Canning Vegetables (Pressure-Canner Chart)

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Canning vegetables safely takes a pressure canner. The USDA says all fresh vegetables except most tomatoes are low-acid, so they need 240 to 250°F, which only a pressure canner can reach. Times run from 20 minutes (green beans in pints) to 90 minutes (greens, sweet potatoes, cubed squash and mixed vegetables in quarts). At 0 to 1,000 feet, every vegetable below runs at 10 psi in a weighted-gauge canner or 11 psi in a dial-gauge canner.

The chart is built from the National Center for Home Food Preservation (NCHFP) vegetable pages, which are adapted from the USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning. Each vegetable has its own preparation steps, and the time only applies if you follow them. Find your vegetable, then read its notes.

Don't can anything that isn't on a tested list, and don't mix vegetables except in the tested mixed vegetable or succotash recipes.

Canning Vegetables: Pressure Canner Chart (NCHFP)

Lima bean headspace: small beans get 1 inch for pints and 1½ inches for quarts; large beans get 1 inch for pints and 1¼ inches for quarts.

Mushrooms and peppers have processes for half-pints and pints only, and cream-style corn for pints only. The NCHFP says quart jars aren't recommended for cream-style corn because the product is too dense.

Pressure by Elevation (All Vegetables Above)

Every vegetable in the chart uses the same pressure table. Only the time changes from one vegetable to the next.

The NCHFP dial-gauge tables stop at 8,000 feet. If you live higher, contact your county extension office. Our pressure canning altitude chart has the full USDA table and the calculator below gives your setting.

Canning Corn

Corn is one of the longest vegetable processes, so it's worth getting right.

Whole kernel corn (NCHFP):

1. Husk the corn, remove the silk and wash. Blanch the ears 3 minutes in boiling water.
2. Cut the kernels at about three-fourths of their depth. Don't scrape the cob.
3. Hot pack: add 1 cup of hot water to each quart of kernels, bring to a boil and simmer 5 minutes. Fill the jars with corn and cooking liquid.
4. Raw pack: fill the jars with raw kernels. Don't shake or press them down. Cover with fresh boiling water.
5. Salt is optional, up to 1 teaspoon per quart. Leave 1 inch of headspace.
6. Process pints 55 minutes, quarts 85 minutes.

You need about 31½ lb of corn in the husk for a 7-quart load, or 20 lb for 9 pints. The NCHFP says to pick ears with slightly immature kernels or of ideal quality for eating fresh. Some very sweet varieties, or kernels that are too immature, may brown. Can a small batch first.

Cream-style corn is a separate recipe. You blanch the ears 4 minutes, cut at the center of the kernel and scrape the cobs. Then add 1 cup of water per 2 cups of corn, heat to a boil and fill pint jars only, with 1 inch of headspace. It takes 85 minutes.

Corn, peas and lima beans are starchy and expand during processing, the NCHFP says, so pack them loosely.

Canning Sweet Potatoes

1. Wash the sweet potatoes and boil or steam them until partly soft, 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Remove the skins. Cut medium potatoes if needed so the pieces are about the same size.
3. Don't mash or puree them.
4. Fill the jars, leaving 1 inch of headspace, and add up to 1 teaspoon of salt per quart if you like.
5. Cover with fresh boiling water or syrup, keeping 1 inch of headspace. The NCHFP says not to dry pack sweet potatoes.
6. Process pints 65 minutes, quarts 90 minutes.

Choose small to medium sweet potatoes that are mature but not too fibrous, and can them within 1 to 2 months of harvest. A 7-quart load takes about 17½ lb.

White potatoes are a separate recipe with much shorter times. See our full guide to canning potatoes.

Canning Squash

Squash is where most canning confusion lives, because the rules depend on the type.

Winter squash and pumpkin, cubed: yes. Peel, remove the seeds and cut the flesh into 1-inch cubes. Boil them 2 minutes in water, then fill the jars with the cubes and cooking liquid, with 1 inch of headspace. Process pints 55 minutes, quarts 90 minutes. Don't mash or puree. Our canning pumpkin guide explains why purée has no tested process.

Summer squash and zucchini on their own: no. The NCHFP says earlier recommendations for canning summer squash were withdrawn. Documentation for the old processing times couldn't be found, and the reports available don't support them. Cooked slices pack tightly in the jar, which changes how it heats. The NCHFP suggests freezing, drying or pickling instead.

Zucchini in a tested mix: yes. Diced zucchini is part of the NCHFP mixed vegetable recipe, and tomatoes with okra or zucchini is a tested tomato recipe (30 minutes for pints, 35 for quarts).

