Continuing our series on home canning, today we will look at getting things in the house organized so that you can work efficiently.

The first step is setting aside enough time. You may decide to can a bit each day over the course of a week or so. I tend to can on a marathon day — working on several recipes in succession. I just don’t have the patience to heat the canning pot every day and I hate making the house hot and humid for that long. If I do it all in a single day, I can keep the pot pretty hot and just have one day when I strain my air conditioning. (Bonus points if the day is cooler and I can just open all the windows.)

Before you begin canning, make sure you take time to read through the recipes carefully. You will use these recipes to build a shopping list and to set your schedule. You don’t want to be standing there with a canning pot on full boil only to realize that you are out of white vinegar or mustard seed. In the same way, you don’t want to have time set aside to can only to discover that you need to salt the vegetables and let them drain for 24 hours before adding them to the brine. Reading the recipes in advance lets you avoid nasty surprises.

Next, you will want to gather your equipment. You will need a canning pot with a rack, plenty of clean empty canning jars (with no chips on the rim), rims to fit the jars, and new canning lids. You can re-use the jars and rims, but not the lids. Also, make sure that your rims and lids fit the jars you have. You will also need a colander, pots for heating brines and syrups, wooden spoons, measuring cups and spoons, a funnel for filling jars, a jar lifter (really – you don’t want to stick your hand into a boiling pot),knives and cutting boards, a chopstick to dislodge air bubbles, and more clean tea towels than you think you’ll need.

Finally, clear as much space as possible on your stove and counter. You’ll want lots of space to chop, still, fill, and cool.

In our final installment, we’ll look at canning day!