Pressure canning meat

It isn’t that I don’t enjoy giving canning workshops. I do. But I’ve done it so many times that I feel like surely the audience is saturated. It seems to make sense to just post a tutorial and refer people to cyber hand-holding.

You’ll be fine if the power is out and the freezer isn’t working. Bottled meats last for years with no loss of quality. You may add vegetables or rice to make a meal in a jar, or just can the plain meat and figure out how you’re going to use it when you need it.

First point is that you CAN NOT EFFECTIVELY can/bottle meat without a pressure cooker. If you try it with a steam canner or a water bath canner, you’re likely to waste the meat and to make someone sick.

That said, modern pressure cookers have lots of safety devices. There’s a lock in the handle so that you can’t open it while there’s pressure inside. There’s a safety valve on top that melts out when the inside gets too hot and blows out like a gyser from the tiny hole. But the canner doesn’t blow up.

If you don’t have a Mirro brand pressure cooker, I recommend that you investigate the possibility of getting the fixed pressure style of weight gauge for your cooker. It never gets out of calibration and can’t break. If you’re buying one now, consider replacing the gauge with this type, if they’re compatible.

 

Jars must be clean but there is no need to sterilize. They’ll be plenty sterile by the time they’ve been pressure cooked.

At this point, rather than adding salt, you can add teriyaki sauce, barbeque sauce, chopped onions or other vegetables, liquid smoke, Mexican seasonings, gravy mix or any other seasoning or sauce. You can add tomato sauce instead of the water, too.  If you add rice, I recommend putting brown rice in before the meats and be sure to add double the water as rice. Then add meat and sauces. My favorite is brown rice with teriyaki sauce and chicken. Any meat works, however.  For this tutorial, I’m doing plain pork that I can use for tacos or soup in a hurry. One pound of  lean meat fills one pint.

Release the bubbles and make sure there are no air pockets. I’m using water, but this might be Mexican sauce, teriyaki, gravy, etc. Game meats are great with the seasonings and flavorings added at this stage.

If you bought new jars, they come with the lids and bands. If you’re using used jars, you buy the lids separately in the canning section of the store. The styles shown are the types they sell at our local Walmart.

 

 

Place the lid, and lock into place. Place the gauge on top and turn the heat up to high. For the style of gauge I use, I do meats or anything containing meat at 15 pounds pressure.

Once the rocker starts rocking or the gauge starts hissing, you know that the cooker has reached the desired pressure inside. Lower the heat so that it hisses for a second or two only every 15 seconds or so. I doesn’t have to be exactly 15 second intervals, but something like that. Start the timer. I process meat for about an hour. If it stops hissing (or rocking with other style gauges) turn the heat back up a little bit. Usually just above medium is high enough. I’m using a gas stove so it responds quickly. If you’re using electric, you have to give it several minutes to heat or cool after the adjustment.

When the time is up, turn off the heat and let the pressure go out of the canner without disturbing it. After about half an hour, if no steam comes out when the gauge is slightly lifted, the canner can be opened and the jars removed to the counter.

The lids may already be popped down, but if not, they’ll “pop” as they seal. Happy canning music!

Because there is a good vacuum inside the sealed jars, they may still be boiling inside at room temperature. That’s a very good sign. If not, as long as the lid is tightly affixed and doesn’t pop up and down when you press the center of the lid, you have a good seal. If a jar didn’t seal, (either because of a chip in the rim or some food on the rim, refrigerate and eat soon.

Wash the jars when completely cool in warm, soapy water and mark the top of the lid with the contents and the date before storing. A Sharpie works great.

 

It’s not exactly pretty in the jar, but it’s easy to shred with a fork and season up the way I like it. This will be perfect for pulled pork sandwiches or barbeque pork or taco or enchilada fillings. It will be perfectly good for several years, although some discoloration may eventually occur to any meat above the water line. It isn’t bad, it just turns a little darker. I have used meat I canned 5 years ago and it was still great.