Name: How to Can Potatoes
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 2 min
Total time: 72 min
Ingredients: 20 lbs small to medium mature white potatoes; Fresh boiling water, as needed; 7 tsp canning or pickling salt, optional (1 teaspoon per quart); Ascorbic acid solution, optional, to prevent potatoes from darkening; The NCHFP estimates about 20 pounds of potatoes for a 7-quart canner load, or roughly 2½–3 pounds per quart.

Spread the love

Learn how to can potatoes at home with this easy step-by-step guide! Pressure can fresh potatoes for a convenient, shelf-stable pantry staple that makes hearty homemade meals quicker and easier.

Contents show

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

This post may contain affiliate links at no cost to you. Read my very boring disclosure for more information.

Keeping a well-stocked pantry is one of my favorite parts of living a more self-sufficient lifestyle. I love being able to walk to my shelves, grab a jar of something I preserved myself, and turn it into dinner without needing to peel, chop, and prep everything from scratch. Potatoes are especially useful to have ready to go because they can become so many different meals.

Learning how to can potatoes is also a great way to preserve a large potato harvest or take advantage of a good sale. Instead of worrying about potatoes sprouting or going soft before I can use them, I can put them into jars and have them waiting in the pantry for soups, stews, casseroles, and easy side dishes.

Since potatoes are a low-acid vegetable, they must be processed in a pressure canner rather than a water-bath canner. In this tutorial, I’ll walk you through pressure canning potatoes using the tested method for cubed white potatoes so you can confidently add these useful jars to your pantry.

This is a pinnable post. Tap or hover over any image in this post to pin to your Pinterest Boards.

Potatoes in jars for home canning for how to can potatoes.

Why I Love Canning Potatoes

Potatoes are already one of the most versatile foods I keep in my kitchen, but home canned potatoes make them even more convenient. Most of the peeling, chopping, and cooking has already been done. On a busy evening, I can open a jar, drain it, and have potatoes ready to add to whatever I’m making.

It’s also an excellent option for gardeners. A big potato harvest is exciting, but even properly stored potatoes don’t last forever. Learning how to preserve potatoes in several different ways helps me make better use of what I grow and waste less food.

And honestly, seeing those beautiful jars lined up in the pantry is pretty satisfying!

What You Need to Can Potatoes

You don’t need a huge amount of specialized equipment for canning potatoes in jars, but you absolutely need a pressure canner. Potatoes are a low-acid food, which means a boiling-water canner does not reach temperatures high enough for their safe processing.

You’ll need a pressure canner, mason jars, new canning lids, screw bands, a jar lifter, canning funnel, headspace measuring tool or bubble remover, vegetable peeler, sharp knife, cutting board, large stockpot, colander, measuring spoons, and clean kitchen towels.

For a full 7-quart canner load, plan on approximately 20 pounds of potatoes. You’ll also need fresh boiling water for filling the jars and optional canning or pickling salt.

Choosing the Best Potatoes for Canning

Choose healthy, mature white potatoes that are firm and free from spoilage. Potatoes that are beginning to rot or deteriorate aren’t something I would try to save through canning. Start with good-quality produce for the best finished jars.

The tested National Center for Home Food Preservation method calls for peeling the potatoes. This is an important part of properly preparing them rather than an optional cosmetic step.

For cubed potatoes, cut your peeled potatoes into approximately ½-inch cubes. If you’re canning small potatoes whole, they should generally be about 1 to 2 inches in diameter and require a different precooking time.

Step-by-step backyard farming tips in Becoming a Backyard Farmer!

Get it on Amazon →

How to Can Potatoes Step by Step

Once everything is gathered, the actual process is pretty straightforward. I like to get my jars, canner, water, and equipment organized before I begin peeling potatoes. It makes the whole canning session run much more smoothly.

Step 1: Wash and Peel the Potatoes

Start by thoroughly washing your potatoes to remove dirt. Peel them completely and trim away damaged areas.

As you’re working, you can place the peeled potatoes in an ascorbic acid solution to help prevent discoloration if desired.

Step 2: Cut the Potatoes

Cut the peeled potatoes into approximately ½-inch cubes, keeping the pieces relatively uniform.

Uniform pieces not only look prettier in the finished jars, but they also help ensure you’re preparing the potatoes according to the tested processing method.

Step 3: Precook the Potatoes

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add your cubed potatoes and boil them for 2 minutes.

Once the 2 minutes are up, drain the potatoes. Don’t save this cooking water for filling your jars. Potatoes release a lot of starch, so you’ll want to use fresh boiling water when filling the jars.

This little step makes a noticeable difference in the appearance of home canned potatoes because you’re not pouring all that extra starchy water into your jars.

