Did I Mess Up?? :(

[TurtleMama]

Yesterday I canned chicken, and I read the instructions wrong. I was supposed to process it in the pressure canner for 75 minutes, and I accidentally processed it for 90 minutes. The jars sealed....but will it be okay? Is overprocessing the food bad for it?

 

[sassenach]

was it a pint or a quart jar? I doubt, since it sealed that its a problem, but Violet should be the one to finalize the answer. Pints for chicken meat usually are 75 mins, quarts 90 according to the instructions for boneless

http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_05/chicken_rabbit.html

 

with bones it would 65 mins per pint and 75 mins per quart

 

for chunks , strips, cubes of red meats it would be 75 mins per pint and 90 mins per quart.

 

 

I am only going on feeling here and as long as it didn't go completely dry inside the jar, that 90 mins wasn't long enough to harm it although it may have tenderized it a bit more than you might prefer, so make chicken soup with it when you use it!

 

Others with more pro experience may correct me if I'm wrong because I don't want you to get the wrong idea because I just THINK its ok and I want you to have the RIGHT Answer.

 

Do you have a kitchen timer you can set next to you once it starts the processing time? That is what I do. Because my kitchen is inhospitable for 90 mins and more time... I need to go sit down a while after I've got everything to that point......so I set my timer. For the hour then add 15 or 30 mins if its whichever meat that requires a certain time.

I have never found a computerized widget on the computer to be as trustworthy as a simple kitchen timer you wind up and set down beside you while you wait for something.

Edited July 30, 2012 by arby

[Violet]

No harm other than it will be softer. It is fine.

[Dee]

I've done the opposite. Just be thankful you cooked it too long instead of not enough. I had a whole canner of chicken (7 quarts) I did that with in reverse! Pressured for pints instead of quarts. I always make pints except for that year and simply didn't think!!! Ended up letting it all cool down and froze it so it wasn't a waste of anything but a lot of time and work!

[TurtleMama]

Yes, they were pints of chicken, and I processed them as for quarts. Silly me! LOL

 

Dee, I'm so sorry that happened....thank goodness you realized what had happened and you were able to freeze it. That could have turned out a lot worse! All that time and work down the drain, though...ugh!!

 

Thanks for the input and for putting my worries at ease. I ate some of the chicken today that didn't seal, and it was super-"tender!" Just about fell apart. It will make awesome chicken stew, or chicken pot pie.

[Jeepers]

Better to over do it than under do it. You can add some Bar-B-Q sauce and use it as pulled chicken sandwiches too. I think KFC sells them that way. Or an open face Bar-B-Q chicken sandwich. People will marvell at how tender your chicken sandwiches are.

[TurtleMama]

Oooh, Jeepers, that sounds good....DH and I are going to try BBQ with our canned pork, but I defniitely need to try it with the chicken, too. YUM!

 

It feels so good to have all that chicken put up! Goodness knows I need more, but every jar on the shelf is a little more security. And a hedge against future inflation!