What are you canning now?

[shortgrass]

Would it make any difference that it's venison? I've never canned venison so I don't know what the fat is like etc... Does it help with the gamey taste maybe to cook it first? Like sausage?.... I'm wondering too, about the cooking prior to canning... The only meat I've canned is salmon, and it was raw...

 

[Beekissed]

Would it make any difference that it's venison? I've never canned venison so I don't know what the fat is like etc... Does it help with the gamey taste maybe to cook it first? Like sausage?.... I'm wondering too, about the cooking prior to canning... The only meat I've canned is salmon, and it was raw...

Not really. For one, venison has no gamey flavor if butchered properly, so that's a non issue if one is taking it from the woods to the table themselves but could be an issue if receiving it from someone else. If it had a horrible flavor in that case, I'd not be using it anyway. If wanting to use it anyway, some folks place a beef bouillon cube in each jar.

Venison is very, very lean, so any fat in the jar is a good thing...good for you and adds flavor and dimension to the meat. Most often there will be very little fat in a jar of venison.

 

[shortgrass]

Not really.  For one, venison has no gamey flavor if butchered properly, so that's a non issue if one is taking it from the woods to the table themselves but could be an issue if receiving it from someone else.  If it had a horrible flavor in that case, I'd not be using it anyway.  If wanting to use it anyway, some folks place a beef bouillon cube in each jar.

Venison is very, very lean, so any fat in the jar is a good thing...good for you and adds flavor and dimension to the meat.  Most often there will be very little fat in a jar of venison.   

Ah, I see... So then that would be why the juices were added back in.... I'm just seeing 2 extra steps lol...but if it improves the texture without taking away from the flavor, then I'm all ears .. Have you gotten to taste a sample @Kacey's Krazee's?

 

[aggiemae]

freezing peaches and making peach butter in the crock pot. I do it outside so the house doesn't get hot and jar in in the evening.

Crock pot butter:

fill crock pot 1-2" from the top with diced (what ever you have on hand) fruit and it's juice.

add one cup sweetener like Splenda, white grape juice, sugar) and a dash of ground ground cloves,a dash all spice and 1 tea spoon of cinnamon for every 6 cups of fruit.
Cook on low with the lid set so steam can escape. Cook till thick.I do it overnight but crock pots really vary in temperature so make your first batch when you can keep an eye on it.

Put newspaper or a towel under the crock pot in case of splashes

6 cups of fruit makes about a quart of peach butter.

 

[wyoDreamer]

Peach butter is really good with a tablespoon of southern comfort and served on ice cream. We call it Peach Comfort.

Let us know on the Bacon Jam, it sounds intriguing.

 

[rides2far]

Peach butter is really good with a tablespoon of southern comfort and served on ice cream.  We call it Peach Comfort. 

Let us know on the Bacon Jam, it sounds intriguing.

I will. Too hot right now. Yesterday it was 104. Our air quality is 147 - horrible - there are so many wildfires right now & everything hovers here at the end of the central valley. I'm just trying to keep chickens cool.

 

[wyoDreamer]

@Beekissed I have to disagree with the blanket statement that "venison doesn't taste gamey if butchered properly." I agree that most venison tastes great if handled properly. However, I know from experience that an old swamp buck in full rut will taste a lot stronger than a young buck taken in farm country after the rut is over and has been eating spilled corn for 3 weeks; no matter how you handle it.

But proper handling of the carcass makes a huge difference. If we end up with an older deer, there are certain recipes that we will not make with that meat. Our neighbor used his mule deer only for dog food because they don't like the flavor of the meat.

How can I determine what type of apple trees I have? The trees came with the house ... probably 20 years old or so. I think I am going to pick a couple and make some applesauce just to see how they cook up. No use trying to can apple pie filling out of eating apples like a red delicious or something similar.

I know that I have a crab apple, but the other two have big, red apples. Any suggestions for use of crab apples. So far I have been raking them up and setting them out in the field for the deer.

 

[rancher hicks]

@Beekissed I have to disagree with the blanket statement that "venison doesn't taste gamey if butchered properly." I agree that most venison tastes great if handled properly. However, I know from experience that an old swamp buck in full rut will taste a lot stronger than a young buck taken in farm country after the rut is over and has been eating spilled corn for 3 weeks; no matter how you handle it.

But proper handling of the carcass makes a huge difference. If we end up with an older deer, there are certain recipes that we will not make with that meat. Our neighbor used his mule deer only for dog food because they don't like the flavor of the meat.

How can I determine what type of apple trees I have? The trees came with the house ... probably 20 years old or so. I think I am going to pick a couple and make some applesauce just to see how they cook up. No use trying to can apple pie filling out of eating apples like a red delicious or something similar.

I know that I have a crab apple, but the other two have big, red apples. Any suggestions for use of crab apples. So far I have been raking them up and setting them out in the field for the deer.

really just marking my spot.

You could check with local apple growers. I bought this Apple book and there are over 700 hundred varieties. Not all varieties grow well in all locations of the country. Not sure they grow good in the hot south. Strangely apples from seed do not grow true. That's why the apples we get are grafts. Red Delicious have a distinct shape. It is one of my favorites. Some apples have soft flesh others hard. Some are tart others sweet.



Crab apples are just smaller varieties of Apples so I'm told. I had plans to plant a tree but I have to order them. One company is two years out.

Our neighbor had some when I was a kid but they were not an eating varieties. Little things full of worms. Thorns too. There are ornamental varieties I think.

Anyhow. Crab apples can be used just like regular apples. My best Apple sauce is a mix of apple varieties. If I'm concerned about tartness/sweetness I just toss in some Granny Smiths.

My son wants me to send him more of batch #2. I'm not sure what varieties went into it. I bought a half bushel of mixed on clearance. I don't peel apples just core them and run them through a food mill. The skins contain a lot of vitamins? Surely there must be added fiber ?

 

[MistyMountain]

How can I determine what type of apple trees I have? The trees came with the house ... probably 20 years old or so. I think I am going to pick a couple and make some applesauce just to see how they cook up. No use trying to can apple pie filling out of eating apples like a red delicious or something similar.

I know that I have a crab apple, but the other two have big, red apples. Any suggestions for use of crab apples. So far I have been raking them up and setting them out in the field for the deer.

If you ever figure it out, please share. I have 4 red apple and 3 green apple trees. I do nothing but prune them, which this past year is probably the second time in their life. They are quite mature, probably as old as yours. The apple are UGLY but I suppose they don't have to be pretty for applesauce. The red one is a combination of sweet and sour, but may not have been entirely ripe yet.

Who was it that talked about nursing some old neglected peach trees back to health? Would you share your secret? Ours basically need to be replaced, I think. The squirrels beat us to it all this year.

 

[Amiga]

Maybe this will help with the apples.

http://www.orangepippin.com/apples