In every glass jar, there are many germs: eliminate them using this old-fashioned method
It only takes a few minutes to sterilize glass jars and kill off all the germs inside: this is vital to do if we want to store food in jars safely.
Simply washing glass jars out with hot water and soap is not enough: we need to sterilize them, especially if we want to reuse them to preserve other food in oil (or for jams and other foodstuffs).
What jars to sterilize?
All glass jars should be washed out, but those we want to use to conserve or store food in must also be sterilized.
This also means that the chosen container must have a lid which is in good condition: discard any with a damaged and/or rusty lid (or buy new lids).
How to sterilize glass jars
Creativo
There are several ways to sterilize glass jars and they all use heat. Before starting, the jars must be emptied of any contents, washed with soap and water and their lids put to one side.
You can then choose whether to boil the jars in water or put them in the oven.
- Boiling: choose a pot large enough to hold all the jars and still have room for a lot of water. Put the jars in the pot, and add water to cover them. If you want, you can also add two or three tablespoons of vinegar or a couple of table spoons of baking soda. Turn on the stove, and when the water comes to a boil, simmer for ten minutes. Turn off, leave to cool and then, using tongs or pot holders, remove the jars and leave them to air dry.
- In the oven: preheat the oven to 120°, and in the meantime, place the jars on a baking tray. When the oven reaches temperature, insert the tray with the jars and leave them in the oven for 30 minutes; then switch off, open the oven door but wait at least half an hour before trying to remove the jars, using protection or tongs.
Your glass jars will now be perfectly sterilized and you can use them however you like.
