I always canned meat in a hot water bath canner which you are not supposed to do. You need the extra heat that you can only get with a pressure cooker/steamer/canner. Maybe I've just been lucky but I've always been extra, extra cautious with all my canning, following all the rules (except the BIG one about using the pressure canner). My motives for going to a pressure canner were (1) I could shorten the processing time by over half and (2) I could more than double the amount I could can in one session. I have a 22-quart pressure canner and it holds 16 pint jars whereas my water bath canner only held 7 pint jars. I think they call it a 22-quart pressure canner because of the absolute volume it holds, not the jar volume.
I started out with 7 pounds of top round roast from Walmart for a total cost of $33.42 for 8 pints of canned meat. I get 4 servings out of every pint jar so that works out to just over $1 per serving.
I like to do this meat with the cold pack method, i.e., putting cold meat into clean, cold jars. I trim whatever fat I can and cut the meat into about 3/4-inch pieces. I put it in the jars pressing down slightly. You don't want to pack it in too tight or you'll end up with one big, unappetizing chunk. I don't use any salt or any liquid. Salt can be added when using the canned beef and it makes it's own liquid.
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Put the cold jars in the cold canner. In the 22-quart canner, you can put two layers of 8 jars each. Just make sure you put a rack in between the layers.
I have a glass-top stove which works pretty well for everything except pressure canning. There are sensors that cut off the heat at the upper range and restart the heat when it hits the lower range. For pressure canning you need to maintain a consistent heat. We've found that using Rudy's propane beer cooker works great for maintaining the heat. Plus, if the cooker blows up, you don't have the mess in the house. Just KIDDING! Pressure canners are so safe these days that I can almost walk past ours without flinching. Also, I found that I can be out gardening in the back yard while canning because I can still hear the release of the steam back there. Secure the lid of the canner but do not put on the jiggler yet.
The next step is to get your jars and meat warmed up so the jars don't break. Turn on the heat and once the steam starts coming out of the top vent, set your timer for 10 minutes.
At the end of the 10 minutes, use an oven glove and pop on the 10-pound pressure weight. Be sure you have it down far enough. It must be secure but yet it must be able to jiggle when pressure is released. The first time we canned, we made the mistake of not having the weight down far enough. After about 1/2 hour of waiting for it to jiggle, we took the heat down and figured it out.
BTW, before I forget, I wanted to mention about the new recipe I tried using the Marinara Sauce we canned. (See the previous post, "Strong Women Eat Well", for that canning recipe.) There's a Pampered Chef recipe booklet that has a recipe for mini meatloaves using marinara sauce. I thought it sounded pretty good but I didn't have any Italian Cheese Blend for the top and I thought I would probably prefer my recipe for the meatloaf. I use fresh breadcrumbs, milk and egg. Anyway, I made my meatloaf mix and added some marinara sauce to it, about 1/3 c. per pound of hamburger. Then I formed 6 mini meatloaves, placed them on my Pampered Chef stoneware bar pan, and topped them with more marinara sauce. Then I baked them at 425 degrees for 1/2 hour. (My oven was so hot because I was also blind-baking Pate Brisee pie crusts.) The mini meatloaves were DELICIOUS! So were the pie crusts but we'll save that discussion for another post.
Back to the task at hand.....
Once the weight is on, pressure will build up inside the canner. There's a red button on the handle (not to be confused with the red button on the lid) that will be raised when the canner has reached to proper amount of pressure. About every 20 seconds the weight will "jiggle" and you'll hear a "pftttttttt" as steam is released to maintain the proper pressure. At this point, set your timer for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Here's what that looks like. You only want to see a gentle release of steam. More than that will use up all the water in the canner and then you'll have a real problem.
Now come look at some of my gardens while this is cooking.
Back to the task at hand.....
Once the weight is on, pressure will build up inside the canner. There's a red button on the handle (not to be confused with the red button on the lid) that will be raised when the canner has reached to proper amount of pressure. About every 20 seconds the weight will "jiggle" and you'll hear a "pftttttttt" as steam is released to maintain the proper pressure. At this point, set your timer for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Here's what that looks like. You only want to see a gentle release of steam. More than that will use up all the water in the canner and then you'll have a real problem.
Now come look at some of my gardens while this is cooking.
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| I'll stick small plants in just about anywhere. Here I have jalapenos, grape tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, and yellow pear tomatoes in pots. |
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| The mophead hydrangeas have LOTS of blooms this year. |
When the time is up, turn off the heat and let the canner cool down until (1) the red button on the handle is back down and (2) it's cool enough to release the lid latch. Take your jars out and set them on a towel. A hot jar on a cold countertop may crack.
Oh, have a beer at ths point, too, if you wish.
I don't know the science behind it, but the jars of canned meat (or chicken) will always have a reddish tint to them. This goes away when they're used in a recipe.
Next we're going to make one of Rudy's favorite meals, Homemade Beef and Noodles. I've been making my own noodles for years, too. I use part wheat flour and I freeze the noodles. I use "Better Than Boullion" to salt and flavor my broth.
I put about 4 cups of water, a jar of canned beef and a spoon of Better Than Boullion in a large pot. When it comes to a boil, I add a bag of my homemade noodles. My noodles are thick so they take a while to cook. In the meantime, I make some mashed potatoes because you can't have Homemade Beef and Noodles without mashed potatoes. I learned this from Rudy's mom!
Pass the potatoes and top with the beef and noodles. A nice side salad and a glass of porter completes the meal. Well, almost; there should be fresh strawberry pie with whipped cream for dessert.
Now here's a happy looking man! Thanks to Rudy's mom!
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