Corning smooth top and canning?

[vintagekitchen]

I know with modern smoothtops some manufacturers say canning is an absolute no no, others say so long as the canner has a flat bottom, and no part that extends past the burner actually touches the stovetop. Does anyone have a manual from the old corning smooth tops to see what they said about canning? I do a bit every year, and the thought just occurred to me of whether or not I will be able to use the Monarch stove with Corning smooth top to do my canning this year. All advice welcome guys..

 

[rockland1]

I wouldn't do it. Years ago I saw many Corning tops cracked from doing this. I have read all your threads and your fascination with this Corning top is really interesting. I began my career in the appliance business in 1975. That is when these tops were entering the marketplace. They were expensive and I sold a few but
most people generally were not real gung-ho over them. I learned that 25% of the heat radiated out to the glass top. The new ceramic tops of today are much better
in that respect. Best idea for you.....get a dual fuel, can to your hearts content and bake like a fool. ED

 

[vintagekitchen]

Actually, I know I am in the minority, but I love how the Corning top performs. It is almost like cooking on that old wood stove in my first place, gentle even heat when I want it, or roaring hot when I need it, and no hot spots. And the oven performs beautifully as well, though from what I understand Monarch stoves were always good performers.

If canning on it is something to be avoided I will get a high output hotplate or propane burner to use for my canning. I dont want to damage the stove, these are too rare. I know most people hate the smooth top stoves, and I hated the modern one I tried at a relatives house, but I love mine.

As far as dual fuel goes, I have cooked on gas, but I grew up cooking on electric, and it is my general preferance. It seems that the paint in the kitchen lasts longer, and the performance and idiosyncracies of electric are what I am most used to.

 

[gansky1]

I may have missed it in your original thread on the Monarch, but do you know who made it? Was it a Monarch factory - company or made for Monarch?

 

[vintagekitchen]

Who made it

I truly don't know. I won't be home until Friday, but I will post a pic of the manufacturer's plate with model number, serial number, etc, and see if any of you can tell. I know for a fact, I have found not one bit of information on this stove online, not a pic, not an ad, nothing, so It must be fairly rare.

I do remember that the serial number ends in 69, which makes me wonder if that was the year of manufacture.

The backsplash is similar to frigidaire, both in design, and constructin, right down to the entire surface behind the knobs being under a solid pane of glass with the markings embedded into the glass.

However, instead of Frigidaire's famous pull out oven, it uses removable panels to line the oven, a total of 4 panels, (bottom, each side, and back). The only other stove I have seen with this was I beleive a Magic Chef, from the same era.

The oven door also lifts off its hinges, for easier oven cleaning, like the old Hotpoint stoves.

The oven elements appear to be the plug in type, that plug into a ceramic socket in the back of the oven, again for ease of cleaning, like in the old GE stoves.

All in all, I'm not sure if another company built the stove for Monarch, or if Monarch copied the best design features of the competing companies of the day.

 

[kenmore71]

For speed and keeping the kitchen cooler, I use a 2000 watt Nemco hot plate for my 22 quart canner. I have a 40 year-old Magic Chef gas range and I have certainly used the canner on it, but I find that it heats about 30% faster on the hot plate and releases a fraction of the heat into my galley kitchen.

 

[norgeway]

I Use!

My smooth top Hotpoint with a Presto and a Wards pressure canner, they both do fine, Monarch made there own ranges, but I bet they did buy the top from Corning, their surface units were Chromalox.

 

[polkanut]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but all Monarch stoves were made in Beaver Dam, WI until they went out of business circa 1980.  Any parts, such as a Corning top, were purchased from those manufacturers, and installed at the Monarch factory.

 

[nashmaytagbear]

my smooth top range method

Don't know if this will work for you or not but it works well for me. I put all my jars in the dishwasher with the heat cycle on. Let it run. Then I start getting my things ready. (ex. tomatoes.) I prepare them during the first 1/2 of the dishwasher cycle. Then after they are run through the processer and start cooking, then i put my lids and rings into a water-bath. Then when the dishwasher is done i put my jars out on a towel. Start filling them up then wait for the "pings" since everything is still hot, it all works pretty well for me.

 

[tomturbomatic]

It was because people wanted to use pressure cookers and other non-Corning cookware that Corning came out with the 3+1 cooktop. Since you have not yet determined if your surface units are thermostatic, we do not know what type of cooktop is on that range, but it's probably 4 of the non-thermostatic, higher wattage units which might work with a canner, but there is a problem with most canners except the old Presto cast models: the bottoms are not flat. The stamped aluminum canners might start out with a flat base, but as pressure builds, the center bows out and lifts the canner off the surface unit which will really slow you down with the flat top. If you are using a 16 qt canner, a 115 volt hotplate at the nominal 1550 watts will not bring it up to canning temperatures in a reasonable amount of time, or maybe ever and remember that the manuals say that the pressure should be brought up quickly over high heat. I remember owners of Corning ranges inquiring about hotplates for canning and we did not have anything powerful enough.

