• Food preservation classes to be offered in conjunction with Sitka Seafood Festival

Leslie Shallcross from the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service‘s Anchorage District Office will be in Sitka to offer a series of food preservation classes on Aug. 6-8 as part of the Sitka Seafood Festival.

The classes on Thursday and Friday, Aug. 6-7, will take place at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen (inside First Presbyterian Church, 505 Sawmill Creek Road), while the Saturday, Aug. 8, classes will be at Sweetland Hall on the Sheldon Jackson Campus. Each of the classes will cost $15, but jars and other materials will be provided by the Sitka Seafood Festival.

The class schedule is:

Thursday, Aug. 6, 2-4:30 p.m., at Sitka Kitch — Low-sugar jams and jellies — Learn how to use a boiling water bath canner for preserving fruit by making low-sugar jams and jellies.
Thursday, Aug. 6, 6-8 p.m., at Sitka Kitch — Local garden greens — Learn how to cook with and preserve your garden greens.
Friday, Aug. 7, 10 a.m. to noon, at Sitka Kitch — Kelp pickles and sauerkraut — Learn how to make kelp pickles. You will “start” some sauerkraut as well as learn some of the science of fermentation.
Friday, Aug. 7, 3-5 p.m., at Sitka Kitch — Canning salmon — Learn how to use a pressure canner for preserving fresh, frozen or smoked fish.
Saturday, Aug. 8, 10 a.m. to noon, at Sweetland Hall — Canning salmon — Learn how to use a pressure canner for preserving fresh, frozen or smoked fish.
Saturday, Aug. 8, 1-2:30 p.m., at Sweetland Hall — Process of smoking salmon — Learn the steps in smoking fish.

For those who might miss the classes but still want to learn more about home canning, the UAF Cooperative Extension Service has a series of online tutorials on its website called “Preserving Alaska’s Bounty.” Also, don’t forget to make sure your pressure canner gauge is tested at least once a year. Jasmine Shaw from the Sitka District Office of the UAF Cooperative Extension Service has a tester in her office and you can call her at 747-9440 to schedule a test.