Today I want to talk about canning meat in the pressure cooker canner, this is different from my regular pressure cooker which I use to make very fast meals from frozen meat to the dinner table in twenty to thirty minutes.
The pressure cooker canner-which I use is what you must have to can meats and all low acid foods. Canners are very safe as long as you don't open them while they are under pressure and clean the steam valves really good as you wash them. I use a toothpick to just keep poking through the vent to be sure there is nothing stuck in there.
Ok let me talk about canning two beef roast raw packed into pint jars. You have to start with clean sanitized jars from dishwasher of hot soapy water and rinse well. No need to have hot jars as that is for water-bath canning and we are pressure -cooker canning.
Each pound of meat usually fills one full pint jar so four pounds were four pints with the lids and rings (USA brand) from Walmart are the only lids I fully trust to seal. Believe you me, I have used a brand to can 10 jars of pork loin and not a one sealed so I had to rewash the jars and refill them and rewipe and de-bubble them and then can for another 75 minutes. This I did on Mother,s Day.
Have also on the counter with a cloth and some vinegar to wipe each jar rim well with after being packed and pushed down with your hand to get air bubbles out. Also, have a hefty jar lifter near and a wide mouth funnel to fill jars with. And I use a long wooden chopstick to de-bubble the air out of jars before I wipe and seal jars.
Cut each roast on cutting board into large two-inch chunks, fat, and all stuff into jars until one inch from the top. If you cut too small the meat could cook to smithereens. This size gives you beef that is still firm to your palette. Now you can add some pepper-accent-etc. into top of jar. I used1/8th tsp. of each spice into each jar. Wipe around rims with a cloth with vinegar and put on the seal and then just finger tighten the ring on jar-do not crank down really tight as air needs to escape the jar while canning.No need to put water in jars. I find that dry packing(canning) as they call it makes for better tasting meat and it's not mushy to your palette.
I do want to mention that you can not put really cold meat into hot boiling water to can so start with room temperature meat and jars. I fill the canner with two inches of water as steam is what does the canning and we are not doing water bath canning of which I will post about another time. There is a silver lid that goes inside the canner on the bottom and pour just a dash of vinegar into the water to keep lime deposits off the jars. Add your jars now and have the electric stove on medium about number 5.
I keep my pressure dial gauge always screwed onto the lid. But don't get the gauge wet during cleanup. Put the lid on pot by lining up the arrows on top and pot. Left side lines up for mine.
Do not put the jiggy thing on until pressure has been heavily steaming out spout where jiggly thingy will go, for a full ten minutes, this takes quite a while so keep checking back and then put it on.
Either use Google or a Ball canning book to see the length of time to can and how many pounds of pressure for your altitude. Florida is low altitude so basically, I let the pressure gauge get to ten or eleven pounds of pressure and then turn the stove down to number four setting and start the timer for seventy-five minutes for pints and 90 minutes for quarts but check the Ball canning book or online to be sure of correct settings for what you are canning and whether it needs to be pressure cooker canned or water bath canned.
Keep watching the number gauge to adjust the stove heat lower to keep it at ten or eleven pounds of pressure as it likes to keep climbing higher. If too high all the juices from the meat cooking will boil out of the jar. It is ok if some boils out but not all of the juice. When the timer goes off. Just turn off the stove and walk away for 45 minutes to an hour to let steam all escape. Do not open when it's hot! It will be like a bomb!
When totally cooled down you can take off the jiggy valve and then the lid if no steam or noise is coming from canner. Face lid away from you as you are removing it!
Fold a kitchen towel and put on the counter and use a hefty jar lifter to get each jar out and put on a towel, close to the stove. Listen for the pinging sound as each jar seals in a few minutes. If you can press on the top of the jar and makes a popping sound it did not seal so you eat that jar today and do not put it up in the pantry for later.
This food lasts for around three- 25 years some people say! I have always tried to use it before 2 years! Be sure to label and date each jar.
Photo 1 is raw packed in a jar ready for the canner. #2 is cooked. #3 is a Presto pressure cooker canner with a manual from Walmart for $100 (best money I ever spent).----#4 are beef mc-muffins which I just created today----#5 and #6 are my (pressure cooker) on stove and pressure cooker canner near the microwave is the big boy that did all this processing.
Somehow I got the photos posted in the middle of my text.
When the jars are cooled down you take the rings off the jars and use a soapy cloth to clean up jars. When clean and dry use a permanent marker to label content and date on jars.Store in a cool dark place or under the counters as I have to do. Heck even under the bed in the canning jar boxes as I live in a small place. Clean up while water is still pretty warm. You are now a canner!
The roast beef is delicious and fully cooked. I put some on a toasted egg McMuffin with mayo and mustard. This is called raw packed canning meat. I hope that I have led you into a new experience of a lifetime that comes from our past and needs to carry forward to the younger generations!
This is my joy in life to keep the old ways of our grandmothers alive and this is the reason why I am making this blog.
