​Making the most of Weck jars

Weck jars are lovely old-fashioned jars with loose glass lips and clips, and they have been a firm favourite with home-preserving fans for over a hundred years. At Wares of Knutsford we sell a selection of these jars which are wonderful for marinating and storing, as well as for preserving. But they can also be used for craft and for decoration.

Let's take a closer look at the vast potential of the multi-tasking Weck with some of these fun ideas:

Marinating fresh cheeses
Try this recipe to marinade goat's cheese using a 1litre Weck jar. Take 6 ounces of fresh goat's cheese and crumble it into small chunks. Pour a thin layer of good quality olive oil into the jar and add some red pepper flakes and a sprig of your favourite fresh herbs. Woody herbs such as oregano, rosemary and thyme are really good, and you can use either one or a combination of them to enhance flavour.

Add a layer of the goat's cheese and top with more oil, a piece of peeled lemon, some more herbs and red pepper flakes. Layer up the rest of the cheese and repeat the process. This marinated treat should be left for several days in the fridge so the flavours really merge. The longer you leave it, the more the flavours will intensify.

Take it out of the fridge around an hour before you plan to serve it, and use it as a fantastic pre-dinner nibble with crackers. This also makes a lovely gift!

A salad in a jar
Weck jars are also great for transporting your lunch, and you can layer up a salad so that it's good to go. Simply add your favourite dressing to the bottom of the Weck jar and then layer up your thinly sliced salad vegetables. For example, cubes of celery and cucumber, halved cherry tomatoes, peppery rocket leaves, strips of crisp pepper and slices of spring onion make for a mouth watering treat. Add your favourite proteins, such as fresh mozzarella, torn roasted chicken, king prawns or marinated tofu, plus delicious extras such as bulgar wheat, olives, sundried tomatoes, capers and anything else that takes your fancy! A meal-in-a-jar salad should be fun and colourful, and you can experiment with your favourite combinations. Nuts, seeds and fresh herbs also add colour, fragrance and nutrition. When you're ready to enjoy your meal, simply tip your lidded jar upside down so that the salad dressing mingles with the ingredients, and enjoy!

Bath salts
Glass jars look beautiful stacked up with homemade colourful bath salts too, especially if they catch the light. Stock up on Epsom salts and food colourings and have fun making your own colourful creations with a few drops of essential oil for fragrance. If you love luxury baths, you could also store dried rose and lavender petals in Weck jars and then add a handful when you run a bath. The fragrance will be beautifully relaxing.

Craft room organisation
Because these jars come in a variety of sizes and can be used without lids, they make great choices for craft room storage. Hop onto Pinterest for plenty of inspiration! Why not store your pretty buttons, coloured threads, pens and embellishments in a series of glass Weck jars on a shelf for an organised look that also showcases your favourite craft materials. A series of smaller jars to store colourful ribbons also doubles up as a decorative feature and really brings your creative space to life.

A gift with a difference
Homemade salts are a great gift for cooks and they are very easy to make. But have you ever heard of vanilla salt? If not, you're in for a treat, and small jars of these would make fantastic wedding or party favours too. To make vanilla salt place a cup of coarse, Maldon or similar fine seat salt into a pestle and mortar and add the seeds from four vanilla beans. Madagascar vanilla beans are the best for flavour and ad fragrance too. Grind the seeds, known as vanilla bean caviar, into the salt so that they fully disperse. Place the mix into each glass container and leave it for a week. The vanilla will permeate into the salt and give a wonderfully unusual finish.

Stock up on your supplies
We sell a wide range of Weck jars with different sizes and lids on offer at Wares of Knutsford, along with a huge range of other glass bottles and jars for all occasions. You will love our product range, our customer service and our excellent prices. We also sell our glassware in bulk so that event hosts and small business owners can enjoy the best possible unit costs, along with competitive delivery pricing. Please contact our customer services team with any queries that you might have and follow us on social media for all of the latest product releases, news, inspiration and special offers!