 

[norgeway]

Flat Bottom!!

Exactly on the money! You have GOT to use flat bottomed cookware on any glass top range,something like a blue speckled water bath canner would take a week to boil! My old Pressure canners are cast aluminum and flat on the bottom.

 

[hunter]

Cast aluminum pressure cookers

A data point:

I have an All American Pressure Canner. Their manual explicitly states NOT to use it on a glass smooth top.

I inquired as to why, and they told me that the canner, when full, is heavy, so they cannot suggest it.

My electric stove is a modern Kitchenaid, and they assured me it could take more than 1 50 pound weight (i.e. 2 or 3x 50 pounds, one per burner). I calculated that my canner would weigh no more than ~35 pounds even chock full.

I did not want to pick up a hot canner, however, because if you burn yourself and drop it, you will shatter the stove. So this is what I do:

For pressure canning, can as usual, put the stuff in the jars, and then do your canning. I simply switch the heat off at the end of processing and leave it until it it stone cold, then unload it.

For water bath canning, I set the canner on the stove, fill it with water from other pots, and set it to heat. Then after I am done canning, I switch off the heat and leave it until it is cold - again, so I don't drop it.

Try to avoid sliding a cast aluminum pot on your stove top you are likely to scratch it.

I know that Presto's stainless steel canners say you CAN use them on a smoothtop, IIRC. That's probably because the bottoms are smoother.

 

[lordkenmore]

I can't comment about whether the Corning stove top would be harmed. Although I will say if I were in this position I'd be cautious.

But the idea of getting a propane burner and using that does have one advantage past canning: you might be able to use that burner to cook if you have lengthy power failures. (This is coming from someone who lives in an area where each winter brings several power failures that can last 3 hours or more, and sometimes one power failure that's more than a day.)

 

[vintagekitchen]

Power failures...

It would have to be one hell of a power failure if I lost electricity. My electricity comes directly from the main line that brings power to nearly half the county, not from the side branch coming down my street. If I lose power, so does half the county, so my power has never been out for over 1 or 2 hours at the most.

If I lived elsewhere and got my power from a branch line I would have to pay the outrageous prices our local company wants to set the house up on propane, or get a generator, as the spring storms here get pretty rough.

 

[frigilux]

ALWAYS use the water-bath canning method for high-acid foods rather than just filling the jars and hoping nothing poisons you (or others) later. Low-acid products need to be pressure-canned.

I know some of you don't use a boiling water bath, but you're in the wrong, here. I was very ill for a couple of months with food poisoning from improperly canned food when I was in high school. It's just not worth the risk.

 

[tomturbomatic]

I only pressure can everything, no other way, except of course for jelly.

 

[kenmore71]

@tom re: #8. I use a 2000 watt hot plate with my 22 qt. All-American pressure canner and it works just fine. It actually brings it up to pressure about 30% faster than the 9000 BTU burners on my 1970s Magic Chef range. The simple physics of it is that the electric element is putting between 80 - 90 % of its roughly 6600 BTUs directly into the canner whereas only abut 40 - 50 % of the gas output actually goes into the canner. The old Frigidaire stoves until the mid-to-late 1950s maxed out at a 2050 watt 8" burner in the front right corner. If it was good enough for gramma.....

Given that, I would think that a 1550 watt hot plate would could easily bring a 16 qt. canner up to pressure in a reasonable amount of time. The faster you can bring a canner up to pressure the better, obviously, but as long as it's kept AT pressure for the full processing period the food will be safe. Slow pressurization could result in a slight reduction in the texture or food value of canned food but it won't compromise safety.

 

[vintagekitchen]

Pressure canning vs other methods

I hate to say this, and know I will probably get blasted, but to be perfectly honest, I think that most people freak out too much over "canning safety". While I do use a pressure canner for meats and low acid vegetables, I and my brother are the only ones in my family who do so. I grew up eaiting vegetables processed by water bath method, open kettle method and oven canning method, as well as nearly all fruits processed by open kettle, and all pickles and juices processed by open kettle, and never once got sick, nor did anyone else in the family. My entire family still cans this way, and all are alive to tell the tale. I think it is just a matter of keeping a scrupulously clean kitchen, and thoroughly cleaning and sterilizing all canning equipment.

I still can my pickles and jams by open kettle method, (as well as the occasional batch of juice if its a small batch not worth doing more with). I do tomatoes and fruit by oven canning method, (I only use water bath if its just a few jars. I normally can in large amounts, and the oven holds more than the water bath canner).
I do use the pressure canner for low acid vegetables and meats, but only because it is faster, not because I feel it is any safer (with the possible exception of meats being safer in a pressure canner). I and my brother are the only ones who have switched to pressure canners for anything.

While some may disagree, I dont feel I am taking any risk by following these methods, as people in this area have used these methods for generations, without ill affect. I was raised on foods canned by these methods, and still eat them when I am at others houses, and it has never harmed me.

