What are you canning now?

[mickey328]

That's why I don't cook meat before canning. Even if I were cooking it in a pressure cooker (which I generally do for stew beef anyway) I wouldn't cook it for THAT long...so if it's cooked and then cooked again under pressure...I would certainly think it would pretty much be mush. Next time I do chickens, I'll de-bone them but still won't pre cook 'em.

I scored a big bunch of free spuds this year...already have a good dozen quarts and 2 dozen pints and still have about 10 lbs to go. I just scrubbed the smaller ones and canned 'em whole with the skins...the larger ones I peeled and cut into chunks. This is the first year I've done potatoes too, so I hope they work out well. They're another thing I don't pre-cook. I put the raw ones in the jar and then fill with boiling water and a bit of salt.

Got 14 half pints of salmon yesterday as well...first time for salmon as well...I was astonished at how simple it is!

I've never canned beans before either, but am going to later on...I've got lots and lots of dried ones which take less space to store, but take a day of planning to use, so I think I'll can some so I can put something together when I think about it rather than having to do the long soak and long cook. I found what looks like a good recipe for baked beans I think I'm going to try as well.

 

[3goodeggs]

Galaine, when I first got my pressure canner I wanted to see how to use it. Reading about it wasn't enough. So, I went to you tube and typed in "pressure canning."
There was a lady on there doing step by step beef stew. It looked wonderful and I have been wanting to try it.
Maybe she will give you confidence.

 

[PuffyChick]

Oh! excellent idea about going to youtube.

Plus I just thought ..What about making a "chicken chili" Its usually done with shredded chicken and white (northern) beans. I bet that would come out nice and you wouldnt have to do the prep work of boiling the chicken, just cut it up (raw) and plop it in with the beans and seasonings.

My jars are really expensive around here 9.50$ for 12 pint wide mouth ones. So , doing the math I cant see putting potatos up yet sadly.

I am trying to make the cost of the jars "work" if you know what I mean?

I also live in an area where I think everyone cans, meaning NO ONE SELLS JARS!! argh
Oddly I can't find anyone to make friends with that cans tho. LOL

 

[mickey328]

Jars here go for that much or more The nice thing is that it's a one time investment. I get a lot at yard sales and thrift stores and pick them up here and there through the year. During canning season the price is always higher, but in the winter and spring it usually goes down.

Chicken chili sounds good but...for some reason, I'm not sure about cooking other items with raw chicken. Something's nagging at the back of my mind about that. If it were me, I'd put the chicken and seasonings in one jar and do the beans separately. You could combine the two later on and just simmer it for a while.

 

[galanie]

I canned dry beans a few weeks ago and I learned something about that which is important: DO presoak. You can presoak by pressure cooking them (ironic, huh?) but do presoak because you won't really know how much room they'll take in the can unless you do. I did some "pork and beans" and some chick peas for hummus. The chick peas came out fine with around 1/3 chick peas and fill with water but the "pork and beans" were too dry. So I hadn't estimated how much they'd swell very well, not enough liquid. At least I didn't put too many beans in there LOL but I can imagine doing that would make for a very packed jar.

Some of the dry bean canning recipes call for precooking them some. I didn't precook and as you can tell just plopped dry beans in there. The canning time and pressure alone cooked even the chickpeas that can take forever to get tender. But I will be presoaking them from now on.

 

[silkensunlight]

Just a little note about getting jars.... I don't know how things work where everyone else is but my hubby got to know the guy who runs our local recycling operation. He keeps anything that looks like a "mason" jar and my hubby picks them up once a week. I've gotten a lot of jars this way. Some of them are no go's but 95% have been the real thing and in great shape. All they ever need is a good wash! Gotta love free stuff!

 

[mickey328]

Free stuff is the best! Our recycling is done at the landfill and I don't know if they'd hold anything like that out. Sure can't hurt to ask, though!

 

[silkensunlight]

That's what happened to us. We were there doing our weekly run and saw some jars in the glass pile. DH asked if they saw any more come in to keep them aside. We take eggs up to the guy when he has jars for us. Good trade, and keeps stuff out of the landfill.

 

[mickey328]

Definitely a win/win/win situation!

 

[Darklingstorm]

Finally found some Cranberries at the store and made my first batch of Spicy Cranberry Conserve, I can't stand the canned sauce that comes out on Thanksgiving.
I must say that it is pretty darn good, even my finicky hubby likes it.

1 pound fresh cranberries
1 cup fruit juice (apple, pineapple or white grape) -- i used unsweet apple juice
1 stick cinnamon
1/4 tsp Fennel Seed
2 whole cloves
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1 orange
1/2 cup raisins
3 cups sugar
1 cup Broken Walnuts (optional) - i didn't use them because my hubby can't have nuts

Rinse the berries and pick over them for bruising and stems. Heat in 1 cup fruit juice until the burst; let boil 5 min. or so. Bruise the fennel seed & tie all the spices into a muslin bag. Add to the cranberries at once.
Wash the orange, slice thinly, seed and then chop it (here I cut the rind off and chopped the meat, then zested the peel, leaving out the bitter white); add it to the cranberries with the raisins. Add the sugar slowly, stirring until completely dissolved. Boil for 10 min before adding the walnuts, if desired; then continue boiling until set, but no more than 20 min. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Remove from the heat and let stand 5 minutes before removing the spice bag. If you have opted for Walnuts, let cool partially so the nuts don't float to the top.
Ladle into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Wipe the rims clean, put the lids in place, and tighten down. Invert the jars for a few minutes to complete the seal, then return to the upright and let cool completely (Here instead of flipping over I gave them a water bath for 20 min to make sure any germs are killed). Check the seals, label and store in a cool dry place.

*I doubled everything and ended up with 9 8oz jars