Notes for Other Vegetables

• Asparagus: Trim the tough scales and stems. For a hot pack, boil 2 to 3 minutes and fill loosely. For a raw pack, fill as tightly as possible without crushing. Cover with boiling water.
• Beets: Boil until the skins slip off, then peel and leave whole, cube or slice. Fill with fresh boiling water, not the beet cooking water. Full steps are in our canning beets guide.
• Carrots: Use small carrots, ideally 1 to 1¼ inches across. Hot pack by simmering 5 minutes, or raw pack tightly. Cover with hot cooking liquid or water.
• Green beans: Hot or raw pack, 20 minutes for pints and 25 for quarts. See our pressure canning green beans guide.
• Lima beans: Shell and wash. Hot pack by bringing to a boil and filling loosely, or raw pack without pressing or shaking down. Mind the larger quart headspace.
• Mushrooms: Soak in cold water for 10 minutes, wash, then boil 5 minutes. Half-pints or pints only. For better color, the NCHFP allows ⅛ teaspoon of ascorbic acid powder or a 500-milligram vitamin C tablet.
• Okra: Boil whole or 1-inch pieces for 2 minutes, drain, fill and cover with fresh boiling water.
• Peas: Shell. For a hot pack, boil 2 minutes and fill loosely. For a raw pack, don't shake or press them down. The NCHFP recommends freezing sugar snap and Chinese edible pod peas instead.
• Peppers: Blanch or blister the skins, then peel and flatten. Fill loosely and add fresh boiled water. Half-pints or pints only. Wear gloves for hot peppers.
• Spinach and other greens: Wash in small batches until the water runs clear. Steam 1 pound at a time for 3 to 5 minutes, until well wilted. Fill loosely and cover with fresh boiling water.

Mixed Vegetables and Succotash

You can't make up your own vegetable blend, but the NCHFP has two tested ones.

Mixed vegetables (about 7 quarts): 6 cups each of sliced carrots, whole kernel corn, cut green beans and shelled lima beans, plus 4 cups of whole or crushed tomatoes and 4 cups of diced zucchini. You may change the proportions or substitute other vegetables, except leafy greens, dried beans, cream-style corn, winter squash, sweet potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower or cabbage. Combine, cover with water, boil 5 minutes and fill with 1 inch of headspace. Process 75 minutes for pints and 90 for quarts.

Succotash (about 7 quarts): 3 quarts of cut whole kernel corn and 4 quarts of shelled lima beans, with 2 quarts of crushed or whole tomatoes optional. Hot or raw pack with 1 inch of headspace. Process 60 minutes for pints and 85 for quarts.

Vegetables With No Plain Canning Process

These come up often. None has a tested plain canning process on the NCHFP vegetable list.

• Summer squash and zucchini on their own (withdrawn, as above)
• Mashed or pureed pumpkin and winter squash
• Mashed or pureed sweet potatoes
• Broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage (none appears in the NCHFP vegetable canning list, and all three are excluded from the mixed vegetable recipe). Freeze them, or use a tested pickle or sauerkraut recipe.

Running the Canner

Every vegetable follows the same canner routine:

1. Set the rack and 2 to 3 inches of water in the canner, or what your manual says. The USDA says to preheat the water to about 140°F (60°C) for raw packs or 180°F (82°C) for hot packs.
2. Load the jars, lock the lid and heat until steam flows freely.
3. Vent for 10 minutes, then add the weight or close the petcock.
4. Start timing at the right pressure. If it falls below, bring it back up and restart the full time.
5. Let the canner depressurize on its own, wait 10 minutes after removing the weight and open the lid away from you.
6. Cool the jars for 12 to 24 hours, then check the seals.

A canner that holds at least four quart jars upright is the USDA minimum. Our best pressure canner guide compares the common sizes.

Common Mistakes With Canned Vegetables

• Water bath canning vegetables. The NCHFP says processing times can't be shortened by adding vinegar to fresh vegetables. That's different from tested pickle recipes.
• Dry canning. The NCHFP says canning vegetables without the covering liquid used in the research can lead to under-processing and a risk of botulism.
• Packing starchy vegetables tightly. Corn, peas and limas expand. Pack them loosely.
• Scraping the cob for whole kernel corn. That's the cream-style recipe, which is pints only.
• Using quart jars where there's no quart process. Mushrooms, peppers and cream-style corn are pints or smaller only.
• Mashing anything. Squash, pumpkin and sweet potatoes are tested only as pieces.

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