Home Canned

[Kari Lynn]

As per request, I am posting what I can find of home canning. Particularily meats.

Some requirements are:
A Pressure Canner. Preferably one that has a weight gauge for maintaining more accurate pressure.

Issues that my family have run into in the past:
Electric stoves have always been the favored type of cook range my family has used. But we find that some stove tops have a tall lip around the edge of the cook top. Preventing large canners from sitting flat on the burner. (the coil burner type) So you may want to check your stove to make sure a large canner can sit on it with out any problems.

Now that we have purchased a new glass top stove, we find we can NOT can on it at all. (even though it's perfectly flat and the pots fit on it well)
I have been told by the company that sold the stove to me, that it will not regulate the heat on those large canners. (however, my mom has canned on hers!)
For myself, I'm thinking of putting a stove top in the basement just for the purpose of canning. (or borrow mom's until I can get one installed that I can can on. lol)

I personally have the "Ball Blue Book of Perserving" I use the instructions and recipes in there.
I also have other cook books that have canning sections in them. I recommend if you are going to can food, to purchase one.

Most of the meats in the book, are hot packed. Cooked to about 70% doneness. Packed into the sterile jars with broth to cover to 1 and 1/2 inch from the top. wipe jar lip with lint free towel, to ensure a good seal. Place a sterile lid on jar, and tighten down with a ring. Place jar in pressure canner.
When pressure canner is full. Put recommended amount of water in the canner. Place lid on top of canner, and turn to seal. Turn on the heat, and bring pressure up to 10 pounds (11 on a dial guage)
Process pint jars for 1 hour 15 minutes at 10 (11) pounds.
Process quart jars for 1 hour and 30 minutes at 10 (11) pounds.

Most canning books recommend hot pack for canning meats. It is safer!
However, you can process cold pack (raw) meats too.
I have made hamburger patties.
I take hamburger and flatten in the bottom of the jar and touching sides of jar. Place a large slice of onion on top of the hamburger to seperate each patty.
Layer the hamburger and onion until 1 and half inches from top of jar.
Wipe top lip of jar, place sterile lid on and tighten with ring. Place in pressure canner and process for 1 hour 45 minutes at 10 pounds. (11 for dial guage)
I think I even took mine to 2 hours, just to be safe.

Pressure canners can be dangerous if you don't keep an eye on them. Just ask my aunt who blew a lid through her ceiling! lol
Actually, it wasn't her fault, she had a malfunctioning safety vent. But, she was distracted from keeping a close eye on the dial guage, by company over that day. So do this when you are least likely going to be distracted for at least 4 hours. You don't have to stand over the canner, but you do have to keep an eye on it.
Listen for the hiss of the steam escaping through the vent. So many hisses per minute, if more, turn the heat down!
With a dial guage, you can't hear the hiss, I believe. So you have to watch the dial to make sure it doesn't get to high, or low.

When process time is done. DO NOT OPEN THE VENT OR LID!

Just turn off the heat. (you can pull the canner to the side if needed, but try not to move it too far)
Wait until the canner has cool enough for the steam/pressure to have disappated on it's own, before opening or venting.
Even opening the vent to let steam out faster can cause jars to burst, or not seal.

These instruction are based on altitudes of 0 to 1000 feet above sea level. Altitudes above 1000 feet should be processed at 15 pounds for same time.


some useful links

http://www.doityourself.com/stry/canningmeat

http://www.ehow.com/how_2106132_can-meat.html

[Kari Lynn]

Here is a link that will take you to a video. On the side there are others as well.
As I have dial up, I can't check for best ones. Sorry. But thought these might be interesting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXSBCrw9dSg

[Beth]

Thanks Kari, always love tips on canning.

[Kari Lynn]

You are most welcome.
I love having canned meats and such on hand. They are so handy just for about any occasion. When hurrying about between boys activities. Just open and heat, or add to canned vegies, noodles and heat.
When lights go out and I can't cook. Just open one, and make sandwiches!
And the taste is WAY better than store bought. And melt in your mouth tender!

