Canning Pears

Though a sugar syrup is standard, I opted to use a medium honey syrup for a different flavor.

While browsing around looking for something fun to do, I also came across many vanilla pear jam recipes. Inspired, I added a teaspoon of vanilla extract to my syrup. YUM. (Vanilla pear jam coming soon!)

Canning Pears: Extended, Step-By-Step Directions

Gather your canning supplies for canning pears:

• water bath canner
• canning jars
• canning seals and rings
• jar lifter
• canning funnel
• large pot or blancher
• bowls
• large spoons
• sharp knife
• towels and dish cloths

Ingredients:

• pears
• sugar or honey – for the syrup (optional)
• 1 tsp vanilla (optional addition to syrup)

Syrup Recipes

Prepare light or medium syrup. (I prefer light syrup.) Simply heat water and sugar in a saucepan until sugar dissolves.

• Light syrup – 2 cups sugar to 1 quart water
• Medium syrup – 3 cups sugar to 1 quart water

Canning Pears with Honey

You can also make a syrup with honey if you don’t want to use processed sugar.

• Light honey syrup – 1 1/2 cups honey to 4 cups water
• Medium honey syrup – 2 cups honey to 4 cups water

Add in 1 tsp vanilla if desired.

How to Can Pears

Start by preparing jars, and getting water in your canner heating. (See Water Bath Canning for full preparation instructions.)

Prepare your choice of syrup. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to just keep hot. Peel, core, and slice your pears in halves or slices. Cut out any bruised areas.

How to Keep Sliced Pears from Turning Brown

Place peeled and sliced pears into an citric acid solution. This commercial product prevents browning. Follow the directions on the package, or use a lemon juice and water mixture instead.

I prefer the lemon juice option, just because I usually have lemon juice on hand. I believe the recommendation is 3/4 cup to 1 gallon water…but I almost never need a gallon of pretreatment, so I use 1 cup lemon juice to 2 quarts water. That is stronger than needed, but my pears always stay nice and bright.

When you have enough pears prepared, drain and add pears to hot syrup. Simmer pears 5 minutes in syrup, just enough to heat them through. You don’t want to overcook them, but when you are canning pears, a hot pack works best.

Using a slotted spoon, pack hot pears into hot jars, covering with the same syrup you cooked them in, leaving a 1/2-inch headspace.

Wipe the rims clean, remove any air bubbles, and place your lids.

As a high-acid fruit, pears can be processed in a water bath canner. One exception to this? Asian pears.

Side Note About Canning Asian Pears

Did you know that Asian pears must be processed in a pressure canner? Check out more on canning Asian pears here.

Water Bath Canning Pears

Process pints for 20 minutes or quarts for 25 minutes, adjusting for altitude. (See chart below for adjustments.) If you’d like to learn more about why adjusting your processing time is so important, check out this page on altitude adjustments.

Canning Pears – FAQs

Do Pears Have to Be Ripe to Can Them? How Do I Speed Up the Ripening Process?

Yes, pears for canning should be ripe, but not overly ripe (mushy). If your pears are green, let them set on the counter for a few days at least. (Some people use apples and bananas to increase ethylene gas, and thus quicken the process. To do this, simply place apples and bananas near the pears, or put bananas or apples in a paper bag with the pears.)

Pears are the rare fruit that can be picked green and still taste wonderful when is ripened off the tree. It is common to pick pears green. For example, the pears I’m picking in the gleaning video above were green and hard. They survived the trip home (a couple days in the car!), and I still had to wait a little while before they were ripe enough for canning.

What Kinds of Pears Can Be Canned? What About Anjou? Bartlett? What are the Best Pears for Canning?

According to Ball, Bartlett pears are best, but I don’t see why you couldn’t can ANY variety of pear, as long as they’re at the proper ripeness. (The only exception would be Asian pears, which must be canned with lemon juice for safety reasons.)

Canning Pears Without Sugar?

According to the NCHFP, pears can be canned in “syrup, juice, or water.” However, pears are one type of fruit that benefits from the addition of some sort of syrup. The sugar will help preserve the texture. Pears are delicate and can use the help!

Pinnable Recipe Card

Related Pages

Pin This for Later:

Members’ Extra: Access Your Video Tutorial in Your Members Area

Canning school members, click here to log in.

Source: The National Center for Home Food Preservation

Page last updated: 4/7/2021