Canning peaches is surprisingly easy to do at home. All you need is a few jars, a big pot, and a little sugar and you’re on your way. Home-canned peaches stored in glass mason jars also taste dramatically better than store-bought peaches in tin cans, and if you have your own peach tree, they’re almost free.
We’re just getting in our first peach trees this year, and it’ll be a while until we have our own homegrown peaches. We’re in zone 4, and it’s hard to find peach varieties for cold climates. Plant breeders have been hard at work, and there are now several varieties that produce well in our area.
In the meantime, our local food coop imports Amish peaches from Pennsylvania by the caseload. Every year I buy a case and can up a big batch for wintertime peach cobbler.
Peaches, or more specifically, peach jam was the first thing I canned with a mentor in my youth. Call it a gateway fruit if you want, but I was hooked. My first batch was admittedly a bit lackluster.
I was a kid, and I got to choose how much sugar went into the batch. At that point in my life, more sugar made everything better and I just about ruined the batch. You could barely taste the fruit, and peach-colored candy is a better description of the results.
Fast forward a few decades and I still can’t handle over-sweetened canned goods, jam or otherwise. I use very light syrup when canning peaches, but there are plenty of choices based on your preferences.
Peach Varieties Safe for Canning
All known varieties of yellow-fleshed peaches are safe for water bath canning at home. No exceptions. White-fleshed peaches are another matter.
Scientists at the National Center for Home Food Preservation recently discovered that some varieties of white-flesh peaches may not be safe for canning. While yellow peaches are a high acid food, some varieties of white flesh peaches have a more delicate flavor and far less acidity. Fruits must have a pH below 4.6 to be safe for canning, and white-fleshed peaches may not quite make it.
There’s currently no tested safe method for canning white-fleshed peaches, but theoretically, they should be fine for canning using the same methods as other low acid fruits. Home-canned mangoes are one example of another low acid fruit that’s not acidic enough on its own, but it should, in theory, be safe with added lemon juice.
Pressure canning is also another option if you have a bumper crop of peaches. While you don’t need to pressure can yellow peaches, some people prefer to pressure can in general and there is an approved method.
Yellow peaches are pressure canned at 6 pounds of pressure for 10 minutes anywhere below 2,000 feet in elevation. White peaches would require either higher pressure to be safe, and that might just pulverize the tender fruit.
As always, if you’re canning at home, use your best judgment. If you have white peaches to preserve, the only approved method is freezing, so maybe skip the canner altogether to be on the safe side?
Choosing Peaches for Canning
Just about any yellow fleshed peach can be preserved by canning, but some will do better than others. Here are a few things to consider when choosing peaches for canning:
- Freestone or Clingstone – Most grocery store peaches are freestone these days, and the flesh comes away easily from the pit. Older varieties and backyard trees may be clingstone, which makes it nearly impossible to can peach halves. Clingstone peaches are a bit more work, but they often have amazing flavor in return, just plan on canning them as slices.
- Size – Larger peaches have more flesh per peach, and will save you quite a bit of time in peeling. If you’re planning on canning peach halves instead of slices, aim for small to medium-sized peaches so that the halves will fit in a jar.
- Ripeness – Very ripe peaches have soft flesh and are lower acid than firm peaches. Choose peaches that are just barely ripe. The flesh should still be firm but they’ve lost all the green around the stem. Just ripe peaches will hold together better, and result in a much better texture in your home-canned peaches.
A perfectly ripe peach with firm flesh and no green skin on top.
Syrup for Canning Peaches
Peaches are quite sweet on their own, and the fact that they’re high acid means they can be water bath canned in just about any liquid. Plain water works, but will wash out the flavor. Fruit juice or very light syrup work better, since they’re about as sweet as the peaches and won’t leach any of the sugars from the peaches, and they won’t make them any sweeter either.
If you’re not up for a low sugar recipe, light and medium syrups work just fine too. Here’s how to make a number of different syrups for canning peaches:
- Water Pack – Simple enough, just make sure the water is boiling hot before it goes into the jars.
- Juice Pack – Fruit juices such as apple or white grape juice are a natural way to can peaches without refined sugar. Just like water pack, be sure that the juices are boiling hot when packing the jars.
- Very Light Syrup – This mimics the natural sugar content of peaches and will result in the most natural flavor. For a 9-pint canner load, use 3/4 cups sugar and 6 1/2 cups water. For a 7-quart canner load, add 1 1/4 cups sugar to 10 1/2 cups water.
- Light Syrup – For the most part, light syrup is used to add just a hint of sweetness to fruits that are very sweet already. Peaches are a great choice for light syrup, and that’s often how they’re packed in the grocery store. For a 9-pint canner load, use 1 1/2 cups sugar and 5 3/4 cups water. For a 7-quart canner load, add 2 1/4 cups sugar to 9 cups water.
- Medium Syrup – If you like your canned peaches really sweet, choose medium syrup. They’ll be pretty over the top, don’t say I didn’t warn you…For a 9-pint canner load, use 2 1/4 cups sugar and 5 1/4 cups water. For a 7-quart canner load, add 3 3/4 cups sugar to 8 1/4 cups water.
Canning Peaches with Honey or Maple
Since peaches can be canned in just about any liquid, the amount or type of sugar in the syrup doesn’t affect their safety. Honey canned peaches are a popular choice because the honey flavor complements the flavor of the peaches. We make our own maple on our Vermont homestead, so that’s an obvious choice for us.
