Who’s canning ?

[ToddDubya]

Thank you.

I have been waiting since Tuesday.

ETA: scrape off the top and eat the bottom stuff.

Mrs. Flare suggests you research food poisoning from beef. It may not be deadly.

Her words.

What gives, though? I just canned these two months ago.

Did they smell bad?

Nope, smelled like cooked ground beef.

The part that is discolored is above the liquid/fat.

 

[38ExtraSpecial]

13 pints of corned beef in the canner now.

Stupid gasket was a little leaky and the juggler didn’t want to jiggle so I had to cool it down and try again.

Now that she’s up and running I feel like the gasket was fine all along she just wasn’t up to temp. Needed a little more time and heat. She’s running fine now.

Ah well. Only the second time I’ve pressure canned. I just hope the meat doesn’t come out soft.

I did notice that pint jars and half pint jars are the same damn price.

Anyone using the Golden Harvest canning lids?

The price seems right. A buddy sent me some links to bulk pack stuff on Amazon but the reviews sucked. Thin lids that buckled outward under pressure. These golden harvest might be a happy medium.

 

[flippinfleck]

13 pints of corned beef in the canner now.

Stupid gasket was a little leaky and the juggler didn’t want to jiggle so I had to cool it down and try again.

Now that she’s up and running I feel like the gasket was fine all along she just wasn’t up to temp. Needed a little more time and heat. She’s running fine now.

Ah well. Only the second time I’ve pressure canned. I just hope the meat doesn’t come out soft.

I did notice that pint jars and half pint jars are the same damn price.

Anyone using the Golden Harvest canning lids?

The price seems right. A buddy sent me some links to bulk pack stuff on Amazon but the reviews sucked. Thin lids that buckled outward under pressure. These golden harvest might be a happy medium.

Haven't used Golden Harvest lids. Wife and I just grab a few packs of Ball lids whenever we are out shopping and they are in stock. Currently $3.48 for a 10 pack at Wally World.

 

[38ExtraSpecial]

Haven't used Golden Harvest lids. Wife and I just grab a few packs of Ball lids whenever we are out shopping and they are in stock. Currently $3.48 for a 10 pack at Wally World.

Damn my Wally World was 2.48 or so today. They had cases of them.
I guess they’re cheap enough. I’ll just pile them deep. Few bucks at a time isn’t bad at all.

 

[Golddiggie]

Does beer count in this thread??
If so, I filled 44 pint cans with my whiskey stout on Sunday. They're all sitting waiting to get labeled right now.

edit
I also filled a 2.5 gallon keg that will be served on nitro/co2 mix via a stout faucet.

 

[38ExtraSpecial]

Alright I quit. Appears I ran out of water.
Guess the 2 quart recommendation was a little shy.
18 damn minutes left on the 75 minute timer

Looks like I’m cooling this batch down and vacuum sealing instead.

 

[38ExtraSpecial]

FML there was plenty of water left. No clue why the bastard stopped jiggling even when I put the heat to it.

 

[ToddDubya]

FML there was plenty of water left. No clue why the bastard stopped jiggling even when I put the heat to it.

What are you using for a canner?

 

[38ExtraSpecial]

What are you using for a canner?

Mirro matic 22 quart. It’s an oldie but from what I’m reading it’s a good one.

 

[flippinfleck]

Mirro matic 22 quart. It’s an oldie but from what I’m reading it’s a good one.

Possible that the vent was blocked?

 

[38ExtraSpecial]

Possible that the vent was blocked?

View attachment 575230

I guess but I’m not sure how that happens during cooking. Does gunk build up in there?

 

[flippinfleck]

I guess but I’m not sure how that happens during cooking. Does gunk build up in there?

It's always possible, and dangerous. I make sure to check for blockage before locking down the lid.

 

[38ExtraSpecial]

It's always possible, and dangerous. I make sure to check for blockage before locking down the lid.

I’m wondering if I wasn’t just running it too hot and with the low water level it was just floating the weight. Not sure if that can even happen.

Either way the instructions say as long as it jiggles 3 times a minute it’s good to go. I was panicking.

 

[flippinfleck]

Putting up 9 quarts of chicken stock today. Currently waiting for the first batch to come up to pressure.

 

[ToddDubya]

I’m wondering if I wasn’t just running it too hot and with the low water level it was just floating the weight. Not sure if that can even happen.

Either way the instructions say as long as it jiggles 3 times a minute it’s good to go. I was panicking.

I believe it can just about do that. I had mine too hot once and the weight wasn't rocking, but the steam was coming out. I kept waiting and waiting for the pressure to come up and finally decided to lower the temp and the rocking started back up. I had already made a note of approximately where the knob on my stove should be and should have known I had it too high, but sometimes when I do the same thing I get different results.

 

[flippinfleck]

I believe it can just about do that. I had mine too hot once and the weight wasn't rocking, but the steam was coming out. I kept waiting and waiting for the pressure to come up and finally decided to lower the temp and the rocking started back up. I had already made a note of approximately where the knob on my stove should be and should have known I had it too high, but sometimes when I do the same thing I get different results.