Step 4: Fill the Jars

Pack the hot potato cubes into hot jars.

If you want to add salt for flavor, add 1 teaspoon of canning or pickling salt to each quart jar. Salt is optional in this recipe and isn’t necessary for safe preservation.

Pour fresh boiling water over the potatoes, leaving 1 inch of headspace at the top of each jar.

Step 5: Remove Air Bubbles

Slide a bubble-removing tool around the inside of each jar to release trapped air.

Check the headspace again afterward and add additional boiling water if necessary to maintain 1 inch of headspace.

Wipe the rims of the jars clean, center the lids, and apply the screw bands according to your lid manufacturer’s directions.

Pressure Canning Potatoes Safely

Now we’re ready for the most important part of pressure canning potatoes.

Load the prepared jars into your pressure canner according to the manufacturer’s directions. Follow your particular canner’s instructions for the amount of water required, venting the canner, bringing it to pressure, and operating it safely.

Processing Times for Canned Potatoes

Process pint jars for 35 minutes and quart jars for 40 minutes.

These processing times apply to both dial-gauge and weighted-gauge pressure canners, but the amount of pressure you use depends on your altitude and the type of pressure canner you have.

For a dial-gauge canner, the National Center for Home Food Preservation specifies:

0–2,000 feet: 11 pounds pressure
2,001–4,000 feet: 12 pounds pressure
4,001–6,000 feet: 13 pounds pressure
6,001–8,000 feet: 14 pounds pressure

For a weighted-gauge canner:

0–1,000 feet: 10 pounds pressure
Above 1,000 feet: 15 pounds pressure

Always determine your altitude before beginning. Don’t reduce the recommended pressure or processing time.

Cooling Your Jars Properly

When the processing time is complete, turn off the heat and allow your pressure canner to depressurize naturally.

Don’t try to speed things along by force-cooling the canner. Once it has completely depressurized, follow your canner manufacturer’s instructions for safely opening it and removing the jars.

Place the hot jars upright on a towel or cooling rack where they won’t be disturbed. Give them plenty of time to cool completely.

Once cooled, check every jar for a proper seal. Any jar that didn’t seal should be refrigerated and used promptly rather than placed on your pantry shelf.

How to Store Home Canned Potatoes

Once you’ve confirmed that the jars are properly sealed, remove the screw bands if that is part of your normal storage practice, wipe the jars clean, label them, and add the date.

Store your canning potatoes in jars in a cool, dark, dry location away from excessive heat and direct sunlight.

I love labeling everything with the month and year because once canning season gets going, it’s surprisingly easy to forget which batch came first!

How I Use Canned Potatoes

This is where having jars of potatoes in the pantry really pays off. Since the potatoes are already peeled, cut, and heat-processed, they can make meal preparation incredibly quick.

Drain a jar and use the potatoes for soups, stews, casseroles, potato dishes, or other cooked recipes. They’re especially handy when I’m putting together a hearty dinner and don’t want to start by peeling a pile of potatoes.

You can also season and heat them as a simple side dish. Having basic ingredients preserved separately gives me much more flexibility than filling my pantry entirely with complete meals.

Why Pressure Canning Is Required

If you’re new to how to can potatoes, this is one safety rule worth remembering: potatoes cannot be safely preserved using ordinary boiling-water bath canning.

Potatoes are a low-acid vegetable. Pressure canning allows the food to reach the temperatures required for safely processing low-acid foods and controlling the risk of Clostridium botulinum.

This is one area where I don’t improvise. I stick with tested processing times, jar sizes, preparation methods, headspace, and altitude adjustments.

Preserving a Potato Harvest

One reason I enjoy learning how to preserve potatoes is that I don’t have to rely on just one storage method. Fresh potatoes can be kept in appropriate storage conditions, frozen for certain uses, dehydrated, or pressure canned.

Canning gives me something different: potatoes that are already peeled and prepared and don’t take up freezer space. When I’m working toward a pantry filled with food that can actually turn into everyday meals, that’s incredibly valuable.

If you’ve grown a big potato harvest, you also don’t have to can everything at once. Keep the best potatoes for fresh storage and turn some of the remaining harvest into convenient pantry jars.

Here are the posts where I grow my own potatoes: When to Plant Potatoes for the Best Harvest! and Why Growing a Potato Patch Is Important for Survival.

Tips for Better Canned Potatoes

The biggest tip I can give you is to follow the tested preparation method rather than trying to make the jars look or taste a particular way by changing the recipe.

Peel the potatoes, keep your cubes around the recommended size, precook them, use fresh boiling water when filling the jars, maintain the full 1-inch headspace, and process them for the complete recommended time.

