Is all your canning done?

[sportsnut]

Thanks Spatin.. So, you did a cold pack on the turkey/chicken and slow cooked the venison for 6 hours? I'll check the recipe book that came with my canner again. I was hoping to just cook it while I canned it so to speak. I figured the meats juices would mix in with the water that way. Maybe use beef broth with the venison?...just pondering...I'd like it to taste good and not just be edible, but I guess a lot of that can come with seasonings after the fact.

RJ

I do my Venison cold pack with no water or broth. I add sliced jalapeño, chunks of garlic, onion, Montreal steak seasoning, pepper, and a teaspoon of salt. Turns out real good !

 

[PBR Streetgang]

Just getting started. So far the ground meat has the best flavor. What are your favorite recipes to can meats? Please give specific instructions.

 

[sportsnut]

Just getting started. So far the ground meat has the best flavor. What are your favorite recipes to can meats? Please give specific instructions.

I gave my recipe above for Venison. I also have friends that just use salt and pepper with raw packed meat, no water or broth added. It is also very tasty !

 

[rowjimmy]

Thanks for the tip on the venison. I cooked mine in the crock pot on low overnight and packed it in the broth that formed. It kind of looks like the jar you pictured in the photo...its should be tender to say the least. Hopefully still flavorful and not too overcooked. I'm going to try your cold-pack recipe next time I can (maybe with beef just for the heck of it.) I feel the need to add liquid, even though its not necessary in many applications. I did my turkey in chicken broth (with turkey drippings mixed in.) I'm going to have to crack open a jar of this stuff one of these days.

RJ

 

[spatin]

I just had some of that turkey (packed in chicken broth) a few days ago, and it was delicious. Another canning success. Just don't forget to cook it before eating to kill the pathogens.
Sidney

 

[rowjimmy]

Hey..I need advice. I canned some peppers from this year and while they turned out OK for putting in Chili, they are very mushy. I quartered them, blanched them for about 2 minutes, and canned them for 90 min in a wet-pack as per my canners' directions. Any tips for keeping them firmer or other prep methods?

Thanks,
RJ

 

[spatin]

No, I think the canning process takes the starch out of them. I have never seen any canned peppers that were not cooked and mushy. You could slice them up and dry them in an oven or dehydrate them. I have some very crunchy cayenne peppers that I dehydrated in my "Ronco" dehydrator and they are very dry. I can take out a few pieces and crunch them up in my fingers to put in soup, chili, gumbo or whatever.
Sidney

Hey..I need advice. I canned some peppers from this year and while they turned out OK for putting in Chili, they are very mushy. I quartered them, blanched them for about 2 minutes, and canned them for 90 min in a wet-pack as per my canners' directions. Any tips for keeping them firmer or other prep methods?

Thanks,
RJ

 

[rowjimmy]

Had a pint of venison last night w/juice ove rmashed taters form dehydrated flakes...mmmm....:smile: While I had a tinge of regret not boiling it for 15 minutes first, all is well and it was tasty. :biggrin:

Thanks for all the pointers I got!

RJ

 

[goldenspurholderx2]

I just ate some bacon I canned on 7-30-08 and it was real tasty! My only complaint is that it all broke apart as I was taking it out of the can to fry it. I was using it as bits for a German potato salad, so no biggie. In the next month or so I'm gonna can some more but this time I'm going to lay it out on parchment paper, after the pre-cook, then roll the strips up into a log then put it in a wide mouth jar. We'll see if I can get actual strips out of it then. My other cans will be good for making hash or anything else where bits are used.

 

[jerrymrc]

And a small update. We had spaghetti tonight and used a jar of ground beef that was 2 years old. No problems with the smell or taste and so far we are still alive. I only have one small jar left from that era and am going to wait a little longer to use it.

As a side note the base for the sauce was a can of spaghetti sauce with a "use by" date of june 2008. :beer: just getting a handle on some of the life of the items.

Chicken is back on sale so it is time to can some more of that. My stock of canned meat is down in general.:sad:

 

[spatin]

Where is chicken on sale Jerry?

I am down on FBCBs and need to can a bunch more!

Sidney

 

[jerrymrc]

Where is chicken on sale Jerry?

I am down on FBCBs and need to can a bunch more!

Sidney

The mexican food store circle and monterey. $1.69 a lb for bonless/skinless breasts.

 

[flopshot]

Hey..I need advice. I canned some peppers from this year and while they turned out OK for putting in Chili, they are very mushy. I quartered them, blanched them for about 2 minutes, and canned them for 90 min in a wet-pack as per my canners' directions. Any tips for keeping them firmer or other prep methods?

Thanks,
RJ

you could try pickling them. we made some microwave pickles the other day that turned out very well. gonna take a shot at some peaches this week. one of the part timers here works at a research station and is hauling them in my the bushel.

 

[spatin]

Thanks.

The mexican food store circle and monterey. $1.69 a lb for bonless/skinless breasts.

 

[spatin]

Got 15 "pesos" today over at the Mexican food market.
It was $1.69 a peso.
Good call. Thanks for the information.
Sidney

Thanks.

