Canning meats

There is a lot of things changing in our world day by day, and as these things appear to change, we need to adapt with it. Once upon a time, I had 2 pigs butchered. After they were butchered, I had them in my freezer. The freezer died while we were away, and spoiled everything. The end.

Power issues can arise from a storm, car accident and even, wait for it… civil unrest. We have seen a lot of the latter recently across our country. An awful lot of people tend to put their eggs in one basket my freezing their meats. We started canning meats in February. I started with ground beef and sausage. We moved up to pork and beef roast. The pork kind of become a pulled pork, and the beef maintains its shape better and is good for stews and soups. It can be cooked to crisp it up a bit as well. Today, I am canning ~11 lbs of chicken.

I knew people growing up who canned meat. Some canned venison, others had an oddly huge collection of squirrel meat. Oh the massacre on those little furry squirrels. I never did it myself until I saw writing on the wall about what 2020 would bring. Let me tell you, canning meats has never disappointed as of yet. I use a presto pressure canner model 0178107. Some people complain about presto being the cheap non-name brand pressure canner that doesn’t do this that and the other thing. I will tell you from personal experience that it pressure cans very well. I have only ever had 1 can not seal, and that was probably my fault. I also only ever had 1 jar break, and that was probably due to a defect in the glass.

The fact of the matter is that canning is relatively easy. I cook my meat first, that way their is no question on if it is cooked. I then put the meat into the jar, then either add water or the juices of the meat itself in the jars until the meat is covered. Next, I put them in the canner with a few inches of water,put the lid on and tun on the heat. I wait for a steady stream of steam coming out the top for about 15 minutes before putting on the weight. I then proceed to let it get to pressure (around 12 lbs) and let it got for 75 minutes (pints) or 90 minutes (quarts.) Then turn off the heat, remove the canned from the heat, and let the pressure drop to zero. After it drops to zero, remove the weight. Once any remaining steam under pressure has evacuated, remove the lid, and remove the jars. Set them on the counter or whatever, and allow them to cool. Smile with every ting you hear and the seals are being made.

Before canning, you want to wash your jars, then dry them in the oven at a low heat with the door slightly ajar. You want to wash your lids then boil them. It really is a streamlined process and after the first time, it is really a lot easier because you will feel more confident in canning your own meats. I hope this help you with canning in the future.

Also, be wary, as with the current situations, in some areas, canning supplies are getting hard to find, and expensive to buy online.