Your finished jars may contain some starch or sediment, and that’s one reason I prefer draining the precooking water rather than putting it into the jars.

Conclusion

Learning how to can potatoes is one of those simple homesteading skills that can make everyday cooking so much easier. A few hours spent peeling, chopping, and pressure canning potatoes during harvest season can give you rows of convenient food ready for future meals.

I especially love canning potatoes in jars because they’re such a practical pantry staple. Whether I’m adding them to soup, making a casserole, or putting together a quick side dish, home canned potatoes save me prep time while helping me make better use of the food I grow and buy.

Once you learn how to preserve potatoes this way, you may find yourself purposely setting aside part of every potato harvest for the pressure canner. There’s nothing complicated about the ingredients—just potatoes, water, and optional salt—but the result is an incredibly useful addition to a well-stocked pantry.

How to Can Potatoes

Learn how to can potatoes safely using a pressure canner for an easy, shelf-stable pantry staple. These tender cubed potatoes are perfect for soups, stews, casseroles, breakfast potatoes, and quick side dishes. This recipe follows the National Center for Home Food Preservation guidelines for white potatoes.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 2

Processing Time 40

Total Time 1 12

Servings 7 quarts

Equipment

pressure canner.
Pint or quart mason jars
New canning lids and screw bands
jar lifter.
canning funnel.
Bubble remover/headspace measuring tool
large stockpot.
Large bowl
Colander
Vegetable peeler
Sharp knife
cutting board.
Measuring spoons
Clean kitchen towels or cloths

Ingredients

20 lbs small to medium mature white potatoes
Fresh boiling water, as needed
7 tsp canning or pickling salt, optional (1 teaspoon per quart)
Ascorbic acid solution, optional, to prevent potatoes from darkening
The NCHFP estimates about 20 pounds of potatoes for a 7-quart canner load, or roughly 2½–3 pounds per quart.

Instructions

Wash the potatoes thoroughly and peel them. Trim away any damaged areas. NCHFP's tested method calls for peeled potatoes.
Cut potatoes into approximately ½-inch cubes. Place them in an ascorbic acid solution while you work if desired to help prevent darkening.
Drain the potatoes. Place them in a large pot of boiling water and boil for 2 minutes, then drain again.
If using salt, add 1 teaspoon canning or pickling salt to each quart jar. Salt is optional and is used for flavor rather than preservation.
Pack the hot potatoes into hot canning jars.
Cover the potatoes with fresh boiling water, leaving 1 inch of headspace. Do not use the water the potatoes were precooked in because it contains excess starch.
Remove air bubbles, adjust the headspace back to 1 inch if necessary, wipe the jar rims, and apply lids and bands according to the lid manufacturer's directions.
Place the jars in a pressure canner and process pints for 35 minutes or quarts for 40 minutes, using the correct pressure for your altitude and type of canner. Potatoes are a low-acid vegetable and should not be processed in a boiling-water bath.
Once processing is complete, turn off the heat and allow the pressure canner to depressurize naturally. Do not force-cool the canner.
Remove the jars according to your canner manufacturer's instructions and allow them to cool undisturbed. Check the seals before labeling and storing.

Pressure & Altitude Adjustments

For a dial-gauge pressure canner, process pints for 35 minutes or quarts for 40 minutes at:
11 PSI from 0–2,000 feet
12 PSI from 2,001–4,000 feet
13 PSI from 4,001–6,000 feet
14 PSI from 6,001–8,000 feet.
For a weighted-gauge pressure canner, process at:
10 PSI from 0–1,000 feet
15 PSI above 1,000 feet
using the same 35-minute pint or 40-minute quart processing time.

Notes

For whole potatoes, select potatoes about 1–2 inches in diameter and boil them for 10 minutes before packing rather than the 2-minute precook used for cubes. Always use fresh boiling water when filling the jars.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Do potatoes have to be pressure canned?

Yes. Potatoes are a low-acid vegetable and must be processed in a pressure canner using a tested method. A boiling-water bath does not provide the processing conditions required for safely canning potatoes.

2. Do I have to peel potatoes before canning them?

Yes. The tested home-canning procedure for white potatoes calls for washing and peeling the potatoes before processing. Don’t simply scrub them and leave the skins on.

3. Why shouldn’t I use the potato cooking water in my jars?

Precooking pulls starch from the potatoes into the water. Drain that water after the potatoes have boiled and use fresh boiling water to fill your jars instead.

4. How long do I pressure can potatoes?

Process pint jars for 35 minutes and quart jars for 40 minutes, adjusting the pressure for your altitude and whether you’re using a dial-gauge or weighted-gauge pressure canner.