Any unconventional canners out there?

[~gd]

And i think she did it raw.

I can my meats raw as well. They are getting majorly cooked during the canning process and will be cooked once again after they are removed from the jar. How much cooking does the meat have to take before everything is good and dead? I really don't want meats that have all the nutrients~and flavor~ cooked away.

How many of you eat your steaks medium rare or even rare? Good, aren't they? The blood flavors the meat. That is why I've never understood folks who brine and soak their deer, chicken, etc. to "remove the blood"...what is with that? The blood is where the flavor is at, IMO. Is good beef soaked and brined? Nope. Its hung for awhile but no more blood comes out after the initial blood drainage after butchering.

IF The meat is properly hung and drained you are right on! Quite often deer are cool before they are hung, in fact most meat taken by hunting are not hung properly and do not drain well. Brine helps but is not really a replacement. Most butchered meat is hung before killing or at used to be, I don't think the animal rights people allow it any more...

 

[Chickenkitty]

Some of the animal rights people need to be hung, JMO.
We receive several deer from our neighbors every year. I do appreciate the gifts! and absolutely none of the venison goes to waste here. We have kept an orphan steer calf this year to finish growing out. ( I'm really good at saving orphans, so neighbors bring me 2 or 3 year, I usually let them go on to market in the fall) but this one my plans are to keep for processing. Oh my, i can taste the meat NOW, knowing how much better it is than store bought.

 

[Beekissed]

I'm glad I found this discussion. I hot wter bath pickles, tomatoes, green tomatoes, pickled beets, squash, potatoes and green beans. But I build a fire outside, put a big tub on, get the water to boiling and then set 23 quarts at a time in for boiling. I keep another pot of water along side in case the tub boils down. Oh, I do put a square of sheet metal over the tub after I put the jars in to help keep in the heat. I've been canning this way for 30 years and haven't lost a jar of food yet. We use our food up usually by 3 years. I cannot get corn to keep though. I end up freezing that.
I pressure can the deer meat. I'm going to try the hot water bath since it's been discussed here. We'll be processing our first group of old hens this fall. An Amish lady I talked to said she pressure cooks the whole bird til meat falls off the bone, then pulls all meat off, packs in jars, adds broth and pressure cans again for 15 minutes. That sounds like too much trouble and electricity for me.
BeeKissed, if I pressure cook the birds til meat falls off the bone, pack in jars then hot water bath for 15 minutes, do you think that will be sufficient?

I don't know, CK...I've never done that before. I just cut up my old hens and stick the pieces in the jar, pour hot water, salt, spices, onions and garlic over them and can them for 90 min. in the boiling bath. They turn out very tender this way. When I open the jar, I just debone the meat, place it back in the broth and proceed to cook it normally for chicken soup.

Hey...try putting a slice of green tomato on the top of your jar of corn next time and see if this doesn't help. Provides a little acid to the mix but doesn't change the flavor of the corn. We've never had any problems with corn going bad with this method.

I think its cool to find another person who cans outdoors in a huge kettle.....so back to the basics!

 

[Chickenkitty]

Hey...try putting a slice of green tomato on the top of your jar of corn next time and see if this doesn't help. Provides a little acid to the mix but doesn't change the flavor of the corn. We've never had any problems with corn going bad with this method.

I think its cool to find another person who cans outdoors in a huge kettle.....so back to the basics

Thanks for the corn idea, I'll try that this year on a few jars. And the chicken method, these old girls I know are going to be tough, but so delicious!

 

[dipence71]

What about carrots anyone have time recommendation for water bath canning them???

 

[kitchwitch]

I'm so happy I found this thread! I have just started canning and I would love to do veg but I just don't have $200 to put out for a pressure canner, not to mention they scare the crap out of me. I might give this a try with some veg and invest in a steam canner for meats since the temp goes higher than with a water bath canner.

I'm not all that bothered by botulism concerns since there's something like 21 reported cases in the entire USA in a year and on top of that, not even pressure canning can skill all the clostridium spores. I'll just peel things that can be peeled, wash everything and cook my food some(at least blanch it) before canning it. Common sense

 

[Homemaker]

Hi all, I'm new to the forum and I am very happy I found this thread. I love all of your ideas although I think I am too much of a goody two shoes rule follower to try them
I canned with my mother when I was young. But, I think I forgot most of what I learned (so did she ). So this year we're trying to can again.
I was wondering if the size of the jar used really changes the recipe? Or if it even matters? The jam I was looking into making tomorrow calls for 250 ml jar. My mom has millions of jars but, there all larger pint and quart size. Can I still do this recipe and if so do I have to change anything.

 

[kitchwitch]

As I was spreading my year old pumpkin butter on my homemade bread this morning I realized I must be an unconventional canner. If being unconventional means playing by my own rules well, I can pumpkin butter and the FDA can bite me if they think I'll stop

 

[PunkinPeep]

As I was spreading my year old pumpkin butter on my homemade bread this morning I realized I must be an unconventional canner. If being unconventional means playing by my own rules well, I can pumpkin butter and the FDA can bite me if they think I'll stop

 

[pioneergirl]

Hi all, I'm new to the forum and I am very happy I found this thread. I love all of your ideas although I think I am too much of a goody two shoes rule follower to try them
I canned with my mother when I was young. But, I think I forgot most of what I learned (so did she ). So this year we're trying to can again.
I was wondering if the size of the jar used really changes the recipe? Or if it even matters? The jam I was looking into making tomorrow calls for 250 ml jar. My mom has millions of jars but, there all larger pint and quart size. Can I still do this recipe and if so do I have to change anything.

If I understand you correctly, you're just using smaller jars...if this is the case, prepare everything as the recipe calls for, then divide into smaller jars. I'm sure Bee can help here, but I'd process them by the pint jar times. I've not processed anything smaller than a pint yet, so times might be different.