Whether you’re using honey or maple to sweeten the canning syrup, use about 2/3rds as much as you would sugar. Honey and maple are both much sweeter than sugar, and you’ll need less volume to get the same amount of sweetness compared to white sugar.
For example, if you’re making a 9-pint canner batch of canned peaches with very light syrup, use 1/2 cup of honey instead of 3/4 cup of sugar added to 6 1/2 cups of water. Since the sugar level isn’t crucial to the safety of the canned peaches, feel free to approximate. Roughly 2/3rds will give you a similar level of sweetness, but there’s no need to be exact.
Hot Pack or Raw Pack Canning
There are two main ways to pack peaches for canning, or any fruit for that matter. Peaches are safe and approved for both methods, and they each have their pros and cons. While I raw pack my canned pineapple without issue, peaches aren’t as forgiving. Hot pack peaches make dramatically better quality canned peaches.
- Hot Pack Canned Peaches – Peaches are quickly boiled in their canning syrup to heat them and pre-cook them before canning. This drives off some of the air that’s naturally in the fruit’s tissues. Removing that extra air prevents the peaches from floating, and helps keep the canned peaches from browning over time. In many areas, this is the only method approved for entry into a state fair because the peaches retain their quality better over time, and they’re more attractive in the jar.
- Raw Pack Canned Peaches – For a raw pack, the peeled and pitted peaches are packed into jars raw. The canning liquid, usually syrup of some kind, is brought to a boil and poured over the raw peaches before the jars are sealed and processed in a water bath canner. It’s much easier to pack the jars since the fruit isn’t hot, and this is a good option if the peaches will be eaten in the next 2-3 months. If you’re storing raw pack peaches for longer periods of time they may brown or deteriorate. Even if they discolor, they’re still safe to eat for just as long as hot pack peaches.
Raw pack peaches on the left leave half-filled jars as the peaches shrink during cooking. Raw packed fruit also floats since it contains quite a bit of air. Hot pack (right) results in a much more attractive jar and higher quality canned peaches.
How Many Peaches Fit in a Canning Jar?
Obviously, the number of peaches that’ll fit in a canning jar varies based on how big the peaches are. Roughly speaking though, it takes around 17 to 18 pounds of peaches to make a 7-quart canner batch or around 10 to 12 pounds for a 9-pint canner batch. That works out to about 2-3 pounds per quart jar or 1 1/4 pounds per pint jar.
That said, if you’re canning halved peaches, slightly less will fit in a jar. Sliced peaches pack more densely in a canning jar, and you may be able to fit slightly more.
Regardless of how you’ve sliced the peaches, be sure to pack them into the jars as densely as you can. Peaches shrink during the canning process, and if you don’t really cram them into the jars you’ll end up with sad looking half-filled jars.
My giant farmhouse sink holds just over one canner load (7 quarts) worth of peaches, and I use that sink to cold water bath them after a quick blanching for peeling. This time I had gigantic peaches, so it took about 28 peaches or 4 huge peaches per jar. It’d take 5-6 average-sized peaches to fill a quart jar.
Peeling Peaches for Canning
The first step to canning peaches is removing their fuzzy skins. Bring a pot of water to a boil on the stove, and then dip each peach in the boiling water for 2-3 minutes. With very ripe peaches, it’ll take less time and firmer peaches require more cooking to peel.
If the peach skins just aren’t listening, try making a shallow X on the bottom of each peach with a sharp knife before placing the peach in boiling water. This will help the skin start to peel easier.
Scoop the peaches out of the boiling water with a slotted spoon and drop them into a sink or bowl full of ice water. Once they’re cool, the skins should remove easily with your fingers.
How to Can Peaches
Now that we’ve gone through just about every variation and option available, how do I do it?
In my kitchen, I can peaches in very light syrup using the hot pack method. Most often, I use quart jars because that’s just about the right size for a cobbler to feed my family of 4. Here’s my simple recipe for canning peaches at home, but hopefully you’ve learned a thing or two about how to modify the recipe to suit your family’s needs.
Filling jars for hot packed canned peaches, leaving 1 inch of headspace.
Start by peeling and slicing the peaches. Make a syrup by bringing the right proportion of sugar and water to a boil in a large pot.
For very light syrup, you’ll need 10 1/2 cups water and 1 1/4 cups sugar. Add the peaches into the boiling syrup, wait until the syrup returns to a boil, and then cook the peaches for a few minutes.
Pack the hot peaches tightly into quart or pint mason jars, and top the jars with boiling syrup. Remove the air bubbles, and be sure to leave 1 inch of headspace. Attach 2-part canning lids and process in a water bath canner for 25 minutes for quarts and 20 minutes for pints (under 1000 feet elevation).
Peach Canning Recipes
There are plenty of ways to preserve peaches at home, and these peach canning recipes will keep your pantry stocked!
Canning Peaches
A tried and tested recipe for canning peaches at home in light syrup. After trying many different variations, I find that this recipe yields the best-tasting home canned peaches.
Ingredients
- 17-18 pounds peaches
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 10 1/2 cups water
- boiling water, for peeling peaches
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and submerge peaches for 30-90 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon and cool in ice water. Peel the peaches with your hands, the skins should slip off easily. If they don't repeat the boiling process.