¤=[Post Update]=¤

I've already told my boys if they don't want to starve next year, they need to help me put in a garden and can up foods. They're eating me out of house and home! lol. 3 growing boys! lol

[Ammit]

Thankyou for that Kari Lynn.

I do however have to ask about wastage, obviously this stored food can eventually go bad, even I should imagine so can the canning process have errors and leave canned foods that will be un eatable. As with all things there are successes and failiures. Can you give information on shelf life and posible errors that can happen as I would hate to store food thinking all was well when needed only to find something went wrong and it was all scrap.

Blessings

Ammit

[Kari Lynn]

This one appears to be very informative.
http://www.extension.umn.edu/food/food-safety/preserving/canning/


Here's another for those who don't know how to home can, and want to save store bought foods.
http://www.survival.com/y2kkarens.htm

Hi Ammit,
Shelf life is very dependent upon storage and handling.
Home canned foods in glass jars, will last longer than foods that is processed in metal cans/ plastic bottles and boughten in stores.
Most purchased foods and juices puchased in metal and plastic jars won't last much longer than a year. Particularily juices. Metal cans seem to rust and just get eatten away from the high acid inside. Bottles, are even worse, even though they don't ruin the integrity of the container as do the metal cans. For some reason, plastic bottles only last about 6 months. This I know from experience as I tried to save my store bought canned and bottled juices, only to find metal jars starting to leak after a year. Opening up plastic bottles to find the color and taste weren't quite right, so pitched them all.
However, my mom has canned home made juices in glass bottles. And they have lasted for many years. We moved here from Michigan 24 yrs ago, and worked for an orchard the first two years here for produce. Canning the fruit and fruit juices. She rotated, and gave away her oldest stuff just maybe a year or two ago. That should give you an indication of how long home canned might be able to last if taken care of properly.
My food doesn't last that long, as my pantry in my basement is heated along with the rest of my house, and I do have a high moisture content in my basement. (water, during heavy rains, come into my windows, still trying to fix that) My temperatures range from 60 degree in the winter, to 70 in summer. There are windows, which allow light into my storage area as well. This effects my shelf life GREATLY. Most of my stuff I can't keep more than 6 months to 3 or 4 yrs, depending on what it is.
juices in store bought containers, 6 months.
store bought in cans... few years.
home canned in glass jars. Just got rid of some green beans from 1992.
Meat I haven't been able to keep more than a year or two, simply because of high usage! lol
But my mother has given me some of her canned meats from nearly 10 yrs ago. Tastes as good as the day she canned it. I do have to say the fish doesn't hold up as well as chicken, beef or deer. It got a bit mushy.

My mother's storage pantry is completely underground. No light or heat source. It stays an average temperature of about 50 to 55 degrees year around.
It's also very dry in her pantry.

With good storage environment, and as long as the seals on the jars remain intact, foods will last in excess of 5 and 10yrs. (even though canning books will sometimes say 1 and 1/2 to 2 yrs.)

As a general rule, you may get a jar or two that will not seal down immediately after the canning process. No harm done, simply examine the jar for cracks, and defects. Replace with a new sterile lid, and reprocess this jar. Or put in your fridge, and eat immediately.
Occasionally, I'll loose a jar or two a year while in storage. sometimes I will find a little chip in the jar. Other times, there is no apparent reason.
I have noticed that I loose less to improper sealing when I use Kerr lids
I love Ball jars, but Kerr lids just seem to seal much better. They're even harder to get off the jar when opening. I have litterally had to use pliers or a can opener, and bent the lid trying to get it unstuck from the jar. melted rubber will be stuck to the jar! It seals that hard!
I have used ball lids, and other off brands. But think I'm going to stick with Kerr from now on! Rubber seal is softer and just seems to melt onto the jar when processing.
(there is no chance of being able to reuse those lids! lol)