• If you have a question about commercial production or the hot sauce business, please post in The Food Biz.

bottling Question regarding bottling and hotfill

V

veeCan

I made my biggest batch yet.. and learnt quite a few things which brings me to this question. 
 
1. I checked the temperature and it was 212, then I started bottling while the sauce was still boiling in low/medium heat 
 
2. I got more than half way through and realized my sauce was getting thicker, coz it was still boiling! (The sauce needs to be >=212 when bottling, right?) 
 
3. I added 1/4 cup boiling water and stirred it in well, then resumed bottling
 
4. 10 more bottles down it was getting really thick. By then I wasn't sure how much water would preserve the flavor/taste also I was worried about diluting it. 
 
5. I ended up with 4 bottles of very thick almost unpourable sauce. 
 
When I counted the bottles, the yield was significantly less than what I had planned for and measured. 
 
I would like the pros here to give me any suggestion please, 
 
Is it ok to remove the sauce from the heat right before starting to boil? But then how do you ensure each bottle is filled at the right temparature?
 
Do you take it back to the stove and boil it again, check temperature after, say every 10 bottles? Are there other ideas? 
 
 
 
 
 
Sort by date Sort by votes
Greetings veeCan.
 
 
 
 
Hint- Double boiler.
 
Your sauce needs to be brought up to a simmer, not necessarily a full rolling boil, but that won't hurt at all....for about 20 minutes.  Longer if it needs to be cooked down or you just want the flavors to meld. 
 
Moisture is lost while bottling sauce that is simmering on the stove, no problem adding water back in to maintain the consistency.  Just like all sauces, the longer they simmer, the more moisture is evaporated.
 
The sauce needs to maintain 190F, doesn't need to be boiling.  Once the sauce has simmered to your satisfaction and you are ready to bottle, set up a double boiler.  Have the larger pot with water simmering and ready to go.  Plop your sauce pot into the larger pot, that'll keep the sauce hot but off the flame.
 
Don't take it all the way off the heat, it needs to stay hot while bottling.  Using a double boiler will help.
 
Most of the details and spelled out Here.  
 
Have Fun!   
SL
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top