- Slice the peaches in half and remove pits. They can be canned as half peaches, or sliced, it's up to you.
- Bring 10 1/2 cups water and 1 1/4 cups sugar to a boil in a stockpot. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Add peaches and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Ladle hot peaches into prepared quart canning jars (or pints if you prefer). This recipe should yield a full 7-quart canner batch.
- Top the peaches in the jars with syrup, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and seal with 2 part canning lids.
- Process in a water bath canner, 20 minutes for pints and 25 minutes for quarts under 1000 feet in elevation. If you prefer to pressure can, process for 10 minutes at 5 pounds pressure in a weighted gauge pressure canner. (Use 6 pounds in a dial gauge pressure canner.)
Nutrition Information:
Serving Size:
1 gramsAmount Per Serving: Unsaturated Fat: 0g
Ways to Preserve Peaches
Looking for more ways to preserve peaches?
James McGarity
New at this so I’m reading a lot
Ashley Adamant
Good! Hope you found what you’re looking for, let me know if you have questions.
alisa
I just got a bog ole box of peaches, thanks for the great information!
Lila Dodd
Thank you for this thoroughly detailed post! Now I know why my first ever batch of canned peaches appeared to float in a jar full of liquid. No more raw pack for me!
Admin
Awesome! I’m so glad it helped solve your canning issue!
Karen Brophy
What does “raw packing” mean
Administrator
Raw packing simply means putting your raw fruit into the canning jar. You then boil your canning liquid and pour it over top of the raw fruit as opposed to hot pack where you are actually cooking your fruit in the canning liquid for a short time prior to filling the jars.
Karen Brophy
I tried raw packing for the first time this year per my question and response from the administrator. I opened my first jar this morning and am very pleased with the results. The liquid I put in the jars was mostly just water with just a bit of the “juice” made from natural juices as I sliced them with “Fresh Fruit” sprinkled during preparation.
Thank you
Administrator
You’re very welcome. So glad they turned out well for you.
Marlane Miller
How do I make a peach pie with the home canned peaches?
Ashley Adamant
The same way you’d make a pie with fresh ones, or you can use the juice too, it’s up to you. You’ll need a bit of thickener (corn starch, flour, or whatever your preference). I used to drain the liquid and just use the peaches like I would a fresh peach, but eventually, I started draining the liquid into a pan, thickening it with corn starch and then tossing the peaches back in. Saves more flavor that way. Then I just pour it all into a pie pan.
Virginia Kacludis
Can you get botulism from canning peaches easily?
Administrator
Not if you use the safe canning procedures outlined in this post.
Norma
Our 4 year old 5 foot peach tree just yielded about 100 peaches! Your recipe looks perfect for my needs. Thanks!
Ashley Adamant
Woah congratulations! And happy canning =)
Barbara Alden
FIRST YEAR OUR PEACH TREE YIELED ANY FRUIT!! YOUR SITE HAD SOO MANY HELPFUL HINTS FOR SUCCESS..THANK YOU..CANT WAIT!!
Administrator
So glad you found it helpful.
Nancy Glaviano
How long do you process for 5000 feet elevation? Great article BTW. Thank you!
Administrator
Here is a chart that gives you the break down of processing times for different elevations and sizes for both water bath canning and pressure canning.
Brenda Cook
I pack my peaches for water bath and only have room for 7 qts. Can I water bath the remaining after I finish first or do I have to do em all at once
Ashley Adamant
If that remaining jar cools while the others are canning, it’s likely that it’ll explode in the canner from thermal shock. What you can do though, is remove all the other jars AND remove the water from the canner. Then place the jar in with warm-ish water. Bring the whole pot to a boil together and begin timing when the pot comes to a boil. That’s the best way I can think of to actually can that remaining jar without breaking it.
Alternatively, of course, you could just put that last jar in the fridge and use it within 2 weeks or so. Good luck!
Susan Schwartz
Can you use a stock pot instead of a water canner?
Administrator
Yes, you can. Just be sure that you put something in the bottom so that the jars are not sitting directly on the bottom of the stock pot.
Frank
Is it necessary to remove the skins?
Ashley Adamant
It is not strictly necessary to remove the skins from a safety perspective (as far as I know), but it’ll affect the quality of the finished product. I would guess that the skins would fall off during the canning process, and they’d likely be tough when you went to use them. That said, I’ve never done it, so I can’t say for sure. If you try it, let me know how it goes!
Roxanne
I rub the peaches in a towel to remove the fuzz and leave the skins on. Some fall off during cooking. The rest can be easily peeled off, if you want, when you open the jar. They’re tougher than the peach, but that isn’t surprising. Whether you want to eat them or not is personal preference.
Karen Brophy
I usually peel, slice the peaches and put them in freezer bags with no syrup just Ball Fresh Fruit. They are delicious! I don’t have much freezer room this year so (fingers crossed) I’m going to quarter the peaches again with only Ball Fresh Fruit, put in Ball quart jars and boil. I do not like to put any sugar on them. I hope I’ll be successful! ALSO, I peel my peaches with a vegetable peeler. It works great for me. Once in awhile a too ripe peach is alittle difficult. Still easier than boiling, cooling, peeling. Wish me luck all!
Vickie Halteman
I use 2 t stevia to a gallon of water as a light syrup.
