If this is your first time canning or it has been awhile, it is recommended that you read Using Boiling Water Canners and General Canning Information before beginning.
2. Ingredients
Important note: All home-canned Asian Pears must be acidified with bottled lemon juice before canning in a water bath canner to make them safe from the microorganism that causes botulism.
- 17-19 pounds of Asian pears (makes 7 quarts)
- 11-13 pound of Asian pears (makes 9 pints)
- Bottled lemon juice
- Packing liquid, any of the following:
- Commercial, unsweetened apple or white grape juice
- Water
- Water + sugar (for syrup)- see table below for ingredients needed for preparing syrup
| Measure of Water and Sugar for Syrup |
| Syrup Type |
For 9 Pints (or 4 Quarts) |
For 7 Quarts |
| |
Cups Water |
Cups Sugar |
Cups Water |
Cups Sugar |
| Very Light |
6-1/2 |
3/4 |
10-1/2 |
1-1/4 |
| Light |
5-3/4 |
1-1/2 |
9 |
2-1/4 |
| Medium |
5-1/4 |
2-1/4 |
8-1/4 |
3-3/4 |
| Heavy |
5 |
3-1/4 |
7-3/4 |
5-1/4 |
If using syrup for canned asian pears, a very light, light or medium syrup is recommended.
3. Equipment
- Boiling water canner: Large covered pot (with a tight-fitting cover and a rack) that is deep enough to cover the rack and canning jars by 1 to 2 inches of boiling water. (At least 10 inches deep for pint jars, and 12 inches deep for quart jars.)
- Canning jars: Use standard canning jars without cracks or chips (see recipe for sizes)
- Lids and bands: Bands can be reused if they are in good shape, but lids must be new to ensure a proper seal
- Long-handled spoon
- Bowl (for anti-darkening solution)
- Colander (for draining fruit)
- Wide-mouth funnel
- Jar lifter (for moving jars into/out of canner)
- Lid wand (magnetic tool used to transfer lids to jars)
- Bubble freer, or a plastic or rubber knife-like utensil (for removing air from food)
- Ruler for measuring headspace (some bubble freers include this feature)
- Large covered pot (for hot pack syrup)
- Medium pot for extra boiling water
- Towels or wire rack for cooling jars
- Paper towels
- Hot pads
- Cutting board
- Knives
- Food thermometer for measuring temperature of processing water
- Timer or clock
4. Prepare Canning Equipment
Boiling Water Canner-
- Assemble and wash equipment and containers.
- Wash canning jars in soapy water, rinse, and keep hot. (This can be done in a dishwasher or by placing jars in the water that is heating in your canner.)
- Follow manufacturer’s instructions for preparing lids.
- Place rack in the bottom of a boiling water canner. Fill the canner approximately half full with clean warm water for a canner load of pint jars. For other sizes and numbers of jars, you will need to adjust the amount of water so it will be 1 to 2 inches over the top of the filled jars.
- Center the canner over the burner and preheat the water to 180 degrees F for hot-packed foods.
- In medium pot, boil some extra water to use later, as needed, to cover the jars or fruit.
- Begin preparing food for your jars while this water is preheating.
5. Prepare Ingredients
- Wash and peel pears.
- Cut in half lengthwise, remove cores and slice.
- To prevent discoloration, dip sliced pears into anti-darkening solution. (see Ingredients above for making solution). Drain.
For Hot pack-
- In a cooking pot, bring to a boil syrup, juice, or water. Refer to table above in Ingredients section.
- Place sliced and treated pear pieces in boiling syrup or water, and boil 5 minutes.
6. Pack Jars
Hot pack-
- Fill jars with hot fruit and cooking liquid, leaving ½-inch headspace.
- Place in layers, cut side down.
- Add 1 tablespoon bottled lemon juice per pint or 2 tablespoons bottled lemon juice per quart jar.
- Remove air bubbles.
- Add more syrup or boiling water, if needed, for ½-inch headspace.
- Wipe rim with clean, wet paper towel.
- Place lid on jar and add screw band. Screw the band down fingertip tight- not too loose nor too tight. Follow lid manufacturer's directions for tightening the jar lids properly.
7. Process Jars
Boiling Water Canner-
- With jar lifter, place jars on canning rack in large pot, which is filled with hot water. Jars should not touch each other.
- Add or remove boiling water as needed until jars are covered by 1" - 2".
- Turn heat to high and bring to a vigorous boil.
- Set timer for correct processing time. Refer to the tables below for processing time for your elevation and jar size.
- Cover canner with lid and lower heat setting to maintain a gentle boil throughout processing time.
- When processing time is up, turn off heat and remove canner lid. Wait 5 minutes before removing jars to allow contents to settle.
- Using a jar lifter, remove jars one at a time. Do not tilt jars. Place jars on a cooling rack or towel, leaving at least 1" space between jars. Avoid placing jars on a cold surface or near a cold draft.
- Allow the jars to cool untouched, away from drafts, for 12 to 24 hours before testing lid seals.
- Once cool, remove the screw bands and check the seal.
- If any jars did not seal, treat as if 'fresh' and do any of the following:
- Eat the food immediately.
- Refrigerate food and use within a week.
- Freeze.
- Reprocess. If reprocessing, must repeat the entire canning process.
8. Store
- Wash jars and lids to remove all residues.
- Label with date and processing method.
- Store in a cool, dark place, where there is no danger of freezing.
- Stored properly, canned fruits should retain their quality for about 1 year.
Not sure of your elevation? Click here
Boiling water bath (hot pack)-PINTS
| 0-1,000 ft |
1,001-3,000 ft |
3,001-6,000 ft |
6,001-9,000 ft |
| 20 minutes |
25 minutes |
30 minutes |
35 minutes |
Boiling water bath (hot pack)-QUARTS
| 0-1,000 ft |
1,001-3,000 ft |
3,001-6,000 ft |
6,001-9,000 ft |
| 25 minutes |
30 minutes |
35 minutes |
40 minutes |