Home-canned pumpkin is an easy way to preserve winter squash for quick homemade treats all year long.
Prep Time1 hourhr
Cook Time1 hourhr30 minutesmins
Total Time2 hourshrs30 minutesmins
Course: Food Preservation
Cuisine: Preserves
Author: Ashley Adamant
Ingredients
Pumpkin
Water
Instructions
Prepare whole pumpkins for canning. Slice in half, remove seeds and strings. Slice halves into 1-inch strips, then chop into 1-inch cubes. Use a paring knife to slice the peel off each cube (or peel the 1inch slices before chopping into cubes).
Prepare a pressure canner and canning jars.
Bring water to a boil in a large stockpot.
Add the pumpkin to the boiling water and cook 2 minutes, until heated through. (Be careful not to overcook so the pumpkin chunks don't fall apart.)
Use a slotted spoon to scoop the pumpkin chunks into prepared jars, and top with the hot blanching water, leaving 1-inch headspace.
Debubble jars, adjust headspace, and seal with 2 part canning lids.
Load the jars into a pressure canner and seal the lid, but don't put on the canning weight yet.
Turn the heat up to high and allow the canner to vent steam for 10 minutes before adding the canning weight.
Bring the canner up to 10 pounds pressure (if at sea level, see notes for altitude adjustements).
Once at pressure, process pint jars for 55 minutes and quart jars for 90 minutes.
Turn off the heat and allow the canner to cool completely before opening.
Once completely cool, remove the jars and check seals. Store any unsealed jars in the refrigerator for immediate use.
Properly canned and sealed jars should maintain quality on the pantry shelf for 12-18 months. See notes for approximate yields and altitude adjustments.
Notes
Yield~ It takes roughly 16 and 20 pounds per 7-quart canner batch (or roughly 2 1/4 to 3 pounds per quart jar). If measuring prepared pumpkin cubes, that's about 1 1/2 pounds of prepared pumpkin cubes for each quart jar (or roughly 3/4 pound per pint jar).Altitude Adjustments ~ The canning time remains constant, but the pressure increases at higher altitudes. At sea level, use 10 pounds pressure in a weighted gauge canner (11 pounds in a dial gauge). Above 1000 feet, increase to 15 pounds pressure using a weighted gauge canner. See below for dial gauge:0 to 2,000 feet use 11 pounds pressure2,000 to 4,000 feet use 12 pounds pressure4,000 to 6,000 feet use 13 pounds pressure6,000 to 8,000 feet use 14 pounds pressure