Lisa
Whenever I am looking up info or recipes for canning, I always find your articles to be the best, most informative and thorough! And your photos are great, too! Thank you!
Ashley Adamant
Wonderful, thank you Lisa! So glad you found it helpful =)
Amy Koehlinger
Just made 10 quarts. I’ve canned peaches before but I really appreciated your discussion of acid and the different levels of sugar. Really, helpful information! Thank you so much.
Rae Hutch
Hi Ashley, I will be trying your canned peaches recipe today as my mother in law dropped off a box of peaches. I usually make peach jam but wanted to try something different. Your canning knowledge is very good and I am confident the peaches will turn out great. One thing I do when I make peach jam is use the skin and pits to make peach syrup. It is excellent and nothing goes to waste. Here is the link to the recipe. http://www.therealfarmhouse.com/how-to-make-peach-syrup-using-only-the-skins-and-pits/
Thank you so much for the great canning information.
Ashley Adamant
Nice! We use the peels to make peach jelly, but peach syrup sounds great too! Thanks for the recipe =)
Tracy Carroll
I am canning at 2500 feet. How long do I need to process?
Ashley Adamant
It’d be 25 minutes for pints or 30 Minutes for quarts. For 1000 to 3000 ft, add 5 minutes. For 3000 to 6000 feet, add 10 minutes and above 6000 feet add 15 minutes.
Jessica
How many peaches does one jar hold?
Ashley Adamant
Roughly speaking though, it takes around 17 to 18 pounds of peaches to make a 7-quart canner batch or around 10 to 12 pounds for a 9-pint canner batch. That works out to about 2-3 pounds per quart jar or 1 1/4 pounds per pint jar. This time I had gigantic peaches, so it took about 28 peaches, or 4 huge peaches per jar. It’d take 5-6 average-sized peaches to fill a quart jar.
gina
Thank you SO MUCH for this article on canning peaches safely! I recently canned Pickled Golden Beets with Ginger (Recipe Courtesy: https://www.mountainfeed.com/blogs/learn/91230983-pickled-golden-beets-with-ginger ) and had a small pan-full of the brine leftover. I had used Barefoot Riesling to make the brine (the recipe gives a choice of 3 types of liquid to use for making the brine/syrup with). The brine tasted amazing, and we can’t wait to try the beets in a month or so, but I got a hair-brained idea to try simmering a couple of peaches (pitted & quartered) in the remaining brine. We simmered the peaches for an hour, then put them over top of vanilla ice cream along with some of the brine / syrup. OH MY WORD… there aren’t words to express how delicious this was! So, my mom bought a bushel of peaches from the local Mennonite general store near where she lives and is bringing them up later this week for us to can. We plan to use the recipe for the brine/syrup for peaches, from the golden beets canning recipe, and I wanted to make sure to do it safely. I’ve done a lot of canning, but this will be my first time canning peaches.
Again, thank you so much for the information!
Shirley Hursh
Just wondering- when you put the syrup into the jars do you make fresh syrup or use what you cooked the peaches in?
Ashley Adamant
Use what you cooked the peaches in. It’ll have more flavor since a bit of peach flavor will go into it during the cooking, and there’s no need to waste it.
Debbie Pagan
Ashley thank you so much for all the GREAT information. I have been canning for years and usually make peach jam. Your recipe and knowledge has inspired me to can the peaches and have them all winter long.
I am curious to ask you this. Most recipes have you dip in lemon juice to protect the color. Your pictures show a beautiful color remaining. Is there any information you may have found about the lemon juice dipping?
Thanks so much –
Ashley Adamant
It’s interesting, I’ve heard that from a number of people, asking about lemon juice. I didn’t and they didn’t brown in the time it took me to get them all sliced, but I’m really fast with a paring knife. I used to work in a commercial kitchen and it literally only takes me a few minutes to peel and slice everything. Lemon juice, in general, is a great idea to maintain color but I haven’t had an issue with the peaches we get here.
Jenny
Question: after I have removed skins from peaches and sliced do I put in syrup while I’m cutting up the rest of my other peaches? Or do I wait and put them all in syrup right before I put in jars? I’m afraid they will turn color while I’m cutting the other peaches. As I’m slicing peaches should I just keep them in a bowl until I’m ready to add to syrup? Sorry, I’m a first timer. Thanks
Ashley Adamant
Just keep them all in a a bowl while your slicing. Mind didn’t brown while I was slicing them up, but I’m pretty fast with a knife. If you’re worried about it browing, sprinkle a little lemon juice on the slices and stir it in. You can add a bit more every few peaches so they all get coated as you work.
While you’re slicing the peaches, bring the syrup to a boil on the stove so it’s ready to go as soon as they’re all sliced. Then you can put the sliced peaches right into the hot syrup as soon as you’re done so you can hot pack the jars. If you’re raw packing for some reason, just pack them raw into the jars and pour the hot syrup over before canning.
Good luck!
Joyce
Why do you have to do the water bath for 20 minutes. What value does that add vs just doing it for 5 minutes.
Ashley Adamant
The canning times are set in the lab of the national center for food preservation. They put temperature sensors into the jars and determine the amount of time it takes to heat that jar through to the center. When you blanch the peaches, they’re not cooked all the way through completely, plus then they’re handled at cooler temperatures (below boiling) before they go into the jar.
