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While many people think of canning as a seasonal activity, I preserve food all year long. Each season brings different foods and new opportunities to fill our shelves. There is something deeply satisfying about taking fresh produce and turning it into jars of food my family can enjoy in the months ahead.
But anyone who cans knows the truth: preparing all that produce can be the most time-consuming part. Washing, drying, peeling, slicing, chopping, and cooking can turn into a very long day.
After decades of preserving food for my family, I have learned that the right kitchen tools can make the preparation faster, easier, and far less tiring. These five Pampered Chef products can help you prepare fruits, vegetables, sauces, and other ingredients during canning season.
These are preparation tools, not canning equipment. Always use a current, tested canning recipe and the proper water-bath or pressure-canning method for the food you are preserving.
1. Salad & Berry Spinner: Start with Clean, Dry Produce
The Salad & Berry Spinner has quickly become one of my favorite tools. I already use it for fresh garden produce and for drying herbs before putting them into my dehydrator.
During canning season, it can help wash and dry berries, leafy greens, herbs, and smaller fruits and vegetables before you begin the rest of your prep. Removing excess water also makes produce easier and less slippery to handle when you move on to slicing or chopping.
I especially love having a tool that can handle delicate produce without requiring me to shake it around in a colander or spread everything across towels to dry.
Shop the Salad & Berry Spinner
2. Rapid-Prep Mandoline: Slice Large Batches Faster
If your canning recipe calls for a lot of evenly sliced or diced produce, the Rapid-Prep Mandoline can save a tremendous amount of preparation time.
It slices, dices, and julienne-cuts fruits and vegetables with eight thickness settings. That makes it especially helpful when preparing cucumbers for pickles, onions and peppers for relishes, or vegetables for other tested preservation recipes.
The upright design keeps your hands away from the blade while the food pusher moves produce through the cutter. Instead of slicing every piece individually with a knife, you can work through a large batch quickly and get more consistent pieces.
Always choose the cut size required by the tested recipe you are following.
3. Food Chopper: Make Quick Work of Onions, Peppers, and Herbs
The Food Chopper is a classic Pampered Chef tool for a reason. Every press rotates the stainless-steel blade, letting you control how coarsely or finely the ingredients are chopped.
During canning season, it is helpful for chopping smaller amounts of onions, peppers, tomatoes, garlic, and fresh herbs for salsa, relishes, sauces, and other recipes. The clear collar lets you see the texture as you work, and the enclosed design helps keep the food—and those onion fumes—contained.
It is especially convenient when a recipe needs several small batches of chopped ingredients and you do not want to pull out an electric appliance.
4. Stone-Fruit Wedger: Prepare Peaches and Plums in One Motion
When peaches, nectarines, plums, apricots, and other stone fruits are in season, preparing a large amount by hand can become tiring very quickly.
The Stone-Fruit Wedger removes the pit and cuts ripe fruit into 12 uniform slices in one motion. The nonslip base helps hold it steady, and the soft-grip handles make it more comfortable when working through a larger batch.
This can be especially useful when preparing ripe fruit for tested recipes such as pie fillings, preserves, or other canned and frozen fruit recipes. Just remember that the fruit must be ripe and no larger than the size listed in the product instructions.
5. Deluxe Cooking Blender: Cook and Blend in One Place
The Deluxe Cooking Blender can make preparing sauces, purees, and jams much easier because it heats and blends in the same container. That means fewer dishes and less transferring of hot ingredients between a pot and blender.
Its heated settings include Sauce, Heated Puree, and Jam, making it useful for preparing tomatoes, fruits, and other garden produce.
One important reminder: The blender prepares the food, but it does not make it shelf-stable. If you plan to can what you make, always follow a current, tested canning recipe and process it using the proper water-bath or pressure-canning method.
Shop the Deluxe Cooking Blender
Make Canning Season Easier From the Very First Step
Canning will always require time and work, but the right preparation tools can make a long day feel much more manageable.
You do not need to purchase every tool at once. Think about which part of preparing produce slows you down the most—washing, slicing, chopping, wedging, or blending—and start with the tool that would help you most.
Whether you are preserving food from your garden, farmers’ market, or a great seasonal sale, these Pampered Chef tools can help you prepare it with less time and effort.
Shop My Pampered Chef Canning-Season Favorites
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