Canning Potatoes

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Canning potatoes takes a pressure canner and a hot pack. The tested National Center for Home Food Preservation (NCHFP) process for white potatoes, cubed or whole, is 35 minutes for pints and 40 minutes for quarts, with 1 inch of headspace. At 0 to 1,000 feet, run a weighted-gauge canner at 10 psi. A dial-gauge canner runs at 11 psi up to 2,000 feet.

Potatoes are a low-acid vegetable, so there's no water bath option. The NCHFP procedure is adapted from the USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning (2015). It's simple, but two steps matter more than they look: the short precook and the fresh water you pour over the potatoes.

Potatoes at a Glance (NCHFP)

Processing Times and Pressure by Elevation

Dial-gauge pressure canner

Weighted-gauge pressure canner

The time stays the same at every elevation; only the pressure changes. The dial-gauge table ends at 8,000 feet. If you live higher, ask your county extension office. Our pressure canning altitude chart explains the bands.

Choosing Potatoes

The NCHFP asks for small to medium mature potatoes of ideal quality for cooking. Two details from the recipe:

• Whole potatoes must be 1 to 2 inches across. Anything bigger gets cubed.
• Tubers stored below 45°F (7°C) may discolor when canned, so skip potatoes that have been kept in the refrigerator.

How many you need: about 20 lb for a 7-quart canner load, or 13 lb for 9 pints. A 50-lb bag yields 18 to 22 quarts, roughly 2½ to 3 lb per quart.

What You'll Need

• A pressure canner that holds at least four quart jars upright
• Pint or quart jars with new lids and bands
• A large pot for precooking and a second pot or kettle of boiling water
• Ascorbic acid (pure powder or 500-mg vitamin C tablets) for the anti-browning dip
• A jar lifter, funnel and plastic bubble remover

Step-by-Step: Pressure Canning Potatoes

Prepare the potatoes

1. Make an anti-browning dip. The USDA's ascorbic acid solution is 3 grams (3,000 mg) per gallon of cold water. That's about 1 level teaspoon of pure powder, or six crushed 500-mg vitamin C tablets, per gallon.
2. Wash and peel the potatoes, dropping each one into the solution as you go.
3. Cut into ½-inch cubes if you like, or leave small potatoes whole. Drain.
4. Precook: boil cubes for 2 minutes or whole potatoes for 10 minutes, then drain again.
5. Get the canner ready with the rack and 2 to 3 inches of water, or the amount in your manual. The USDA says to bring it to about 180°F (82°C) for a hot pack.

Fill the jars

6. Add 1 teaspoon of salt per quart if you like. It's for flavor only.
7. Fill hot jars with the hot potatoes, leaving no more than 1 inch of headspace.
8. Cover with fresh boiling water, leaving 1 inch of headspace and making sure every piece is covered. The NCHFP is firm on this: don't use the water you cooked the potatoes in, because it has too much starch.
9. Release air bubbles, recheck the headspace, wipe the rims and put on the lids and bands.

Process

10. Load the jars, lock the lid and heat until steam flows freely.
11. Vent for 10 minutes, then add the weight or close the petcock.
12. Bring the canner to the pressure for your elevation and gauge, then start timing: 35 minutes for pints, 40 for quarts. If pressure falls below the target, bring it back up and restart the full time.
13. Turn off the heat and let the canner depressurize on its own. Remove the weight, wait 10 minutes, and open the lid away from your face.
14. Lift the jars out upright and cool them 1 inch apart for 12 to 24 hours. Check the seals, remove the bands, label and store.

If you've never run a pressure canner, start with our beginner's guide to using a pressure canner.

Canning Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes are a separate NCHFP recipe with much longer times: 65 minutes for pints and 90 for quarts, at the same pressures.

1. Wash the sweet potatoes, then boil or steam them until partly soft, 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Remove the skins and cut medium potatoes so the pieces are uniform. Don't mash or puree them.
3. Fill the jars, leaving 1 inch of headspace, and add up to 1 teaspoon of salt per quart if you like.
4. Cover with fresh boiling water or syrup, leaving 1 inch of headspace. The NCHFP says not to dry pack sweet potatoes.
5. Process at the pressure for your elevation.

Pick small to medium, mature sweet potatoes that aren't too fibrous, and can them within 1 to 2 months of harvest. For other root vegetables, see our canning vegetables chart.

Using Canned Potatoes

Canned potatoes come out fully cooked and soft, which makes them handy rather than fancy:

• Drain, pat dry and pan-fry or roast them for quick home fries.
• Mash them after opening. There's no tested process for canning mashed potatoes, but the cubes mash easily.
• Add them to soups and stews at the end of cooking.

If you want potatoes inside a canned stew, the USDA has a tested recipe for that. See our guide to canning beef stew.

Common Mistakes When Canning Potatoes

• Raw packing. The NCHFP potato process is hot pack only. Skipping the 2- or 10-minute boil isn't covered by the tested time.
• Dry canning. Some online methods pack raw potatoes with no water. The NCHFP calls dry canning raw vegetables "an unsafe practice": the covering liquid is needed for heat to penetrate the jar, and bacterial spores die more slowly in dry heat.
• Adding butter, oil or seasonings. The NCHFP warns that butter or ghee is no substitute for the required liquid, and shouldn't be added to tested processes that don't call for it.
• Using the starchy cooking water. Use fresh boiling water.
• Canning big whole potatoes. Whole potatoes must be 1 to 2 inches across. Cube larger ones.
• Leaving the skins on. The tested procedure peels the potatoes.
• Water bath or steam canning. Potatoes are low-acid. The USDA says only a pressure canner reaches the 240 to 250°F needed for low-acid foods.
• Using an Instant Pot. The NCHFP does not recommend its canning processes in electric multi-cookers.

Storing Canned Potatoes

Store sealed jars without bands in a cool, dark, dry place. The USDA says below 95°F (35°C), ideally 50 to 70°F (10 to 21°C). The NCHFP says properly canned food keeps its best quality for at least a year.

Before you use a jar, check that the lid is still concave and tight. Don't taste food from a jar with a bulging or unsealed lid, spurting liquid, an off smell or mold. The CDC recommends boiling home-canned low-acid foods before eating: 10 minutes below 1,000 feet, plus 1 minute for each additional 1,000 feet. Our botulism safety guide covers the warning signs and how to dispose of suspect jars.

If you're picking a canner for big potato batches, our Presto pressure canner review compares the 16- and 23-quart sizes.

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