Pressure Canning Meat

How to pressure can raw ground beef in canning jars

I bought this ground beef through Zaycon foods. They only sell in bulk and the meat is supper lean, so its perfect for canning or freezing. I like to do both--have some in my freezer and some on my shelf ready for quick meals.  I do all my beef in pint sized canning jars.  You can do this in quart sized canning jars, and the process is quite similar, but this is just what I do.

Step 1: Wash your canning jars out really good, put them in the dishwasher or wash by hand with soapy water.

Step 2: Fill with raw meat! I use my jar funnel and a spoon so I don't have to touch the meat, but you don't have to do it this way. You don't have to have a funnel you can put the meat in the jar however you like, this is just how I do it.

Fill to the top, just under where the screw part starts.  See picture:

Each jar will hold a pound. Its best to fill your canner to either full half or full. My canner holds 20, and this time I only had a 10 pound roll of beef so I did a half patch of 10 jars.

Step 3: Wipe around top of jar. Take a wet rag in one hand and jar in the other and turn jar while wiping off rim cleaning off any fat, or stray little bit of beef that might have gotten there while you filled your jars. 

Step 4: Boil car lids. Open a new package of flat metal canning jar lids. Boil the lids to soften the rubber seal. Then twist on metal rings tightly--you don't have to screw on metal lids so tightly that they will never come off, but just as you would regularly screw on you peanut butter or mayonnaise jar lid. Now your meat is ready for your pressure canner.

Step 5: Check over your canner and owners manual. Always, check over your canner to make sure its in proper working order. Always check over your canner's owners manual and review the instructions on how to can.

Step 6: Prepare the pressure canner. I learned a trick off a lady on ebay. She wipes oil around her rubber canning jar seal to keep it from cracking and wearing out. Following my pressure canner manual, I also add 1/2 cup of vinegar to my pot to help it not stain too badly--its aluminum. 

Step 7: Lock and load!!  Or rather load then lock.  This is where my instructions end and you follow your pressure canners instructions in the owners manual. My pressure canner owners manual tells me to place rack on the bottom, don't forget the rack! There should always be a rack--allowing space between the bottom of your canner and the bottom of your jars. Then I fill mine with water to the line, I have a fill line in mine. So I add water to the line. Then carefully arrange my canning jars.  Read your owners manual! 

Step 8: Time to let the canner do its job. After you carefully place all your jars full of raw ground beef, then place the lid on your canning jar. My manual tells me that it need to "vent" for 10 minutes. So I turn my stove on, and once I see steam blowing out the top like a train, I set a 10 minute timer. It steams like a train, even sounds like a train for 10 minutes. During this time the canner is heating up the water inside and builds just a bit of pressure. THEN once the 10 minutes are up, according to my manual its time to put the specially made canner weight that came with my canner in place. Now a change occurs in my canner, I haven't plugged the hole where the steam escapes but I have put a rocking weight over it. So it doesn't sound like a train any more. Now it builds pressure gradually and I read my dial. According to my manual it says I need to maintain pressure at 10psi. I have never been able to achieve 10psi, mine always goes to 15. So I pressure can everything at 15 since I can't maintain a 10. That said, I hope your stove is better than mine and that you can achieve a 10. But if you have trouble and you can't keep the dial pointing at a 10, in MY experience higher is better--lower is NOT.  

Quarts: 90 minutes at 10 psi

Pints: 75 minutes at 10 psi

Step 9: Gleaming beauties of beef!  

Once you've processed your jars for the correct time, reading owners manual follow directions for cooling down your canner. I allow mine to cool and once the pressure has all escaped I remove my lid. Remember: Accidents happen when people don't follow directions. Read your owners manual!! 

Remove jars from canner. The liquid and meat inside will be boiling.  Allow to cool on the counter, space them out so there is plenty of room for them to cool. You should hear a clicking sound when the jar seals. Allow to cool completely on the counter before storing them. 