The 20 minutes ensures the jar gets completely and evenly heated through all the peaches, and that it is hot enough inside the air pocket to create a vacuum in the headspace.
Veleda Hare
What happens after everything you think you did right and one of your jar is sealed but the peaches start to drop?
Ashley Adamant
If the jars are sealed, then you’re in good shape. The peaches should drop as they cool (unless you’ve raw packed, in that case, likely they’ll keep floating because of the extra air in their tissues). That’s totally normal.
Lorraine A Clark
Is it okay to add a vanilla bean and cardamon pod seed to this to make Niagara peaches?
Ashley Adamant
I’d suggest infusing those into the syrup and then removing as both can be intense if left in the jar for too long (especially the cardamom, which can get bitter in canning). That said, to the best of my knowledge it’s fine to can peaches with some added spices left in the jars (not strained out), so it’s your choice on that.
Peggy
I’ve been slow to the idea of canning as it’s 2 of us, but, the way things are going, I thought I’d learn. I love the simplicity of your method. I’ve read recipe after recipe, and I noticed you didn’t mention keeping the jars warm to avoid cracking. Or did I miss it? Thanks so much! I’m going to use your method!
Administrator
It’s definitely a good idea to keep the jars warm. Sometimes I do and sometimes I don’t. You certainly take a chance on the jars cracking if you don’t but I have done it many times without warming them and had success that way as well.
Corrine
Hi Ashley, just wondering if I can use water diluted apple juice (instead of full strength apple juice) as my very light syrup? Wondering, also, what health difference, if any, comes with using juice instead of sugar water, if you know?
Ashley Adamant
Yes, you can dilute the juice for canning liquid (or even can in plain water if you want). The health difference may or may not exist really. Some people believe that fruit juice is a more natural sugar than cane sugar, but that’s debatable. Once is fructose, the other glucose, which also might make a difference since some people have reactions to one type or the other (rare in any case). It’s all a matter of personal preference, but I just use cane sugar because it doesn’t flavor the peaches in any way, whereas apple juice will make them taste slightly apply-y.
Mark
Think I have a problem. My peach tree finally produced. So I picked a bunch. And canned them. I am a bit familiar with canning and I know the lids should ping when they seal. I did water bath them for 25 minutes. What I have found is that one day the lids are sunk in like they sealed. Then the next hour or day the lid is not sunk in. Can you go back with new lids and water bath them again for another 25 minutes?
This is my first time canning and not watching someone else do it.
Ashley Adamant
The lids should go down and stay down. If they’re coming back up at all after “pinging” then they’re not sealed. I believe you can re-can peaches if you process them again within a day or to of the unsealed jar and keep them in the fridge in the meantime. If you find an unsealed jar in the pantry and have no idea how long it’s been unsealed then you shouldn’t eat it (which may well be obvious, since it likely will get fuzzy/moldy/nasty anyway.
Generally, you leave the jars on the counter for 24 hours and then check the seals. If they’re sealed, I put them away, unsealed I put them in the fridge. I’ve never had more than 1 unsealed jar in a batch, so I’ve never had to go through the re-canning process. If I had a whole batch that didn’t seal, I’d pour them all back into a big pot, bring the whole thing to a boil and then re-load into clean jars and process in a water bath canner again. (I’ve also never had a jar that “pinged” and then unsealed later, though I’ve heard others have had this problem. I believe it comes from not having clean rims on the jars. If sugar syrup is on the rim of the jar, the jar may appear to seal, but then can pop open and spoil. At least that’s my best guess as to the cause of this problem. Try making sure you wipe the rims clean with a damp towel before putting on the lids.)
That’s my best guess, and I hope everything works out for you!
Peggy
I love how easy you keep your answers! Thank you!
Lori M
Thanks for all the detailed steps. This will be my 1st try at canning, so wish me luck! Lol.
Ashley Adamant
Wonderful, I hope it turns out for you!
Jasmine Lakin
Thank you for the info, very helpful! We bought a flat of peaches at a farm stand, and we canned half which ended up being 3 full pints and then used the other half of the flat for peach cobbler. Yum!
Ashley Adamant
Wonderful!
Ramona Peck
What do you mean by “remove air” from the jar?. How do you do that?
Ashley Adamant
Sometimes air bubbles get trapped under the peach slices. Poking them a bit will release the bubbles. You’re supposed to do it with a non metal implement, as the metal can heat shock the jar (it’s cold initially, before the hot liquid heats it). I use the handle side of a wooden spoon to de-bubble jars. Anyhow, once the air bubbles come out you’ll likely need to top off the jars a bit since the liquid level will have dropped.
Catherine
Hi- made your recipe tonight and pressed out all of the air bubbles but after processing them in the canner, there are air bubbles! Argh! What to do?
Administrator
Did you do the raw pack or hot pack?
Tammy Cooper
Thank you very much. Turned out great. I would love to try your peach cobbler recipe.
Marie
I was wondering if I take the quart jars out of the bath and the liquid is bubbling and some dripping off the top, does that mean I did t get a correct seal and are they safe to eat?
Ashley Adamant
So long as you get a seal, that’s fine. There are a lot of potential causes for it, and it’s called sciphoning. Here’s a good article on the subject: https://www.healthycanning.com/loss-of-liquid-during-home-canning/
Eileen
Do I have to use a canning pot for the water bath? Can I use a regular pot?
