Pressure canning venison

[CastingFool]

We bought a pressure canner last year, and used to can some venison, and I was surprised to find out how well it turns out. I also gained more experience cutting up my own deer.

[JSH]

I am pretty picky about how I trim my deer up , fat and sinew. The thinner membranes on individual muscles cook up fine low and slow in the oven. Would the same apply when pressure canning?
am I understanding correct that some of you have canned ground meat with good success? I would still freeze some of my ground meat as I have a quick and easy porcupine meatball recipe that works great with straight ground venison. I think the ground would work great for chili or tacos. Maybe even go ahead and preseason it?
Jeff

[oneokie]

I am pretty picky about how I trim my deer up , fat and sinew. The thinner membranes on individual muscles cook up fine low and slow in the oven. Would the same apply when pressure canning?
am I understanding correct that some of you have canned ground meat with good success? I would still freeze some of my ground meat as I have a quick and easy porcupine meatball recipe that works great with straight ground venison. I think the ground would work great for chili or tacos. Maybe even go ahead and preseason it?
Jeff

Get the Ball Blue Book for home canning. Look on the NCFHFP (National Center For Home Food Preservation)web site for even more canning recipies.

For pre-seasoning, I would not use anything other than salt. Some seasonings just do not work when pressure canning. You can add your seasonings while/when you are heating the canned food for serving.

[ratitude]

What is the guideline for canning meat after it has been frozen. I would like to try canning some venison I already have in the freezer before season this fall. Are there any problems with canning meat that has been frozen for 6 months? The Ball book and others I have don't seem to address this.

[oneokie]

What is the guideline for canning meat after it has been frozen. I would like to try canning some venison I already have in the freezer before season this fall. Are there any problems with canning meat that has been frozen for 6 months? The Ball book and others I have don't seem to address this.

Treat it like you would fresh meat, with the exception of you may want/need to add just a small amount of water or other liquid. Thaw it out, trim as much fat off as you can. Cut into cubes, and put in jars loosley. There are 2 methods; cold pack and hot pack. I have only used the cold pack method.

[retread]

I worked in the canning industry for most of my career. There are a few "rules" that need to be followed to be safe. First, obtain a current publication that list the cook times and pressure you will need for that particular food. Have your pressure gauge test for accuracy every year (my extension service does this for $1). Fill your pressure cooker with the amount of water stated in its instruction manual. Monitor your pressure the entire time you are cooking, do not let it fall below the published cooking pressure at any time(running at a pressure slightly over the listed cooking pressure will make this easier and safer). Use a good timer and make sure you properly vent (as recommended in your instruction manual) for the proper length of time. When the cook time has been completed remove or turn off the heat source and let it cool until no pressure is detected. Do not try to speed up this step by removing the pressure weight or you will have a nice mess on the ceiling! After your cans or jars have cooled completely, check for proper seal and vacuum by tapping very lightly on the lid with a small metal object ( use a spoon held lightly). You should hear a high tone (tink) if the seal is good. A dull sound (thud) indicates a bad seal. Any with a bad seal should be refrigerate and used in a timely manner.

As far a self life is concerned, as long as the seal has not been compromised due to corrosion, physical damage, etc. and the container is still holding a vacuum is safe(test vacuum as stated earlier- tink).

Yes, canning product that has been previously frozen is not a problem but it needs to be thoroughly thawed and at close to room temperature for the listed cook times to be effective in killing a bacteria and spores. If in doubt that your product temperature is high enough you may want to extend your cook time by 10 minutes. Do not attempt to process in the frozen state, it has be be entirely thawed throughout!

I have done this for many years so some things are obvious to me so I might not have been thorough enough for folks new to canning. I apologize if that is the case and will elaborate on any areas that are not clear. Happy canning,

Jay

[ratitude]

Thanks for the info guys! I'm going to thaw a couple packages out this weekend can them, in between batches of green beans that are currently growing like bandits...

[OverMax]

Some fellows cube their meat to a bit larger size than stew meat and trim as much fat away as possible. That's how I do mine. Some prefer to leave the fat on and simply add a teaspoon of canning salt to a stuffed Quart filled jar of meat. I don't. Too gamey tasting to my likings. I prefer my meat pressure cooked surrounded in a bath of Beef or Chicken Low Salt broth w/fresh chopped onions and a 1/2 teaspoon of Tones dried garlic and a slight touch of salt & pepper and the House Special >one split in 1/2 Jalapeno pepper. (the entire canning process I use isn't posted. TOO much typing for these old thick fingers tonight.)
Never have used cans only Kerr or Ball wide mouth jars. Sorry no salmon found in these common lakes around here. Up by Duluth yes. But I don't fish Lake Superior. So it stands to reason no cans are available in my area of shopping. But we do have a Walmart and Sam's too for those adventurous types.
Broth covered can venison take's on the flavor of its broth. Can venison soaking in its own juices takes on the taste of its strongest piece.