Whenever I do beef, it always come out of the canner with a layer of fat around the jar. So I get a sink full of hot soapy water and wash the outsides of my jars before storing them in my pantry. 

And there you are canned beef!  Ready for tacos, burritos, casseroles... wherever!  Pressure can your own beans add canned beef and you can make a quick chili.  Wait for a sale and create a years supply of canned meat--but be sure and rotate because its best to eat within 2 years. 

Wonder Oven--Banana Bread Oatmeal

I made baked oatmeal for breakfast. I used this recipe: http://budgetbytes.blogspot.com/2011/12/banana-bread-oatmeal-367-recipe-046.html  

After mixing up the recipe, I greased my smaller pot, added the oatmeal mixture then put it in my larger pot. Add hot water and bring to a boil. 

I made bread in my Wonder Oven using a large can and I noticed it left rust on my large pot. Then I got a special pot at a restaurant supply store, put I still had rust at the bottom of my large pot. So I came up with a solution. Do you notice the dish rag in my larger pot? It seems my pots rust when they come in contact with each other, so if you have this problem, just put a dishcloth underneath.

 

Here it is the next morning. I woke up to a hot breakfast magically cooked for me! It slid right out of my pot. I found the ingredients tended to layer out when cooking, the bananas seemed to float to the bottom a bit, Next time I will transfer it to a large glass bowl, give it a quick stir and serve, but this way you can see what it   looks like. Yummy! And it tastes a lot like banana bread. Add a little milk or yogurt if you like or eat it plain. 

Wonder Oven Monkey Bread

First you need a large can like a juice can or a #10 can, cinnamon and sugar put into a ziplock bag, and biscuit dough.

Cut each biscuit into 4 pieces. 

I like using my kitchen shears for this job.

Put the dough pieces into a plastic bag with cinnamon and sugar. Toss to coat.

Fill up your can with dough, cover with foil and put in a pot of water. Turn on your stove and boil the water.

Once the water is boiling, put the lid on for a minute to get the lid nice and hot.

Here's my wonder oven, can you see the little "nest" in the center where my pot will go?

Put the pot into the wonder oven, adjust it a bit by pulling up the sides so the foam bean bag will surround your hot pot and keep it hot.

Put the lid on! Here is my wonder oven lid.

Then put a cover on your tote and go about your business.  In 2 hours you're have warm bread.  In 3-6 hours you'll still have warm bread, it won't burn because there is no added heat aside from the boiling water.  It will eventually cool. A friend boiled water and 12 hours later still have warm bath water. What if you did this before a long road trip and you stopped later on or once you got to your destination for a nice warm treat. Maybe a trip to the beach or camping? Picnic? Imagine Thanksgiving and you're trying to make mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, turkey, ham, stuffing... what if you made one and put it in a Wonder Oven? You wouldn't have to worry about it until you needed it. Your dish would stay warm and ready to eat until its time to eat.   

Wonder Oven Week

Its Wonder Oven Week! Tori Trevino asked me, "what can this thing really do, anyway?" So I am taking it as a challenge. I am going to use my Wonder Oven everyday, maybe even twice a day!

http://thermalcooker.wordpress.com/category/thermal-cookers/wonderbox/

http://peaceofpreparedness.com/Resource%20Library/Cookers/No%20Power%20Recipes%202011.pdf

http://www.laytoncity.org/downloads/LCCC/PrepFair/WonderOvenCooking.pdf

What is a Wonder Oven? Video explanation

Here is a video where I nervously tell you all about my Wonder Oven. I mention boiling water but its really anything hot. All it is is a strategically sewed bean bag with special Syro-foam pellets that keep hot food hot and cold food cold--for up to 12 hours or more!  Its cheap, its easy, I love it!

