I had almost 60 pounds of fresh pears given to me this fall from a family member. They were freshly picked from the tree while they were in season. If you get pears that are picked from a tree, they will stay fresh for several weeks. If your pears were picked up off the ground and are starting to feel a little soft, you would want to get started with preserving them right away. I enjoy canning pears every year and look forward to adding these items to my food storage.
Pears are a great produce item to preserve to make fresh baby food as well as small cut pears for toddlers and little ones. My almost 95-year-old grandma also really enjoys pears. Family members young and old will enjoy these preserved pears.
Storing Fresh Pears
You should always wash your fresh pears in a vinegar wash with ¼ cup distilled white vinegar in 10 cups of water. Allow the pears to soak for two minutes in the vinegar wash and then you can allow them to air dry.
This is a similar washing procedure to many other produce items. You can find directions for 75 of the most popular produce items in my bestselling series, I Bought It, Now What? Which is available on my website.
After the pears are dry, if you have space, store them in your refrigerator. Make sure to keep pears away from citrus fruits. Citrus fruits will cause both pears and apples to go bad faster, so you want to make sure they have their own spaces in the refrigerator.
If there is not enough space in my refrigerator due to the large amount of pears I have, I will store them in my 100% organic reusable produce bags in a cool, dark place. This will keep them protected and safe until I am ready to use them, just make sure they are washed first!
Canning Pears Using the Water Bath Method
If you are canning pears or other fruit, you can do this with the water bath canning method. You need a large pot that you can fit the jars in, along with a trivet to place at the bottom. The sealed jars with rings on should be placed in the water which should go at least two inches above the tops of the jars.
After you have removed them from the water bath, you need to take the ring off of it after 24 hours. This ensures that you do not have a false seal on your jar. I write the date on all of my jars on the lid with a sharpie at the same time so that I can ensure that I am eating older items first.
If you want to see me go through the entire process of canning pears, check out my YouTube Video.
The complete instructions and recipe for canning pears is in Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving. This is my favorite reference book when it comes to canning. You can find this linked in my Amazon Storefront.
Using a Light Sugar Ratio
Since I am diabetic, I use Monk Fruit in several of my recipes but it has not been approved as being safe for canning. For that reason, I make the lightest ratio of sugar syrup and you can find it on this website. You can also drink this mix as juice after you finish eating the pears since you know exactly how much sugar is in it.
Storing Canned Goods Safely
You should always keep items that you have canned in a dark area of your home where they are not in direct sunlight. This prevents the food items in them from browning. I have canned pears that I canned three years ago which are still fresh because they were stored properly in my pantry.
When you start with canning pears or other produce, consider how much of that item you use in a serving or within a couple of days to determine the size jar you will use. This time, for my fresh pears, I stored them in a half pint jar because that is enough servings for us. I used to use wide mouth quart jars, but found that they are too large for what we will eat. I have all different size jars linked in my Amazon Storefront.
Another item I enjoy canning is peaches! I have a blog post dedicated to those if you want to see if that is another canning project you would like to try.
Canning Peaches in Extra Light Syrup
Homemade Baby Food
Knowing what ingredients are in my food is very important, but it was especially important for me when I was preparing baby food. I wanted to know that my littles were only getting the best quality food.
As your child moves from baby food to real food, the cut up preserved pears are perfect for them! When you preserve fresh pears yourself, you know that there is no added sugar or preservatives.
Have you ever tried canning pears? I’d love to hear about your experience or other things you enjoy canning or making for baby food!
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