I have read that some people really like to can their venison, so we gave it a try last week. It was so quick and easy to do and we are able store it without further electricity (we are trying to find ways to live sustainably off the grid so this is a especially attractive to us)! We are so very excited to find that we are not sacrificing flavor to do it!
It was cold enough to hang our deer for almost 4 full days. We took it off the bone and cubed it. (We ground some and canned the rest in cubes.) It was very easy to do.
1. Sterilize your jars and lids, get supplies ready and preheat your water in your pressure canner (lid off).
2. Put 1-2tsp non-iodized salt in each jar (I use real salt/sea salt). Take your cubed raw meat and fill your hot jars, packing it tightly up to an inch below the rim. (I will do this better next time, mine was packed too loosely.) Wipe the rim clean(i like to use white vinegar on a paper towel). Put your Hot lids and rings on tightly and place in the canner.
3. Put your lid on and follow your canner's manufacturer instructions and times for your altitude.
** Do not add any liquid to the jar! I know this seems weird, but it is not necessary. The meat will get cooked during the processing and juices will fill the jar. If the juices do no cover the jar...that is OK! Don't worry. It is still preserved properly as long as you get a good seal. This juice makes a wonderful base for your gravies, and soups as well! You might also consider cutting the venison into thin strips instead.
***The result of this canned meat is that it comes out tender and cooked! It is fast food in your pantry for quick skillet meals, soups or casseroles, and it is delicious! It is firm enough to be served in cubes yet tender enough to fork shred. A friend and I was talking, and she had expressed a a concern (never had tried canning it), wondering if it would be mushy, but it wasn't! If you have never tried canning your venison...I highly recommend giving it a try! It is so simple! I think we are hooked! This will remain one of our standard methods of processing our venison from now on. As you can see in our pictures above, I didn;t pack my jars tight enough. I would do that differently next time...live and learn right?!
ProcessingQuarts - 1 hour 30 minutes
Pints - 1 hour 15 minutes
Settings for Pressure Canner
Alt = Altitude in Feet
DGC = Dial Gauge Canner
WGC = Weighted Gauge Canner
0-1000 Alt,10DGC or 10WGC
1001-2000 Alt, 11DGC, or 15WGC
2001-4000 Alt,12DGC, or 15WGC
4001-6000 Alt,13DGC, or 15WGC
6001-8000 Alt,14DGC, or 15WGC
8000-10,000 Alt,15DGC, or 15WGC
It was cold enough to hang our deer for almost 4 full days. We took it off the bone and cubed it. (We ground some and canned the rest in cubes.) It was very easy to do.
1. Sterilize your jars and lids, get supplies ready and preheat your water in your pressure canner (lid off).
2. Put 1-2tsp non-iodized salt in each jar (I use real salt/sea salt). Take your cubed raw meat and fill your hot jars, packing it tightly up to an inch below the rim. (I will do this better next time, mine was packed too loosely.) Wipe the rim clean(i like to use white vinegar on a paper towel). Put your Hot lids and rings on tightly and place in the canner.
3. Put your lid on and follow your canner's manufacturer instructions and times for your altitude.
** Do not add any liquid to the jar! I know this seems weird, but it is not necessary. The meat will get cooked during the processing and juices will fill the jar. If the juices do no cover the jar...that is OK! Don't worry. It is still preserved properly as long as you get a good seal. This juice makes a wonderful base for your gravies, and soups as well! You might also consider cutting the venison into thin strips instead.
***The result of this canned meat is that it comes out tender and cooked! It is fast food in your pantry for quick skillet meals, soups or casseroles, and it is delicious! It is firm enough to be served in cubes yet tender enough to fork shred. A friend and I was talking, and she had expressed a a concern (never had tried canning it), wondering if it would be mushy, but it wasn't! If you have never tried canning your venison...I highly recommend giving it a try! It is so simple! I think we are hooked! This will remain one of our standard methods of processing our venison from now on. As you can see in our pictures above, I didn;t pack my jars tight enough. I would do that differently next time...live and learn right?!
ProcessingQuarts - 1 hour 30 minutes
Pints - 1 hour 15 minutes
Settings for Pressure Canner
Alt = Altitude in Feet
DGC = Dial Gauge Canner
WGC = Weighted Gauge Canner
0-1000 Alt,10DGC or 10WGC
1001-2000 Alt, 11DGC, or 15WGC
2001-4000 Alt,12DGC, or 15WGC
4001-6000 Alt,13DGC, or 15WGC
6001-8000 Alt,14DGC, or 15WGC
8000-10,000 Alt,15DGC, or 15WGC
I shared this at Tuesday Twister .
4 comments:
I am planning to do this soon and I have never used a pressure cooker before. Any additional tips you would note for us newbies??
Abbey,
If you are anything like me, the first few times I do something. NO matter how easy it is 'suppose to be', it seems like a big deal to me. My heart pumps and I read directions over and over as double check my self and don't trust my inexperiance. I am nervous about messing it up or missing something. After you do it a few times, you'll see there is little to it and the rewards are wonderful and you will be able to enjoy it. :-) Just follow your canner instructions. Wipe the rims of the jar with vinegar before capping them and you should be set. Oh, a good pair of hot mitts are an essential canning tool.
I have been canning venison for years never a problem. I also can chicken pork beef all cubed. Done same way. You mentioned that you ground some of the venison you can also can this as well if your looking to live off grid. venison hamburger and sausage place in jar raw leave one inch head space place lids on (sorry jars need to be hot) place in pressure canner cook same time as venison. when you use it, it comes out like loose meat wonderful and fast for sloppy joes, biscuits and gravy and so forth
Yes, we started canning the ground meat as well. We have been doing if for a couple years now ands love it. I like to brown my ground meat before canning because I prefer its texture and appearance when it is first browned. It can get kind of gray and clump and resembles more of a dog food type of look. Not nearly as appealing to me. But when browned it looks and feels and tastes like it fresh out of the skillet. :-) I have tried canning hot dogs. It worked, but they got wierd. I have not done sausage, yet, because I haven.t had the need...but we are entering into a big "sausage phase" in our farming as we just got a new grinder and butchered sheep with goats coming soon. So i am sure I will mess with canning patties and links once I feel like I have perfected my recipes. :-)
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