Glass Storage Jars
You might think that all storage containers and jars are created equal, but that's just not true. Different materials will affect the things you're storing in different ways. If you're planning on storing food, or anything else for that matter, glass storage jars are the way to go.
First and foremost, if your glass storage jars turn green, this is the natural result of iron impurities in the sand that was used to make the glass, but it won't affect the jar itself.
There are quite a few different styles of glass jars. One of the biggest features to pay attention to is the closure. If you are storing food, you should try to get jar containers with gasket lids. These lids are air-tight and won't break or leak air in or out. Rubber gaskets are the best.
It's important to clean your glass jars often and well. If there is excess buildup on the lid, this can cause air to leak in and out of the jar even though it looks like your glass storage jars are air tight.
If you don't need to keep your storage contents air-tight, there are tie-wire and other closure styles, but air tight gaskets are by far the most convenient and durable.
So what is the benefit of storing stuff in glass storage jars? Let me try to list my favorite reasons.
First, it has kept my kitchen organized. I used to have my spaghetti and pasta hidden in the back of the cabinet, rice would be in the back pantry, it was a mess! But now I have glass jars for pasta noodles and white rice and dirty rice and much more.
The small, fat glass jars are perfect for storing sugar, flour and other powder cooking accessories. I also buy a lot of coffee, but the containers they come in are bulky and take up a lot of room. So I just empty all of my coffee into a big glass jar in my kitchen, and I'm set for weeks.
It also makes shopping easier. How many times have you been at the store, and weren't sure if you had those spaghetti noodles sitting at home or not. When you have these things in glass jars on your kitchen counter, it's easy to see when you're running low and need more.
Leftover food is perfect in an air tight glass jar. Unlike bags and plastic food containers that can leak air, your food will stay fresh and tasting great longer than normal storage containers.
I also like to keep my candy and other goodies in jars too. It's a lot harder to over-indulge when I have to open and close the jar all the time!
Glass storage jars come in all kinds of sizes and can handle almost anything you throw at it. everything from paste that is a foot long to a few tablespoons of a special cooking sauce you have. Size is never an issue.
Keeping food in an air-tight jar for long periods of time can sometimes cause problems, so every few days (or once a week), vent the glass jars by cracking the lid and leaving them open for 30 minutes to an hour. This will just cycle the old air and refresh everything.
It's really easy to customized the jars as well. Etching glass is not hard and it's not expensive either. You can etch labels right onto the jars, instead of using stickers and markers. It just makes the jars and the entire kitchen look better with etched labels on your glass storage jars.
These glass jars are one of those things you never knew you needed until you get it. It saves time, space, money and food with no extra effort.