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Home / Home canning concepts / Sugar and salt-free canning

Sugar and salt-free canning

Much home canning can be done without added sugar and salt, leaving only the naturally occurring amounts.

In many home canning recipes, sugar and salt are added for purposes of flavour, texture, colour, etc., but not as a spoilage prevention agent or safety agent while the jars are sealed.

That being said, there is also absolutely a small handful of traditional recipes that rely on either salt for safety (such as fermented foods), or sugar, to provide safety through reduced water-activity. It’s important to know the recipes where salt and sugar are critical for safety of the recipe.

Contents hide
  • 1 Related topics for more information
    • 1.1 Sugar
    • 1.2 Salt
  • 2 National Center for Home Food Preservation FAQs on Salt and Sugar
  • 3 Penn State Extension on Salt and Sugar in Home Canning

Related topics for more information

Just how nutritious are home canned foods?

Sugar

Sugar’s role in home canning

Smarter sweet choices for your home canning

Home canning fruit sugar-free

Sugar-free jams and marmalades

No Sugar Needed Pectins

Home canning with stevia

Salt

The role of salt in home canning

Salt substitutes in home canning

Herbamare Salt Substitute

National Center for Home Food Preservation FAQs on Salt and Sugar

Is it safe to can food without salt? Yes. Salt is used for flavor only and is not necessary to prevent spoilage. [Exceptions: For safety reasons fermented foods such as sauerkraut and fermented pickles must use salt in quantities indicated].

Is it safe to can meat and poultry without salt? Yes. Salt is used for flavor only and is not necessary for safe processing.

Is it safe to can fruits without sugar? Yes. Sugar is added to improve flavor, help stabilize color, and retain the shape of the fruit. It is not added as a preservative.

Penn State Extension on Salt and Sugar in Home Canning

Is it safe to can vegetables and meats without salt?

Yes. Salt is used for flavor only and is not necessary to prevent spoilage.
Is it safe to can fruits without sugar?

Yes. Sugar is added to improve flavor, help stabilize color, and retain the shape of the fruit. It is not added as a preservative. [1]11 Canning Questions and Answers. Well Preserved Column – Interview with Penn State Extension educators. Lancaster Farming. 12 May 2016.

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References[+]

References
↑1 11 Canning Questions and Answers. Well Preserved Column – Interview with Penn State Extension educators. Lancaster Farming. 12 May 2016.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Betsy Mickey

    April 09, 2021 at 8:29 pm

    Can you safely can lemon curd sweetened with artificial sweeteners?

    Reply
    • Healthy Canning

      June 20, 2021 at 8:06 pm

      We don’t know of any recipes tested for that. We would freeze it. Even with full sugar, it has a very special, short storage life.

      Reply
  2. Walter

    May 21, 2018 at 9:18 pm

    Looking to cut back on sugar,is it ok to use a sugar substitute like erythritol in canning recipes instead of sugar?

    Reply
    • Timothy

      May 29, 2021 at 12:47 am

      I prefer stevia as a dibetic I am interested in long term storage for it.Has any research done on any long term storage for any sugar substitute’s?

      Reply
      • Healthy Canning

        June 20, 2021 at 1:57 pm

        For a discussion of shelf life, see here: https://www.healthycanning.com/the-shelf-life-of-home-canned-goods/

        Reply
If you need FAST or relatively immediate canning help or answers, please try one of these Master Food Preserver groups; they are more qualified than we are and have many hands to help you. Many of them even operate telephone hotlines in season.

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“THE preservation of fruits and vegetables by canning is now an exact and known science. Our grandmothers, and even our mothers, were content to lose entirely many quarts of fruit each year; and they were never surprised to find a layer of mold on top of each jar. Science has made wonderful advances, however, and in these days any woman can preserve fruit and vegetables without the loss of a single jar or a trace of mold.”

— Ball Blue Book, Edition E. 1920s.
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