altering any official canning recipe. Plan to eat the finished product within 9-12 months.
Can You Can Pears In Honey Or Fruit Juice?
Preserving Pears With Honey
If you are using raw honey, any of the beneficial properties will be killed during the heating process. Please note this information. It’s more affordable to use regular honey for canning.
Preserving Pears With Juice
To make a hot pack, you’ll need 48 ounces of juice per 4 pounds of pears.
You can use frozen concentrated apple or white grape juice as a substitution for refined sugar syrup. To make a drink, mix one part concentrate with three parts water.
How Long Do You Process Pears In A Water Bath?
Pears need to be in a water bath canner for 20 minutes for pint canning jars, and 25 minutes for quarts. Pears need to be in a water bath canner for 20 minutes for pint canning jars, and 25 minutes for quarts.Pears need to be in a water bath canner for 20 minutes for pint canning jars, and 25 minutes for quarts.Pears need to be in a water bath canner for 20 minutes for pint canning jars, and 25 minutes for quarts.Pears need to be in a water bath canner for 20 minutes for pint canning jars, and 25 minutes for quarts.Pears need to be in a water bath canner for 20 minutes for pint canning jars, and 25 minutes for quarts.Pears need to be in a water bath canner for 20 minutes for pint canning jars, and 25 minutes for quarts.
Raw Pack For Canning Pears
Packing pears without precooking them simply involves placing the peeled fruit in jars, filling the jars with syrup, and processing the fruit in a canner.
If you are canning pears without any added sugar, you will need to hot pack them.
Packing pears in their raw state is much faster than using a hot pack process, but there are some disadvantages to doing this. No matter how well you pack the jars, the density of the fruit will change during their time in the canner. This means that you need to account for that change when packing your jars.
This often leads to the fruit floating to the top of the jar, leaving all syrup on the bottom, a phenomenon known as “fruit float.” You will also find this when you are canning whole tomatoes. You can still safely eat fruit float as long as the jars are sealed.
I prefer to canned fruit that is raw-packed because it is faster.
Hot Pack For Canning Pears
The hot packing method for canning fruit involves cooking the fruit in hot syrup before packing it into jars. Boil the beans in the canning syrup for about 5 minutes, then add them to your jars and ladle the hot syrup over the top.
Hot packing means putting fruit in a jar and then boiling the jars to seal them. The benefits of hot packing are that you can fit more fruit per jar, and there is almost no fruit float.
Canning Pears {Preserved Pears}
An easy step-by-step tutorial for beginners on preserving pears.
Ingredients
- 17 pounds pears
- 1/3 cup bottled lemon juice
- 6 cups water {plus more for the canner}
- 1 cup sugar
Equipment
- Canner
- Mixing bowl
- Knife
- Cutting Board
- Funnel
- Saucepan
- Canning jars
- Canning lids
- Canning rings
- Slotted spoon
Instructions
Canning Prep
- Prepare your water bath canner by filling it with water. You just need to have enough water to cover the jars by 2 inches once the water is boiling.
- Set the canner on the stove. Turn the burner to high. Once it reaches a boil, reduce it to simmer. You want to keep the water hot so that everything is ready when the pears are.
- Wash and sanitize your jars. You’ll want to keep them warm to avoid having them crack when placed in the canner. You can fill them with hot water, or place them on a tray in the oven at 170F.
- Wash your lids with hot soapy water and place them in a clean bowl for now.
Prep the Pears
- Fill a large bowl halfway with water and mix in 1/3 cup of bottled lemon juice.
- 1/3 cup bottled lemon juice
- Cut the tops and bottoms off of the fruit.
- 17 pounds pears
- Using a vegetable peeler, peel off all the pear skins.
- After that, cut the pear in half from the top to the bottom.
- Take the paring knife and make a cut from the stem to the bottom on one side. Repeat on the other side, then jiggle the core out. Discard the core, and put the pear in the water with the lemon juice.
- When the bowl is getting full of skinned/cored pears, start the syrup. In a large pot, mix 1 cup of sugar per 6 cups of water and heat over medium.
- 6 cups water,1 cup sugar
- (Hot pack option) Once the syrup is boiling, add the pears one layer at a time (a canning term that means don’t totally fill the pot) and heat for 5 minutes.
- (Hot pack option) Using a fork, grab the now softened pears one at a time, and put them cavity side down in the canning jar.
- (Raw pack option) use a fork and place the pears cavity side down in the canning jar.
- Return the burner under the canner back to high to get the water back to a rolling boil.
- Using a canning funnel and a ladle, slowly pour the hot syrup into the jars until the pears are completely covered. Leave 1/2 inch of headspace. Headspace is defined as the space between the top of the food and the top of the jar.
- Remove the bubbles from the jar (I use a plastic chopstick).
- Use a wet clean rag and wipe the rim of the jars to make sure it is free of any food or syrup.
- Place a clean lid and ring on the jar and tighten the ring to fingertip tight.
Canning the Pears
- Using canning tongs, add jars to the boiling water, and put the canner lid on. Pro tip: you must have at least 2 inches of water over the tops of the jars for safe canning.
- Once your jars are completely covered with the boiling water, put the lid on and boil for 20 minutes (pints) or 25 minutes (quarts).
- Once your jars are starting to process, fill up your next 6-7 jars with hot pears, syrup, etc.
- When the time is up, remove the canner from heat, and let sit for 5 minutes.
- Remove the jars using canning tongs and place them on towels on the counter undisturbed for 12-24 hours.
- After everything has cooled, check the seal by pushing down on the middle of the lid. If it doesn’t give way, it’s sealed. If the lid bows a little bit, put that in the fridge and use it within 3 weeks.
- Label the sealed jars, and store them in a cool dark place for up to a year.
Notes
- You’ll need about 17 pounds of pears to fill seven quarts.
- No matter how well you pack those jars, your pears may/will float to the top of the jars after canning. This is called fruit float. This is totally safe as long as the jars are sealed.
- Feel free to add some whole spices to the jars just prior to canning. Add 1 cinnamon stick, 1/2 tsp whole allspice, and 1/4 tsp whole cloves to each jar.
- Store in a cool dry place for up to 12 months.
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