Update: I thought water bath canning was overkill until my power went out for 11 days in Lansing
I figured boiling jars was just something my grandma did to show off, so I froze everything instead until we lost power for 11 days last January and I watched $300 of freezer meat turn gray. A neighbor who cans gave me two jars of her home canned chili on day 6 and I ate like a king while my frozen stuff rotted, so I bought a $40 canner and put up 34 jars that spring. Is it worth buying the fancy pressure canner for low acid stuff like green beans, or should I just stick to pickles and jam and call it good?