Provident Living Classes for 2013

January 28th at 10AM--Wonder Ovens
Let's get together a make wonder ovens. Here are the things I need you to bring to class:

Sewing machine
Scissors
Fabric--cotton or flannel--4 yards. The fabric is the same for both kinds--the only difference is the amount of filling.
Thread to match your fabric

You'll need to have order your styrene pellets from me--deadline for the order is January 21st. Large size is 10.50 and small size is 7.50. We will be sewing, and putting together our wonder ovens at this meeting.



February and March we'll hear from 2 guest speakers on 2 different methods of organizing our recipes and food storage. Do you know how much wheat you have?  Do you know HOW much wheat to store? Do you have enough ingredients in your house to make ______?  Megan and Stephanie both have amazing ways of organizing their recipes, their food stuffs so they know what they have, what they can make and what they need at the store--saving time and money

February 25th at 10AM--Guest Speaker Megan Smith
Mark your calendars!! Megan Smith will be coming to teach us, she lives in the Cypress Stake. She writes a blog called: My Food Storage Cookbook. I love her recipes and she is going to share her organization genus with us. Check out her blog. You don't want to miss this!

March 18th at 10AM--Guest Speaker Stephanie Autry
Mark your calendars!! Stephanie Autry from Cypress Stake, Bridgeland Ward will be coming to teach us all about how her methods for having and using her food storage. You don't want to miss this!


April and May we'll take some time to learn new skills. Do you know how to make really yummy rolls?  Did you know you can store raw tortilla dough in the fridge and make fresh tortillas for dinner quickly and easy?

April 15th at 10AM--Bread Rolls
Gretchen Juergens is going to teach us all how to make her delicious bread rolls. If you’ve been to many RS meetings you’ve already tried them—they are really soft and yummy!

May 20th at 10AM--Tortillas

Come and learn how to make tortillas.

If you're interested in coming to any of these classes please use this blog to contact me.

Bread Baking Series

I am back and eager to get started holding classes in my home. I have been learning a lot about bread baking and I have discovered 6 ways to get the job done, along with other hints and tips. So I will be holding a bread baking series. It is centered around the question: "How can I fit bread baking into my life?". In order to accommodate everyone who is interested please contact me and let me know your top 3 most available times during the week along with your name and phone number.

Cancel Provident Living Classes

I am canceling all provident living classes until further notice. We have a family emergency and need to leave town. I will resume classes once I return.

January Provident Living Class/Club

As January approaches, I hope everyone's holidays have gone well. January's class will be "Lessons Learned from Ike" held in my home on January 22, 2009 at 7:00PM. We'll talk about how we all fared during the storm and what we may want to do differently next time.

Some possible topics we may cover:

• Does your food storage rely on electricity?
• What do you do when the power goes out?
• Should I invest in a generator, why or why not?
• What will I do if I am asked to evacuate?
• How do I prepare for the possibility of loosing my home in a storm?

If there are any additional topics you'd like to address please post a comment or tell me and come add to our discussion.

February's class will be "Creating and Living by Personal Budget" held on February 19, 2009. Chris Duffey will present a short presentation on how to make a budget and then we'll discuss hints and tips on how to best stick to your budget.

Tortilla Success!

I am Norwiegn and Lefse is an ethic food of mine. I have made Lefse and its just like tortilas only Lefse is flour and potatoes. I have wanted to make tortillas instead of buying them, but I was always intimidated by the lengthy process. Then I ran across a recipe that suggested you store raw dough in the fridge until you're ready to use them. Check it out!

http://www.recipezaar.com/Pipin-Hot-Bakery-Whole-Wheat-Tortillas-7417

The same idea can apply to any tortilla dough. Just make your dough then form balls and roll the balls in flour. Store in fridge until ready to cook. Try making some dough on Saturday and then during the week take out enough dough balls for your family and roll and fry on the stove. Even faster then going to the store and buying them!

