Cabbage (Brassica oleracea) is a cruciferous vegetable. It is a leafy green or purple biennial plant, grown as an annual vegetable crop for its dense-leaved heads. Very firm, small heads are used for canning. The outer coarse leaves and the core are removed. The heads are cut into three to six sections, depending on the size. They are then blanched in hot water or in steam in a retort until soft. In the latter case the temperature is 104 °C (220 °F) for 5 or 6 min. The hot cabbage is filled into cans, and a 1.5% hot brine added. If both the cabbage and brine are hot when filled, an exhaust is not necessary.
Process Times and Temperatures in Still Retorts. These processes should not be applied to other styles of pack because variation in canning procedure may vary the heat penetration. Where it is desired to can cabbage in other styles, or when other sterilisation systems are used, consult processing conditions with a competent thermal process authority. These processes give good guidelines for processing, but should always be verified by a competent thermal process authority for individual products and recipes. The maximum fill weights listed for some of the products may not be suitable for all operations. It is always recommended that heat penetration tests are done to verify the safety of the processing parameters. If the fill weight critical control factor is exceeded, then this constitutes a processing deviation and must be assessed by a competent thermal processing authority.
The minimum initial temperature stated is the average temperature of the contents of the coldest can in the retort at the time that the steam is turned on for the start of the process.