Ashley Adamant
A regular pot works fine (that’s what I use), just make sure it’s deep enough. The water level needs to cover the jars by at least an inch, and the water level will rise as you add jars. I use a 5 gallon stock pot, the same one I use for making big batches of pasta sauce or homebrew beer.
Glenn Shaw
Good explanation about home canning of Peaches. I have made and canned peach jam. Now I am going to try just peaches. But did you know that Pennsylvania is mis-spelled? It has two n’s. After William Penn. Probably just a typo!
Admin
Thanks for catching the typo!
Rich Judy (not Judy Rich)
Ashley;
The very first article on peach canning, and I need to go no further.
I’ve never canned, but look forward to. I am limited to grocery store peaches which are very good this year. I have a question about boiling at 6,300 ft. elevation, and a question about the following;
“Top the peaches in the jars with syrup, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and seal with 2 part canning lids.
Process in a water bath canner, 20 minutes for pints and 25 minutes for quarts under 1000 feet in elevation.”
Seal the jars. Well I am familiar with the two-part lids. Are they to be sealed air tight at this stage. I assume since the contained peaches are relatively hot from the ‘Very light Syrup” that nothing will explode. Where does wax come into place. Seems like Grandma had paraffin around.
Can my organic seed-to-mature tomatoes be canned?
THANK YOU VERY MUCH
Ashley Adamant
Paraffin canning is an old technique that’s no longer considered safe (though plenty of people still do it). There’s no paraffin in this recipe.
Processing in a water bath canner means putting the hot jars in a deep pot full of boiling water for the specified time. At higher elevation, it takes longer since water boils at a lower temperature.
Here are the process times at different elevations:
** O to 1,000 Feet Elevation
Hot pack – Pints – 20 Min
Hot Pack – Quarts – 25 Min
Raw Pack – Pints – 25 Min
Raw Pack – Quarts – 30 Min
**1,001 to 3,000 Feet Elevation
Hot pack – Pints – 25 Min
Hot Pack – Quarts – 20 Min
Raw Pack – Pints – 30 Min
Raw Pack – Quarts – 35 Min
**3,001 to 6,000 Feet Elevation
Hot pack – Pints – 30 Min
Hot Pack – Quarts – 35 Min
Raw Pack – Pints – 35 Min
Raw Pack – Quarts – 40 Min
**Above 6,000 Feet Elevation
Hot pack – Pints – 35 Min
Hot Pack – Quarts – 40 Min
Raw Pack – Pints – 40 Min
Raw Pack – Quarts – 45 Min
Rich Judy
Ashley;
Are the hot jars sealed? Are the hot jars completely submerged in the boiling water bath?
Ashley Adamant
The hot jars are submerged in the boiling water bath. If you’re not familiar with water bath canning, this primer takes you through everything you need to know: https://practicalselfreliance.com/water-bath-canning-beginners/
Rich Judy (not Judy Rich)
AShley;
Forgot to ask;
Wht can I add, at what time, to give peaches a hot ‘kick’. I like spicy.
Admin
How about ginger? Yum!
Anne Graham
This is the best site I’ve found in searching for days. I can’t ever seem to get the timing right for everything. I had a 30lb box of peaches and did half of them-which should have been enough for 7QTS. It barley made 5.5. I went ahead and followed all the steps as best as I could. The first jar I pulled out of the crater bath was spitting! I just left it and got the others. I did tomatoes last weekend. Both times there is a bunch of liquid on the bottom, about 2-3”. What am I doing wrong? I’ve got 2 dozen corn and oh! Too much stuff!! I just got a pressure cooker but I’m scared if it. Silly, I know.
Ashley Adamant
Jars “spitting” is called siphoning, and there are a lot of potential reasons for it. There’s a good article on that here: https://www.healthycanning.com/loss-of-liquid-during-home-canning/
For the liquid at the bottom, meaning your fruit is floating, that’s often the result of not packing your jars tight enough or raw packing. There will always be some space at the bottom, as fruit shrinks during canning, but if it seems excessive try hot pack instead of raw.
Pam J
I have been canning peaches for the past two years following the “hot pack method” we found on various websites. However, our quart jars consistently looked like the sample you show on this site as processed by the “cold pack method” with 1/4 of the jar being syrup and the peach slices floating at the top.
Discovering you site this weekend, we processed 11 jars following your processing instructions for a very light syrup and tightly packing the peaches into the quart jars. The result was much better with about 1 inch of syrup at the bottom of each jar.
Not sure why my peach slices enjoy floating so I am interested in your comments on what I might do differently.
Thanks
Carolyn
I have a question. You mentioned in this article that very ripe peaches have less acid. Is it necessary then to add lemon juice or something when canning? I had to work and now my peaches are very ripe and I have to can them quickly or freeze them.
Ashley Adamant
So long as they’re yellow peaches they should be below the threshold even at the very ripe stage.
ANN GOPLEN
HO DO I ADJUST CANNING TIMES FOR ELEVATION? I’M AT ABOUT 5OOO FEET ASL.
