How do I open stuck jar lid?

There are several methods of opening a stuck jar lid. Depending on the kind of jar, you may find one of these methods easier than calling on the strong guy who typically opens those reluctant jar lids.

Tutorial

Opening a jar of home canned jelly, fruit or vegetables should make putting a meal on the table easy. But when the jar lid is stuck, you can find yourself ready to smash the jar from pure frustration. There are several tricks you can try to loosen a too-tight jar lid, whether it’s on a home canning jar or a store-bought product.

If the problem is grip, use a dry or slightly damp dishcloth to help you get a better hold of both the jar and the lid. There are also some commercial gripping cloths, usually made of rubber, that help when this is the problem.

Remember that on home canning jars, the lid typically consists of two parts. There’s the lid – that flat piece that actually makes the seal on the jar. And there’s the ring, the part that screws down. Depending on where you’re stuck in the opening process, you may find some useful tools around the kitchen.

The flat lid is usually pried off using the handle of a spoon or the blade of a butter knife, but you can also use an old-fashioned can opener to pry off a resistant lid.

If it isn’t a matter of holding onto the jar and lid, but just that you aren’t strong enough to turn the ring, there are still some things you can do to help loosen the lid. Try running hot water over the mouth of the jar. Even though the water is not going to seep all the way to the upper part of the jar ring, it sill sometimes help break the seal. This is especially helpful if something sticky has adhered the ring to the jar – common in jellies, pickles and fruits.

Sometimes, you can gently peck on the ring to loosen it enough that you can turn it. You can use a spoon to lightly tap the ring in the general direction that the lid is going to turn, or you can even lightly thump the top of the jar on a cabinet. This will sometimes jar the seal enough that the ring will come loose.

One other method of opening a stuck jar lid is to use the handle of a spoon or fork and pry at the base of the ring. Just slip the end of the handle under the ring and gently pry upwards, moving around the ring and prying as you go. Again, this will sometimes loosen the seal enough that the ring will come loose more easily.

There are several commercial gadgets that work well, both manual and automatic. If opening stuck jar lids is an ongoing issue, you may find the expense of one of these to be a good investment.