Homemade Yogurt

I finally tried to make my own homemade yogurt. It was pretty easy! I used powdered milk from the LDS Cannery, water and a little bit of plain yogurt from the store. The instructions I found say that you can buy a large container of yogurt and put the yogurt in ice cube trays. Freeze the yogurt and use one ice cube per batch. Incubate in your oven or any warm place. Read all about it:

http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/yogurt.htm

With powder milk $44.45 a 25 lb bag at the LDS Cannery, making yogurt yourself is very cheap and versatile. You can use yogurt anywhere you use sour cream. Sweeten your yogurt with a little honey or sugar. Add granola and some fruit and it makes a nice lowfat treat. Use cheese cloth and strain your yogurt to make cream cheese.

Pumpkin Pie Fruit Rollups!

After Halloween I got several large pumpkins from Food Town for $1 each. Then I cooked them down and blended the pumpkin with some of the cooking water to the consistency of baby food. Then for every 2 cups of pumpkin I added 1/2 cup honey and 1/8 tsp pumpkin pie spice. Then I pored it out thin on my dehydrator trays and dehydrated it until it felt dry. Yummy!

Tips: I didn't have pumpkin pie spice so I used a recipe for the mix.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Pumpkin-Pie-Spice-I/Detail.aspx

You could also try doing with in your oven instead of a dehydrator.
http://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheets/hgic3080.htm

The instructions I found also mention other fruit you can use, check it out!
http://www.pleasanthillgrain.com/fruit_leather_info.aspx


Happy Drying! Homemade fruit roll ups make a great holiday gift!

Wheat Bread the Easy Way!

I have been experimenting and trying to make a whole wheat bread without any bit of white flour, which would be nice because whole wheat purchased at the LDS Cannery is a lot cheaper than white flour which has risen in price to over $2 a pound! There is also the added health benefit and fullness factor here in the Duffey house. With 4 boys, 2 hungry adults and an occasionally foreign exchange student or guest we have to potential of eating a loaf or more per day.

So I have found a recipe that worked pretty well, it didn't come out of the oven looking very pretty, but it doesn't taste anything like the dense whole wheat I had made in the past. The recipe comes from the book: "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day". Its called "100 Percent Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread". My homeschool friend Laura knows that I have been trying to make bread and she was nice enough to bring this to my attention and give me a copy of recipe out of her Mother Earth Magazine. Below is a link to the same article online, I strongly encourage you to read all about it. If you hit the "print" button below the title under "Article Tools", it will load the several page article all in one screen so you don't have to hit "next" over and over. Its well worth it!


http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/Artisan-Bread-In-Five-Minutes-A-Day.aspx?page=7

A little introduction

Hi, I live in Houston Texas and I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. My current calling in the church is Provident Living Specialist. When I first started this calling, I had 3 children, pregnant with the 4th and I wrote email newsletters. Now that I have given birth to our 4th child and several things have changed, including my struggle to keep everyone's contact information current, I have discontinued doing the newsletters. I have started holding monthly classes in my home pretaining to Provident Living. Still several of the ward members here in the area miss the newsletters and some can not attend the classes. So without flooding your email inbox and struggling to keep everyone's email current, here I offer this little corner of the world wide web.

I will continue to hold monthly meeting in my home. After the meeting, I will take a few minutes and post what we talked about, that way if you were unable to come you can still hear what went on, and hopefully you'll be able to come the following month.

Also, I will be posting my own personal adventures with Provident Living and all that this calling, this church and my life has taught me pertaining to that. Even before I joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, I had a strong desire to be self sufficient. So the things I post are not just my current "job" in church, but also a part of my own journey.

My hope is that perhaps my own personal journey along with the classes held in my home will encourage others to pick themselves up out of debt and strive to be more self succient in all areas of life.

Let not the winds of economic or social change uproot our family trees. Let us keep our values and hold dear to the values of our forefathers. Let us learn from each other both the gospel and of its spiritual matters as well as its temporal matters.

Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without!