Are you cooking on an electric stove?

Can't say that I've ever seen the weight stop jiggling because it was too hot.

 

[ToddDubya]

Are you cooking on an electric stove?

Can't say that I've ever seen the weight stop jiggling because it was too hot.

No, gas. It only happened once. I think I had it too high so it overshot the sweet spot. It was taking forever to come up to pressure and I got impatient. But seriously, it was taking a long ass time.

Correction: I know I had it too high.

 

[ToddDubya]

I just processed another 10# of pork loin. It worked out exactly one pound per pint. I bought the pork loin at BJs over the summer and finally got it thawed and processed. It wasn't exactly cheap, the tag says $1.99/lb, but there's no waste. I just cut pieces and cram into the jars, fat and all. I've used it for pulled pork sammiches, with rice and beans, and the best of all was in a chili when I didn't have beef.

Some weekend I need to get a rotisserie chicken or two and make some chicken soup. I love having that on hand, just heat up a quart with some dumplings and I've got a couple meals.

 

[deerdad]

Been thinking about trying canning every year and keep reading this thread. I watched the canning 101 video and that's a pretty big canner that she's using. It's also a big investment if I only use it a couple times and don't care for canning. I would like something that would hold maybe 8 one qt jars ( 4 on the bottom 4 on the top ). Mainly this would be used for canning venison or just cooking a small brisket in. I would like input on something that a beginner could use that has basic accessories (keeping jars off the bottom) with it or readily available. Im really not sure what to go with. I do think I would prefer the audible sound of the jiggler over having to watch a pressure gage. I know nothing is foolproof but I want as close as possible.

 

[Twigg]

Get a cheap pressure cooker from wal-mart. It uses a "jiggiler" and is easier to use than a "pressure canner". My wife and I used to hold classes on home canning. Good luck. Its relatively easy.

 

[whalerman69]

.

 

[Boarder700]

Just did 5 pints yesterday. I would prefer to do much bigger batches, but I had some tomatoes that couldn’t wait. Canning isn’t challenging at all - it just a time suck.

12 lbs of tomatoes and many hours of my time for 5 pints. Sometimes I think I’m crazy considering I could buy this for $15 at a grocery store. But breaking out your own home grown tomato sauce all winter long is worth it for us. Hopefully I’ll get another 15-20 pints in a couple weeks.

 

[Twigg]

Yeah canning takes time but knowing what's in the food you create is priceless.

 

[hillman]

My wife put up 14 quarts of chicken (with a little turkey in for a deeper flavor) stock. A few pints of bourbon soaked cherries, and several jars of spicy pickles. We had intended on making quite a bit of tomato sauce but our gardens were rained out this year. None of the romas came up, mostly what we have are cherry and grape tomatoes, not great for sauce. We're going to try canning bacon this weekend.

 

[mousegunguy]

For those who may be interested I’ll be leading a class on preserving your harvest without electricity at the Homesteader of New England fall gathering. Lots of very easy, inexpensive & efficient tricks to store your gardens bounty thru winter without canning.
I’ll also be leading a few foraging walks as well

 

[deerdad]

Went with the Presto 16 qt pressure cooker/canner. No guage just the weights. Looked at the pros and cons between the guage and the weights. Checked different review sites and this one was favorable for a good basic canner. To get through the learning I'll probably try canning some store-bought peaches and berries before defrosting and cutting up smaller pieces of venison to can. I saw the fruits can be done just by boiling without pressure so I think that will be a good place to start. Right now it sounds like a little bit of fun for a fall weekend. Any suggestions on a book or two for recipes on what to add into the jars for flavoring? I'm seeing books but wondering if some are better than than others.

 

[Uzi2]

My wife put up 14 quarts of chicken (with a little turkey in for a deeper flavor) stock. A few pints of bourbon soaked cherries, and several jars of spicy pickles. We had intended on making quite a bit of tomato sauce but our gardens were rained out this year. None of the romas came up, mostly what we have are cherry and grape tomatoes, not great for sauce. We're going to try canning bacon this weekend.

Try them sometime. They make a nice light, sweet sauce. You can strain them of the peels if you want, we just leave them in.

 

[Knob Creek]

Doing some Refrigerator Dill Pickles this morning.

 

[flippinfleck]

Doing some Refrigerator Dill Pickles this morning.

My wife did the same yesterday. Last week she made some salsa while I was working from home. I was drooling while my eyes were slightly burning. Good times.

 

[lancecolonel]

Went with the Presto 16 qt pressure cooker/canner. No guage just the weights. Looked at the pros and cons between the guage and the weights. Checked different review sites and this one was favorable for a good basic canner. To get through the learning I'll probably try canning some store-bought peaches and berries before defrosting and cutting up smaller pieces of venison to can. I saw the fruits can be done just by boiling without pressure so I think that will be a good place to start. Right now it sounds like a little bit of fun for a fall weekend. Any suggestions on a book or two for recipes on what to add into the jars for flavoring? I'm seeing books but wondering if some are better than than others.

Any of the “ball” books should be good for what you’re looking for. See what your local library has then buy the book you like the best.