Homesteading & Survival · Homesteading & Survival Courses
Start Here: Your Household Readiness Plan
Set goals, map your hazards, pack a kit, line up your neighbors and test the plan with a household drill.
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Homesteading & Survival · Homesteading & Survival Courses
Home Canning and Food Preservation
Can, pickle, ferment and dry food safely using USDA-tested methods.
- Level
- Intermediate
- Lessons
- 12 lessons in 2 modules
- Estimated study
- About 12 hours
- Format
- Online, self-paced
Monthly: $0 today with a card, then $34 on day 4 unless you cancel before then. After the trial, 30 days' notice applies. Active on-campus students have academy access included. Check your existing student account before buying another subscription.
Before you start
Review the lesson outline and any lesson-specific preparation before you practise.
Full study requires active Academy access. This course can be audited independently of optional assessed programs.
About this course
For beginners who want shelves of food they can trust. You will learn why some foods need a pressure canner, how to read an NCHFP recipe and altitude table, how a boiling-water batch of apples and a pressure batch of green beans run from start to finish, how to acidify tomatoes, ferment pickles, dry fruit and make jerky within tested limits, when oxygen absorbers help, and how to spot and handle unsafe jars. About 12 hours, with an optional supervised batch of apples.
What you will be able to do
- Explain why low-acid foods need a pressure canner, using the botulism and temperature facts behind the rule.
- Read an NCHFP recipe and pick the one processing time or pressure that matches your food, jar, altitude and canner.
- Run a boiling-water canner through every stage of a tested recipe, from preheating to the 24-hour seal check.
- Acidify tomatoes, protect fermentation salt ratios, dry fruit and jerky, and pack dry foods with oxygen absorbers as tested sources direct.
- Recognize unsafe jars and handle them without opening or tasting.
Course outline
Learn why low-acid foods need pressure canning, read a tested recipe correctly, and can one batch of fruit in a boiling-water canner.
- Choose a safe preservation method1 hFree preview
- Use tested recipes and altitude adjustments1 h
- Process suitable acidic foods in boiling water1 h
- Pressure-can low-acid foods with validated procedures1 h
- Preserve tomatoes using tested acidification1 h
Ferment pickles, dry fruit, make jerky within tested limits, pack dry foods with oxygen absorbers, check seals and storage, handle unsafe jars and plan a preservation day.
- Prepare safe pickles and controlled fermentation1 h
- Dry produce with verified methods1 h
- Evaluate jerky, smoking, salting and curing limits1 h
- Choose suitable packaging and oxygen-control methods1 h
- Inspect seals, labels and storage conditions1 h
- Recognize unsafe jars and handle them safely1 h
- Plan a seasonal preservation session1 h
Related assessed programs
This course belongs to the following optional programs. Each has its own required course bundle, evidence review and separate fee. Each program page shows its approved fee and current registration status.
Food Growing & Preservation: Non-accredited Cloud Forest Certificate
3 required courses · non-accredited assessed certificate
Survival Specialist: Non-accredited Cloud Forest Certificate
7 required courses · non-accredited assessed certificate
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