 

[jerrymrc]

Got 15 "pesos" today over at the Mexican food market.
It was $1.69 a peso.
Good call. Thanks for the information.
Sidney

Your welcome. I got 4 packages myself. About 17 pesos here. Going to can a batch tonight and tomorrow.:wink:

 

[richbug]

you could try pickling them. we made some microwave pickles the other day that turned out very well. gonna take a shot at some peaches this week. one of the part timers here works at a research station and is hauling them in my the bushel.

I pickle my peppers as well. Pretty sure I have a peck I could pickled promptly(hungarian wax).

Basically just pack them in jars and pour a boiling seasoned vinegar based brine over them.

 

[rowjimmy]

I pickle my peppers as well. Pretty sure I have a peck I could pickled promptly(hungarian wax).

Basically just pack them in jars and pour a boiling seasoned vinegar based brine over them.

Do you have a recipe for that brine? How long will they last that way? Need to be refrigerated I guess?

 

[richbug]

Do you have a recipe for that brine? How long will they last that way? Need to be refrigerated I guess?

No refrigeration, just seal them(with rings and boiled lids) as soon as you pour the boiling brine over them.

Recipe I use:
1 tsp of diced garlic per jar

Cut up peppers as you see fit, I make rings from mine, or cut in half lengthwise. Whole peppers don't work.

Pack as many peppers as you can get into the jars while keeping 1/4" down from top.

6 cups vinegar
2 cups water
1.5 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon sugar

Boil brine, pour over peppers, seal promptly(lids should draw down). Let sit at least 6 weeks before eating.

 

[rowjimmy]

No refrigeration, just seal them(with rings and boiled lids) as soon as you pour the boiling brine over them.

Recipe I use:
1 tsp of diced garlic per jar

Cut up peppers as you see fit, I make rings from mine, or cut in half lengthwise. Whole peppers don't work.

Pack as many peppers as you can get into the jars while keeping 1/4" down from top.

6 cups vinegar
2 cups water
1.5 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon sugar

Boil brine, pour over peppers, seal promptly(lids should draw down). Let sit at least 6 weeks before eating.

Thanks, I'm guessing you can make a little over 8 pints or 4 qts when you include the peppers in the jars? Also, you don't do any hot water bath or anything? Just the cooling of the boiling water is enough to seal the lids? Also, are you taking the lids out of boiling water as you seal them or is the boiling just done prior for sterilization?

Thanks again!

 

[richbug]

Thanks, I'm guessing you can make a little over 8 pints or 4 qts when you include the peppers in the jars? Also, you don't do any hot water bath or anything? Just the cooling of the boiling water is enough to seal the lids? Also, are you taking the lids out of boiling water as you seal them or is the boiling just done prior for sterilization?

Thanks again!

Peppers take more brine than you would imagine( not much volume there), this will do 5-6 pints probably.

The lids are boiled just to soften the sealing compound, and to sterilize

The contraction of the brine cooling will seal them and draw down the lids.

You can process them afterwards, but that is how they get mushy.

 

[goldenspurholderx2]

Where is chicken on sale Jerry?

I am down on FBCBs and need to can a bunch more!

Sidney

Not so much the chicken but if you are looking for fruits (my dehydrator has been doing overtime) check out the new store on the NW corner of Academy and Dublin, Sun Flower Markets. Last Wednesday I picked up 5lbs of bananas, 4 pineapples, 3 oranges and a pound of good bulk coffee all for under 20 bucks. The prices are comparable to COSTCO but you can buy as little or as much you want, the fruits seemed fresher too, no membership fee.

It was packed at 3pm when I went through, I'm planning on going earlier this weekend to get a better idea of what they have (I hate crowds).

 

[onebigelf]

For deer we pack cubed meat and top the jar with a chunk of beef tallow...

Ditto. I live next to a large farm that plants feed corn and beans on a rotation. LOTS of deer and turkeys. The farmer encourages me to hunt the fence line. I have friends that hunt, but only eat limited amounts of venison. Between what I shoot, what my "wife shoots", and what my friends shoot, but don't really want I typically fill the freezers and then pressure can about 250 quarts of venison and turkey meat. I also can most of our vegetables. The only thing we buy is seafood, the occasional steak, bacon and some pork sausage (mostly we use venison sausage), specialty vegetables (asparagus for instance) or fresh vegetables outside of the local season (salad greens out of season). Our annual purchased food budget probably runs less than $1000. I do most of the canning in my workshop on an old wood stove.

John

 

[jerrymrc]

Not so much the chicken but if you are looking for fruits (my dehydrator has been doing overtime) check out the new store on the NW corner of Academy and Dublin, Sun Flower Markets. Last Wednesday I picked up 5lbs of bananas, 4 pineapples, 3 oranges and a pound of good bulk coffee all for under 20 bucks. The prices are comparable to COSTCO but you can buy as little or as much you want, the fruits seemed fresher too, no membership fee.

It was packed at 3pm when I went through, I'm planning on going earlier this weekend to get a better idea of what they have (I hate crowds).

I have seen there ads. The mexi store has round steak on sale this thursday for $1.69 lb so I am going to make some ground round out of it.

 

[broncoo]

i guess this is my first reply in this forum im from BC Can.

my canning this year will be pickled green beans, pickled carrots, canned tomatoes, salsa, and possibly some canned squash soup if i get a big enough crop this year im not particularly fond of canned meats i would rather dry them salt them or smoke em if i cant have it fresh