Ashley Adamant
Here are the processing times for peaches at different elevations:
** O to 1,000 Feet Elevation
Hot pack – Pints – 20 Min
Hot Pack – Quarts – 25 Min
Raw Pack – Pints – 25 Min
Raw Pack – Quarts – 30 Min
**1,001 to 3,000 Feet Elevation
Hot pack – Pints – 25 Min
Hot Pack – Quarts – 20 Min
Raw Pack – Pints – 30 Min
Raw Pack – Quarts – 35 Min
**3,001 to 6,000 Feet Elevation
Hot pack – Pints – 30 Min
Hot Pack – Quarts – 35 Min
Raw Pack – Pints – 35 Min
Raw Pack – Quarts – 40 Min
**Above 6,000 Feet Elevation
Hot pack – Pints – 35 Min
Hot Pack – Quarts – 40 Min
Raw Pack – Pints – 40 Min
Raw Pack – Quarts – 45 Min
Holly
I’m excited to try this tomorrow! I only got 13-14 lbs of peaches but will modify the recipe accordingly. I was wondering if you’ve had any experience making brandied peaches. I saw this NYT recipe (https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1012720-brandied-peaches) and want to give it a go but am unsure about canning with alcohol. Thanks!
Ashley Adamant
That recipe should be fine for canning. It’s just a bit of brandy in the canned peaches for flavor. (You can also just preserve peaches in brandy, which is what I thought the recipe would be, and then with just 2 ingredients they’d keep without canning at all).
Diane
Do you put all the peaches into the boiling syrup at once or in batches? That’s a lot of peaches and very little syrup
Administrator
You will put all of the peaches into the boiling syrup. The peaches will release some liquid on their own.
Cathy
Do you ever use the leftover canning syrup/peach juice after you’ve filled and processed the peaches? I’m wondering if I should try to make syrup or jelly with it.
Administrator
I have seen lots of ideas to freeze it and use it in flavorings for beverages or pouring it over ice cream, cake or pancakes.
Karen
Thanks for sharing the recipe, nice and easy!
Administrator
You’re welcome! So glad you enjoyed it.
Bob Coleman
You wrote: “We make our own maple on our Vermont homestead.”
Is the maple syrup processing operation equivalent to the canning process?
How do you ensure that the maple syrup is not contaminated with bacteria when it is bottled and sealed?
Administrator
Here is a post all about making maple syrup. https://practicalselfreliance.com/making-maple-syrup/ You basically are going to boil it down for an extended period of time. You will know that it is finished when it is 7.5 degrees above the boiling point of water. Here is another one about canning the syrup. https://practicalselfreliance.com/canning-maple-syrup/ If canned and stored properly, it should last indefinitely.
Michelle
I need quick help hopefully…I just received a box of peaches I hope to can…question 1 is they are still very firm so do I wait for them to soften as I would to eat it fresh? It would currently be pretty crunchy. Second question is, with boiling in syrup and then boiling for 25 min or whatever it was are they going to be mush upon time I want to eat them? Final question, once removing the skin doesn’t the peach mutilate attempting to twist it off the seed? Thank you! Hope to have help in time!
Administrator
You want them to be just ripe meaning that they are still firm but have lost all the green around the stem. This will help them retain a better texture once canned. As far as the pit goes, that depends on what kind of peach you choose. The freestone varieties will remove much more easily.
karmen bradbury
i was told presser canning fruit would last 10 years wile water pack only 12 months, if that is true why?
Administrator
I have never heard of a distinction between pressure canning and water bath canning in regards to the shelf life. According to the National Center for Home Food Preservation, home-canned food is at its best quality within a year. It can still be safe to eat after that but the quality tends to diminish over time. They make no distinction between pressure canned or water bath.
Robert
How do you stop the jars from breaking when you pour the hot juice in?
Administrator
Canning jars are designed to withstand high temperatures but it’s a good idea to warm your jars in advance so that they don’t get such a temperature shock.
steve
My jars are in ml, and the “quarts to cups of sugar” ratios are horrible… i honestly didnt end up bothering and just used the syrup from my canned apricot recipe… please add the measurements in ml and grams so its not ridiculous to try and scale it down
Alisha
I just finished canning my batch of peaches and wasn’t thinking (or reading obviously) and only hot water processed them for 10 minutes. I sterilized the jars and did a hot pack. All the jars are sealed now…do you think their okay? Is there anyway to save these?
Administrator
You may have been looking at the processing time for pressure canning. It is recommended that you reprocess jars within 24 hours so if it has been longer than that then you probably shouldn’t.
Vickie Halteman
My aunt used to pour the hot peaches (boiled in the syrup) into hot jars, put the hot lids on and let them sit on the counter to seal. No one died yet.
Administrator
Not following proper canning procedures can be very dangerous. It can lead to botulism which has in fact killed people. This is not a chance that I am willing to take when there is a simple solution that can prevent it.
Mahalia
I’m new to canning, last night I canned peaches on my own for the first time, In the recipe book I used it said to water bath can for 30 minutes. I let my water get to a boil, then I took the lid off and it stopped boiling, and placed the cans in, I put the lid on and took them out 35 minutes later. But I’m wondering if it’s a problem that it wasn’t at a rolling boil the whole time, I wasn’t checking, but for all I know it might not have reached a boil for 10 minutes, which would mean they were only processed for a fraction of the time they were meant to. Are they unsafe to consume? If I consume them in the next week would it be safe?
Administrator
Your processing time should start when the water is boiling. If you are unsure of the processing time, I would put them in the fridge and eat them as quickly as possible. You could also put them in the freezer as well if you can’t eat them all within the next week.