As far a frozen venison. Trim any freezer burn seen (light Tan looking meat or fat.) F/Burn is seen on folds or along the meats outer edge at times) Trim its fat and F/burn then just cube it and it's good to go however you desire to can or make jerky of.
Tip: Cold packing meat I refuse to do. MY venison is always hot packed for many reasons including our safety. 15 lb pound weight on the pressure cooker and my Pint jars are double stacked and pressure cooked for 1 hour from a point when its 15 lb weight starts to knock back & forth in a smooth rhythm. To get your weights rocking rhythm. Simply adjust the burners heat up or down some is all it takes.

[trails4u]

oneokie and retread speak wisely on this topic. The issue with botulism is driven by acidity. When you start 'tinkering' with tested recipes, you run the risk of affecting the Ph of the recipe, which can lead to botulism spores surviving the canning process if the run time is not long enough. High acid foods, such as tomatoes and canning pickles, are pretty safe as the acidity doesn't allow the botulism spores to survive. These can be water bathed. When you start to introduce low acid foods, such as onions, green beans, and proteins, the game changes, as the acidity will no longer kill the botulism, and heat (240*) becomes the assassin.

To each his own, and I'm certainly not criticizing anyone's recipes (some sound pretty darn yummy!), but my advice for the novice would be to STICK TO THE BOOK, until you have some quarts under your belt and have also done the in depth research to make your own decisions about your personal food safety and the safety of anyone you intend to share with.

[retread]

oneokie and retread speak wisely on this topic. The issue with botulism is driven by acidity. When you start 'tinkering' with tested recipes, you run the risk of affecting the Ph of the recipe, which can lead to botulism spores surviving the canning process if the run time is not long enough. High acid foods, such as tomatoes and canning pickles, are pretty safe as the acidity doesn't allow the botulism spores to survive. These can be water bathed. When you start to introduce low acid foods, such as onions, green beans, and proteins, the game changes, as the acidity will no longer kill the botulism, and heat (240*) becomes the assassin.

To each his own, and I'm certainly not criticizing anyone's recipes (some sound pretty darn yummy!), but my advice for the novice would be to STICK TO THE BOOK, until you have some quarts under your belt and have also done the in depth research to make your own decisions about your personal food safety and the safety of anyone you intend to share with.

More important advice. Thanks trails4u

[ratitude]

I canned 6 quarts this evening to try it out. Thawed out some venison in the fridge for a couple days, trimmed it up and cubed it while it was still lightly frozen for better handling, soaked the cubed meat in a brine in the fridge for an hour, drained, seared/simmered with salt and pepper to a rare state for hot pack, filled jars and added beef broth, canned at 15 psi for 90 minutes. All jars sealed and look good. In a couple weeks I'll pop one open and try it. Thank you gentlemen for sharing your experience. Looking forward to canning a bunch more.

[Owen49]

When canning meat, whether domestic or wild, I usually cook it in a stock pot with onions, peppers & assorted spices. I use the "dump & taste" method. After it gets to cooking, I taste the broth & if it needs anything, I add a little at a time until it tastes the way I want it. I usually put a ladle full of the broth in the bottom of the jar then fill the jar with meat & top off with a little more broth if needed. I can the leftover broth by itself & use it for cooking rice or spuds or making gravy. I use wide mouth jars for meat & the standard jars for broth. When canning meatloaf, I mix it & pack it into wide mouth pint jars & pressure can it. Since the wide mouth pints don't have a shoulder, after a minute in the microwave, the meatloaf slides out in one piece & ready to slice for sandwiches.

[butch2570]

If it is canned properly it will last for years and years and years..... My mom was going through her cellar about 5 years ago and found a jar of canned pork we processed in 1989 written on the lid, I took the jar and opened it , it was sealed just fine and smelled just fine, made some BBQ with that meat and No One had any ill effects..... But you use your own judgement on consumption.

[rtracy2001]

No first hand info with canning venison, but some experience canning other things. So far, there hasn't been anything that looks wrong stated here. All good advice. I will pass on an idea or two from a friend:

For hard to process cuts like the neck, ribs, or backbone (after the backstrap and tenderloins are removed), place the raw meat (bone and all) in the pressure cooker (no jars) and cook until the meat will fall right off the bones. After that, shred the meat, place in jars and process normally. I am going to give this method try next year (pending some luck).

To reheat, simply pour contents into the frypan and stir until hot and a little crispy. Toss it on a slice of bread and enjoy!

[54bore]

I suggest get the Ball "Blue Book of Canning" as it spells it out and has good recipes.
Lots of people have died from Botulism from home canned foods that werent canned properly.
Our Salmon gets 15 lbs pressure for 90 minutes in pint jars or 1 pound Cans in an All-American Canner.
That high temp for that long kills the Botulism spores.

I second the Ball "Blue book of canning" I started pressure canning about a year ago and really enjoy it, I bought the book, it's my go to when I get the canner out!