Ball, Mason, Knorr. I don’t discriminate, but Ball Jars are my favorite. They are cheap at less than a buck a piece, reusable, sanitizable, and simply awesome. I think they blow plastic tupperware out of the water for their durability, and cleanliness, plus they aren’t plastic which can leach bad things into your food.
They sell them everywhere from the grocery store (I’ve personally seen them at Mars, Giant, and Wegmans), Target, Walmart, and for a little more on Amazon. They even have labels that stick for months, and come off with water.
If you’re a little low on money, you can literally just buy the jars and they are great for loads of things without investing in a pressure canner, or other canning tools.
Pantry Storage:
They are airtight and easy to organize.
Preparing meals for the week:
This is my breakfast in a jar. I prepare mushrooms, peppers, and onions and throw them in the fridge. This way everything is ready for me to throw in a pan with some fresh eggs and some sautéed spinach.
My new favorite before breakfast boost is chia seeds. As in Cha-cha-chia pets! But for your belly.
It is coconut water, a splash of juice (in this case some blueberry cranberry juice) and a tablespoon or so of chia seeds. They sit in the jar at least for a couple hours, but the longer the better so they form their gel-like texture. Chia seeds are high in fiber, a complete protein, and just all around good for you, so they keep me satisfied until breakfast.
Packing lunch:
I use the little ones for my lunch. I buy my applesauce in big containers, and some fresh or frozen fruit and divid them into the perfect 4oz portions. I also use the 8oz ones for portions of plantain chips (seriously the tastiest thing ever from Trader Joe’s); keeps me from eating the whole bag.
Leftovers:
If I know I’m gonna eat my leftovers soon, I’ll just throw them in a jar.
Or the freezer if they are gonna be in there longer:
Right now there is chicken stock, coconut milk, tomato paste, tomato sauce, bacon fat, and frozen fruit in ball jars. Ben makes a crap-ton (metric) of something and we can just can or freeze the rest.
The jars don’t specifically say they are for the freezer, but I’ve been using them without any troubles for months now. Then, when I need some stock I can just take a jar out of the freezer, take off the metal lid, and toss it in the microwave, or in a pot of hot water if you don’t like the microwave.
They are also quite handy for non food related things and storage.
Candles:
Since the glass is made to be heated, they are great for candles. And they have a handy watertight lid if you want to make a bunch in case of a power outage.
This one was cinnamon.
Or you could use them as a planter:
I added stones at the bottom for drainage, and picked up an African violet at the Home Depot for pretty cheap.
There are tons of other projects with them I’ve seen with them: holders for nails and other tools, vases, pencil/crayon/crafts holders, soap dispensers, light fixtures, salad-in-a-jar, pretty blue ones for decoration, and of course using them for their intended purpose of canning, but that is for my next post.
The Wobbly Kitchen Island 