Step 1 // Prepare your Le Parfait®  jars, lean them slightly to allow air in underneath, and leave them to dry naturally. Do not wipe.

Ensure that all jars are sound.

Make sure the surfaces are free from chips, scratches or any remnants of food. Clean your jars thoroughly with very hot water and washing-up liquid.  Avoid impact between the jars, as any chips can cause the glass to break.

Use a soft brush to clean the jars if necessary, but we don't recommend the use of scouring pads. After cleaning, rinse thoroughly with hot water, and leave to dry naturally – do not wipe.

Step 2 // Select fresh, sound food to preserve. 

Select your fresh produce.

The produce you select, should be perfectly fresh, sound and suitable for preserving.

Never use frozen products.

Make sure that peelings and peeled products don’t get mixed up.
 

 Step 3 // Prepare your food.

Prepare the products you are going to preserve.

Vegetables should be blanched if necessary

Poultry must be cleaned and gutted.

It is important that these preparation steps are carried out without a break – once you have begun do not leave the food during the preparation stage.

Step 4 // Fill your Le Parfait®  jars.
 
Aim to fill your jars while the preparation is as hot as possible – even boiling. Fill the jar to within 1” (2cm) of the rim, then wait for a few minutes and make sure that the cooking liquid is distributed evenly over the food, in order to get rid of any air.

Add more liquid if necessary.

Be careful: With Le Parfait®  Familia Wiss jars, avoid the use of brine or vinegars because these acidic liquids tend to corrode metallic lids

Step 5 // Seal your Le Parfait®  jars.

Sealing your Le Parfait®  jars, ensure you use a new Le Parfait®  Super universal rubber seal that exactly fit the dimensions of your jar. (Only Le Parfait®  seals will fit Le Parfait®  jars.)

Dip the rubber seal in boiling water before fitting it to the lid. Make sure that the rim of the jar is perfectly clean before sealing, as if anything gets trapped between the rim and the rubber seal, the food will not be preserved properly. As a last step, press the lever down firmly to sterilize your jar.

Remember that you can use vinegar, oil or salt to preserve food. In all cases, follow the instructions in you recipe.

If using Le Parfait®  Familia Wiss jars, always use new Le Parfait®  Familia Wiss lids, as these are the only lids that will perfectly seal your jars.

Make sure that the lid is not out of shape and that the seal is in good condition.

Then tighten the lid without forcing it and you are now ready to sterilize your jars.

Step 6 // Sterilization.

Firstly, place a clean kitchen towel at the bottom of your pressure cooker in order to prevent the jars touching the metal base. Fill with hot water and place on the stove.

As the water comes to boil, immerse the jars in the water, taking care not to scald yourself. Place the jars upright, lids up. Brace the jars against each other, using extra empty jars without lids if necessary. The jars must be completely covered with water.

Close the pressure cooker, ensuring the seal remains intact. Start counting the time indicated in the recipe from the moment the valve starts letting out the stream. Be sure to keep to the times given in the recipe – this will ensure a perfect result every time. When the time is up, remove the pressure cooker from the heat and allow to cool without removing the lid.

Don’t remove the valve or bring the pressure cooker into contact with cold water, as cooling too rapidly can cause the jars to open. Once cool, remove the jars and store in a cool, dry dark place.

Step 7 // Check the jars.
 
When the jars have cooled down completely – probably the following day – check that the vacuum in the jars is intact by releasing the levers. The lids should remain stucks fast to the jars.

If the lid is loose, this could be due to one of the following:
- Incorrectly filled jar: too little or too much.
- Incomplete sterilization: too short a time or too low a temperature.
- Failure of the seal: debris on the jar or a damaged surface.

Using a rubber seal that has deteriorated through age or overuse or using the wrong type of seal.

If this happens, correct the fault and carry out the sterilization procedure again, this time using a new rubber seal.

For the Le Parfait®  Familia Wiss, check the seal in a similar way, unscrew the lid. The tops should remain stuck to the jars. If a top comes away, repeat the sterilization process using a new lid.

To keep your preserves for several months, don’t put the lids back on the Le Parfait®  Familia Wiss jars or re-engage the levers on Le Parfait®  Super jars. Keep them in a cool, dry place away from direct light.

Step 8 // Opening your jars

Before opening your jars, check that there is still a vacuum as in step 7.

For Le Parfait®  Super jars, if the lid does not stick to the jar once the lever has been released, or for Le Parfait®  Familia Wiss jars, the top does not stay stuck to the top of the jar, or if you have any doubts about the condition of the preserves, do not try the contents.

Opening should be carried out by an adult. Pull the tab of the rubber seal in order to allow air into the jar, and the lid will then come loose. With Le Parfait®  Familia Wiss jars, you should pierce the lid.

For easier opening, we recommend Le Parfait®  “le tire-rondelle” device which is specifically designed for this use.