How to Sterilise Jam Jars
New to preserving? Follow our guide on how to sterilise your jars, so whether you're preparing Kilner® Jars for chutney, jam or pickling this first step is essential.
Sterilising your Kilner® Jars and Bottles is an important process in preserving. Sterilising is required to remove all bacteria, yeasts, fungi and organisms from the jar so that when you use it for preserving, the food will remain fresh within the vacuum. We recommend the water bath method of sterilising.
Step 1 - Check Jars For Chips Or Cracks
The first process of sterilisation is to check the jars or bottles thoroughly for damage such as cracks, breaks, and chips. If you find any of your jars or bottles are damaged you must discard them.
It is important that you only sterilise your jars, bottles and lids or seals a short time before you are ready to fill them to ensure they remain warm for the filling process.
Step 2 - Wash Your Jars
To remove any initial dirt of grime, wash your jars in warm soapy water and leave to dry.
Step 3 - Prepare The Waterbath
Remove the lids or rubber seals from your jars and put to one side. Place a heat resistant plate upside down in the bottom of your Kilner® Preserving Pan then place the jars inside.
Step 4 - Sterilise Your Jars With Boiling Water
Fill the pan with cold water until the jars are covered. Bring to the boil and keep at the maximum temperature for 10 minutes, turn the heat off and cover the pan to keep the jars warm until you are ready to fill them.
Do not attempt to sterilise your Kilner® Bottles and Kilner® Jars by pouring boiling water into them.
Step 5 - Sterilise Your Lids
Place vacuum seal lids or rubber seals in a small pan and fill with 4 inches of cold water, heat and simmer at 82 degrees for 10 minutes, turn the heat off and cover the pan until you are ready to seal the jars.
Step 6 - Leave Jars To Dry
Use your tongs to remove the jars, seals and lids from the boiling water. Place these on a clean jay cloth and leave them to dry. Your jars are now sterilised and ready to be filled!
Watch How To Sterilise your Kilner® Jars Before Use
Frequently Asked Questions
Can You Sterilise A Jar With Boiling Water?
Important: Do not attempt to sterilise your Kilner® Bottles and Kilner® Jars by pouring boiling water into them, always bring water to boil.
Always take care when sterilising and handling hot jars and lids. Please use the appropriate equipment such as Kilner® Jam Jar Tongs or oven gloves.
Can You Sterilise A Jar In The Oven?
Do not sterilise your jars using the oven method as ovens can harbour bacteria from food that is stuck on the oven. A conventional oven with a fan will circulate bacteria.
Can You Sterilise A Jar In The Microwave?
We don’t recommend sterilising our jars in the microwave. Sterilising jars in the microwave is an unreliable method because its internal pressure is difficult to measure.
Can You Sterilise A Jar In The Dishwasher?
You can sterilise jars in the dishwasher. Remove rubber seals and lids, place on the top rack and run on a hot wash. Only use hot water, do not put any cleaning solutions in your dishwasher. Make sure to time your dishwasher to finish when you’re ready to fill the jars.
We still highly recommend the water bath method as you do not know how clean the dishwasher is in the first instance and could be harbouring bacteria.
What Happens If You Don't Sterilise Jam Jars?
Sterilising your jars removes any potential bacteria that may be harbouring inside. Even if your jar looks clean, always sterilise before use to stop your homemade preserves from spoiling. Sterilising your jars expands the shelf life of the preserve too.
Do I Need To Sterilise New Jam Jars?
Yes, even packaged jars still need to be sterilised. You wouldn’t want your delicious homemade food spoiling quickly because the jars weren’t sterilised first.
