Asparagus
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the jars
Use straight-sided quart glass jars to avoid breaking the stalks.
Wash the asparagus and cut to the right length to stand upright in the jar.
Pack the asparagus snugly in the jar with heads up.
Pour in cold water slowly until the jar is full to overflowing.
Process and store
Place straw or boards in the bottom of a wash boiler and stand the jars on this.
Pour in enough cold water to come halfway up the jars.
Boil the water steadily for three hours.
Check that the jars are full to overflowing; if not, fill with boiling water.
Put on rubbers and fasten the covers tightly.
Store in a cool, dark place.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Fresh asparagus
- Is the vegetable being preserved, packed upright in the jars and cooked through in the boiling water.
- Cold water
- Fills the jars and surrounds them in the boiler, so the jars stay full and heat is shared evenly.
The step that matters
Keep the jars full to overflowing. Any air left in the jar can let spoilage organisms grow and can cause the contents to discolour or lose quality. Topping up with boiling water before sealing helps drive out air and keep the stalks submerged.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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