 

[xraytech]

I too do my canning via the open kettle method for tomatoes, tomatoes and peppers, pickles, jams, and jellies.
This is the way I was taught and we have been doing it for generations, I thoroughly cook my tomatoes, simmer the lids in water,sterilize the jars in the oven, I fill jars with hot food quickly, then lid, add the ring then invert on a towel to cool and take a seal.

My guide to canning does indicate that open kettle canning is safe, it is the 1950 Hazel-Atlas guide to canning.

When I can applesauce I do waterbath it for 10 minutes.
Green beans get pressure canned only because the 90 minutes in a waterbath is far too lengthy.

 

[vintagekitchen]

I agree that the water bath times for vegetables are too lengthy for my tastes, especially since my family normally goes minimum 2 hours for beans, but prefers 3 hours. Thats what first tempted me to try pressure canning. Nothing could ever make me stop using my oven for large batch canning of fruits and tomatoes though. My 1950's better homes and gardens has a table of times and instructions for oven canning, and I use it every year. You can do so many jars at once, and no huge clouds of steam rolling through the house.

I keep meaning to try the cake in a jar recipes some o my cousins use, but never seem to get around to is. The make quickbreads like banana bread and zuchini bread, and cakes like chocolate cake, spice cake, carrot cake, etc, baking it in wide mouth pint jars, then as soon as it is done baking screw on a boiled jar lid, and they say they have had them up to a year old with no issues. I have eaten them at their houses, and the cakes were very moist from cooling in the sealed jar.

 

[frigilux]

I look upon using currently recommended canning methods as the "seat belt and air bag" of the canning world. People drove for decades without seat belts and air bags and lived to ripe old ages; but if you do get into an accident, the seat belt and air bag seem like very good ideas.

As for following guidelines from 1950, I have this to say: My mom washed alter linens for our church for many years. The guidelines of the time (from the mid-50's) recommended using carbon tetrachloride and a hot iron to remove candle wax from linens. She died from lung cancer as a result of following this outdated and unsafe practice.

And stop smoking, Kevin!!

There. My work here is done, LOL.

 

[maytagbear]

If nothing else......

plant cultivars have changed since the 1950s, acid levels and other aspects have changed, and it is true that botulism spores can live in good garden soil.

I used to can a fair bit, but have cut back since I live alone now. However, when I DO can, I use a Ball Blue Book that is no more than five years old.

Taking the time to be careful is just cheap insurance for a person and those who may eat at his or her table.

Also, as I see it, using best current practice is a way of showing respect to the food being canned. This drought is raising, and will continue to raise questions of food availability, distribution, and fairness.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[iheartmaytag]

I recently asked a sales person at Sear's the question about canning on a smooth top. The reply: She had just came from a two day training with GE, and their stand is canning is ok, as long as the canner does not exceed 1 inch beyond the burner. They have a new range with a 15" adjustable burner designed specifically for canning. It also has a bridge burner to use a griddle.

My Maytag manual says the same thing, "not to exceed 1 inch beyond the burner. I use the smaller pressure cooker on this range, but have never tried the canner.

Now keep in mind these are the newer Shott's Ceran cook tops and not the Corning cook top

 

[norgeway]

Canning...

Dons Mother cans green beans the old fashioned way, 3 hours, she has done this for the 59 years She has been married, raised 4 kids and no one has ever been sick from eating them, I agree , pressure canning is safer, its what I grew up with, but I think the main thing is to WASH! your vegatables well, my Grandmother said ALWAYS thru seven waters!, then sterilize your jars and lids, Dons Mom does everything the old fashioned way!! But My Grandmother got a Presto canner in 1954, my Aunt still uses it...and she is 85! One of my first memories as a child is setting on a stool in front of the Hotpoint range watching the guage.." Now honey, if it goes past 10 you tell me..its REAL important!"That was my job when I was 5 or so, so I never had any fear of a pressure canner or cooker, but Dons mother wouldnt touch one. also, Grandmother heated her beans to a rolling boil, then filled the jars, Dons Mom packs the beans in raw, then pours boiling water over them, I do tomatoes differently than either of them , I pack the raw peeled and quartered tomatoes in the jar, add salt, seal, then pressure 5 lbs for 5 minutes ,Then you dont have a watery mess, but rather nice firm pieces of tomato.

 

[polkanut]

Hans,

Most everyone I know prefers a "firm piece" to a soft one. 

 

[hunter]

using old canning instructions

It is certainly true that everyone did not die from old canning practices, but as someone else said ... it's like seat belts and air bags, when you didn't get into an accident you were fine but when you did, oh oh.

Jams and pickles...okay you're not going to get botulism from either of them.

But tomatoes? Tomatoes are so low acid now the guidelines say to add lemon juice. And even before low acid tomatoes they had the lowest acid you could water bath can safely.

Personally given how deadly food borne illness can be - folks think of (say) ecoli poisoning as something you can get over, but it can give you long term health problems. And this isn't botulism, which is even worse, I WANT suspenders and belt, seat belts and air bags.

Hunter