Preserving food helps you to minimize wastage and save time. When you come in a hurry, you can warm the food and eat. Imagine preserving the food in a mason jar, and it stubbornly refuses to open. It can be embarrassing to call your entire neighborhood to help you open the jar. Though the lid doesn’t get stuck always, it becomes a nightmare once it gets stuck. You need to know how to open a mason jar to prevent you from going crazy in future. Here are 8 hacks that you can use.
Table of Contents1. Buy A Jar Opening Device2. Tap The Lid3. Water Hammer Method4. Heating The Lid5. Break The Seal6. Use A Rubber Band7. Gloves8. Use A Table ClothConclusion
Table of Contents
1. Buy A Jar Opening Device
It’s the best and the most comfortable option. You can order a jar opener online. You can also get it from a kitchen supply store or even a local grocery store. There are several jars opening devices in the market that helps to provide enough grips to open any stubborn jar. Among them include an electric jar opener that is perfect for opening any type of jar in your kitchen.
2. Tap The Lid
Could be you don’t want to incur any cost by buying a Mason jar opening device. You can use a heavily wooded tool in your kitchen to tap the lid. Tapping causes the air bubble to rise and exert pressure against the lid. It helps to break the seal, thus making it easy to open the jar. You can tap it a few times and try to open. If it fails, you can repeat tapping again in a gentle way.
You can also tap the lid against a hard surface such a counter. Hold the bottom of your jar and slide it at an angle of 45 degrees. Tap it against the edge to make the air bubbles rise and hit against the lid. Tap several times before trying to twist the lid. Be careful not to tap against the edge with excess energy. The glass may break and spill everything on the ground.
3. Water Hammer Method
Another method on how to open a vacuum sealed jar is by using a water hammer method. Flip over your Mason jar at an angle of 45 degrees. Smack the bottom using the palm of one hand until you hear a pop sound. Smacking makes the bubbles to push against the lid, thus breaking the seal.
4. Heating The Lid
When you expose the metal to the heat, it usually expands. Your metallic lid is not exceptional. Remember, when you place your jar in a freezer, the metallic lid usually shrinks, making it hard to open. So, heating becomes the best method for such jars. You can hit using a lighter or even a gas cooker. Hold the bottom then lower the top of the jar over the open flame. Turn the top around the flame for a few seconds. The lid will expand and break free from the seal. To avoid burning your fingers when twisting off the hot lid, use a towel or gloves.
Could be there are some sticky food particles around your Mason jar. When you run hot water around the lid, it helps the lid to expand and also helps to melt the dry sticky particles. That makes opening easy.
A hairdryer is another alternative. You should heat around the lid with the hairdryer for about thirty seconds. Don’t wait for it to cool. Grab a towel to protect you from burning your fingers and use it to twist off the lid.
5. Break The Seal
How do you break the seal? Look for a durable and long tool that contains a sharp edge. Such a tool includes a butter knife or even a screwdriver. After inserting the edge between the Mason jar and lid, hold your tool 45 degree and try to lift it. Wedge it all around the jar until you hear a popping sound. You can unscrew your jar with ease.
6. Use A Rubber Band
Using wet hands to unscrew a tight lid is very tricky. Imagine trying to open a lid that has a very soft surface? That becomes difficult. You can improve the grip by wrapping the rim of your jar using a rubber band(s). You can hold the area that has the rubber band and twist off the lid. It will loosen and open. You can also add a dryer sheet to make the grip better. Spread a dryer sheet over the surface of the rid and wrap it using the rubber bands. Hold the lid by the rim and twist it in a counter-clockwise direction.
7. Gloves
With an excellent grip, opening the jar is not that hard. You can use the kitchen gloves to hold the soft lid and twist it open. Could be the other hand is not that strong to hold the jar as you twist. Sit and place the jar between your thighs. As you twist the lid, thighs can offer the necessary supports.
8. Use A Table Cloth
Imagine the jar failing to open yet you want to cook or warm food to your visitors. Do you rush with the jar to the sitting room and request them to open it? Don’t allow a stubborn lid to ruin your mood or even embarrass you. Grab a table cloth and cover the lid with it. Apply a brutal force on the lid in a counter-clockwise direction. The lid will have no option but to open. You can heat the food and eat it with a smile.
Conclusion
Although the jar doesn’t fail to open always, when it does, it can inconvenience you big times. Knowing different ways of opening the jar can help you when one method fails. You need to know how you can improve the grip of your jar. It’s also good to know the tools and ways of breaking the seal. If you are not careful with a method such as heating and wedging, you are likely to incur a severe injury. The most convenient method is using a jar opener. It makes it easy to open the can without exposing yourself to dangers.