Lyn Barlow
How does the recipe vary for higher elevations?
Administrator
The National Center for Home Food Preservation is a great resource for recipe variations for higher elevations. They have great charts for processing times. Here is a link for the chart on peaches. https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_02/peach_sliced.html
Ray
A tip from someone who grew up canning…instead of making a syrup, fill half of your quart jar with sliced peaches. Pour 1/4-1/3 cup sugar on top of the peaches (your choice for how sweet peaches are and how sweet you would like your fruit to be). Finish filling your jar with peach slices. Pour plain boiling water on top of peaches. Continue process as listed in recipe. This eliminates the too much/not enough syrup issue. My family received this tip 40 years ago from a Columbia Gorge peach grower.
Sam
I’m about to can peaches for the first time this week. About how long does this whole process take? I’m sure it will take me a bit longer since I’m new to it, but I’m curious about how much time I need to set apart in my day. Thank you for all this helpful information!
Administrator
That will depend on how many batches you have to do, whether you are doing water bath canning or pressure canning and other factors. I would just suggest setting aside a day to do it, starting first thing and then there are other things that you can be working on while the jars are processing.
Ann
I like to use cling stone peaches when canning, but I cut around the stem, twist open, remove stone, and peel rather than blanch to remove the skins. Cling stone peaches are firmer and do not become as “mushy” when canning.
I do like to use free stone peaches for freezing.
Lori
Bought a 1/2 case.of peaches in GA on my way back to FL from IA. They are all pretty ripe so was planning on blanching, peeling, slicing and freezing (with a little lemon juice to keep color). I want to try canning some and need to get supplies – do you think these frozen peaches can be cooked / hot pack and canned with good results??
Administrator
I’m not sure that the texture of the peaches will hold up in the canning process after being frozen.
Karen
I never blanch my peaches before freezing . I peel, put citrus acid powder from Ball and do a thick slice. Always come out excellent!
Administrator
Do you can them after you have frozen them?
Karen Brophy
No I don’t can after freezing. I use most of them for breakfast. I break away the amount I want into a bowl, put in the microwave till defrosted. They’ll probably be slightly warm but still have a bite to them, mix with plain yogurt, YUM!
OR make crumble, cobbler. Just put in baking dish fully frozen and add what you’d like.
Administrator
Yes, they can definitely be frozen for use later on without affecting the texture but I believe that Lori was specifically asking about canning the peaches after they had already been frozen.
Ann Meyer
I have a question about checking the seal on a jar. I can pick the jar up by the edge of the lid so I think it is sealed. However, when I tap the lid with a spoon I get a “thud” sound instead of a “ping”. Not sure if that means anything or if it thuds because I raw packed the peaches and they are floating. The peaches ins the jar are touching the lid. Are these jars of peaches safe to eat?
Administrator
Are you able to push down on the lid? Does the lid give when you push on it or is it solid?
Jim
I just read that using Pickle Crisp(Calcium Chloride) improves the texture of canned peaches. The site does not say how much to use so maybe the same amount as when canning Dill Pickles? Have you ever heard of this?
Administrator
Yes, I have heard of it being used for that before but we try not to use any unnecessary additives in our canned goods.
Tyler
I will say you make canning for a first timer, like my wife and I as easy as it could possibly be. With all the information you lay out… We did the recipe exactly like you said, 18lbs of whole peaches, we ended up with 8 quart jars full.. We also had some brine (if that’s what it’s called) left over. Hopefully I did it right. Thanks for all the Information!
Administrator
Sounds like you did great! So glad it was helpful for you.
Larry
I water bath canned some peaches this year I went to open one it didn’t seem to be sealed very hard they smell fine and look fine are they still ok to eat?
Administrator
What do you mean they didn’t seem to be sealed very hard? If they weren’t sealed properly, I wouldn’t eat it. Food that is improperly canned may look and smell fine but may still have the potential to make you sick.
Kaitlyn
Thank you for this awesome info! Question…i water bath canned peaches last summer and used a raw pack method. However…I did not boil the water (i have a reverse osmosis water, if that helps in any way to know that lol!), but filled the jars with the peach juices and filled the rest of the way with water. Water bathed and they all sealed. There has definitely been discoloration, but now I’m nervous to eat them. Did using cool water make any difference in the food safety? Thanks!
Administrator
You can’t be certain that the food was safely processed unless the instructions are followed exactly which does include boiling the canning liquid. If you’re using cold liquid, it takes more time for the food in the jars to come up to the appropriate temperature for processing.
Gail
I live at over 3000 ft altitude, and I follow your recipes to a T, including extra processing time based on my altitude. But i recently canned 20lbs of peaches in 750 ml size jars (a pint and a half), and i couldn’t find a processing time for 750 jars, so i split the time difference between pints and quarts and processed for 23 minutes. Would it be ok do you think? The peaches look great, but I’m concerned about long term storage. FYI….The 750 ml jars are almost the same in diameter as the pint jars, just taller.
Administrator
It makes sense to split the difference that way but there’s really no way of knowing for sure unless it has been tested. I probably would have just went with the longer processing time to be on the safe side but that’s just me.
Angie
You are my go-to for good information! Thank you. Am wondering if I can use your method to can peaches with SKIN ON? TIA
Administrator
It’s not recommended to leave the skin on when canning peaches.