Electric Pressure Canner

[Becca_Anne]

Just purchased an electric pressure canner and excited to learn how to use it. I've only ever water bath canned so this will be an adventure. What would you recommend as good first items to learn how to pressure can? Any favorite recipes?

[Jeepers]

I don't know anything about an electric pressure canner except that a Youtuber called Rose Red Homestead demonstrates how she uses hers. Some people say they aren't recommended and some people say they are. I have no opinion either way. They are too small for my needs. 
 

Canning can be so exciting and satisfying! I love it, But it is also a lot of hard work. One hint I'll share is to plan on spacing it out over a couple of days. When I do veggies that need a lot of peeling and chopping, I do most of it the day before and refrigerate them. Then the next day I'm rested and ready to do the actual canning. There were times when I only had one canner and a huge pot of veggie soup to make, cook and can. By the end of the night every cell of my body was crying out in pain and exhaustion. So planning ahead really helps me. 

 

IMO, believe it or not, meat is one of the easiest things to can. Basically chunk it up and put it in the jar. If it's raw then it will make it's own juices. If its' cooked you need to add liquid to the jar. Beans are easy. Just pre-cook or soak over night. Make sure you have enough liquid in the jar before you process them. If you need more details please ask! I'm just assuming you already know the basics. Whatever you decide, one of us will gladly walk you through each step if you need it.  

 

All that said, I'm not familiar with an electric pressure canner. I do big batch canning so I need a canner that holds at least 7 quarts. I have thought about an electric water bath canner though. They take up less room and more importantly, they have a tube on the side where you can drain the water out right into your sink. So, no heavy lifting. I'm just not sure I water bath enough food to justify the cost. 

[Becca_Anne]

I have a water bath canner as well. So I plan to use that for all things that can be water bath canned and the pressure canner just for those items that really need it. I plan to do it over the weekends and do all the prep first so it's just processing on the days I am using it.

[Midnightmom]

7 hours ago, Jeepers said:

IMO, believe it or not, meat is one of the easiest things to can. Basically chunk it up and put it in the jar. If it's raw then it will make it's own juices. If its' cooked you need to add liquid to the jar. 

If you need more details please ask! I'm just assuming you already know the basics. Whatever you decide, one of us will gladly walk you through each step if you need it.  

 

About meat:

• If the meat is uncooked and NOT minced/ground you can cut it into reasonably sized chunks and put it directly into jars and process for the size of the jar and your altitude. (Cold food, cold jars, cold water in the canner.)
• If you are going to process ANY form of ground meat - hamburger, sausage, pork, turkey, etc - the meat needs to be at least par cooked. You don't want it to form bug clumps inside of the jar as it is impossible to know whether the center of such a mass of meat was able to reach the correct temp for the right amount of time. (Hot food, hot broth/water, hot jars, hot water in the canner) All equipment etc should be as close to the same temp as possible to avoid thermal shock to your jars)

USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning, 2015 revision

https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/publications_usda.html#gsc.tab=0

 

Edited July 9, 2023 by Midnightmom

[Midnightmom]

19 hours ago, Becca_Anne said:

Just purchased an electric pressure canner and excited to learn how to use it. I've only ever water bath canned so this will be an adventure. 

 

Pressure canning is a great method for preserving meats ie- making them shelf stable. I added a link to the USDA site in a previous reply. Meats are pretty much the only foods I PC as I can buy canned veggies for "pennies" and not have to tie up my "expensive" canning jars. Plus, I have limited space for storing my jars once they are processed.

 

That being said, I do not own an electic pressure canner so I have no idea how big or small they are.

 

Just be aware of this: you cannot use it on stoves that are independent of working electricity. In other words, if the power goes out for an extended length of time and the meat in your freezer begins to defrost you will not be able to "save/rescue" those items by canning them. Having a "traditional" pressure canner means you can use it on a gas stove, a propane set up, or possibly even a wood burning stove (although maintaining the correct pressure might prove to be very difficult to do). (There are specific guidelines for using those energy sources that you can look up)

 

The other concern that some people have about them is the unknown "life" of the appliance, and how reliable the guage is at reading and showing the pressure in the canner. Traditional canners that have a guage can be tested to make sure they are calibrated correctly, OR, you can bypass the need for the guage by using a "jiggler" on the steam vent. Most people prefer the jiggler as it also provides an audible verification of the pressure in the canner.

 

I wish you much success on your "journey."

 

 

Raw packed chicken breast >>>> shelf stable processed chicken

   

 

[Jeepers]

 

38 minutes ago, Midnightmom said:

 

About meat:

• If the meat is uncooked and NOT minced/ground you can cut it into reasonably sized chunks and put it directly into jars and process for the size of the jar and your altitude. (Cold food, cold jars, cold water in the canner.)
• If you are going to process ANY form of ground meat - hamburger, sausage, pork, turkey, etc - the meat needs to be at least par cooked. You don't want it to form bug clumps inside of the jar as it is impossible to know whether the center of such a mass of meat was able to reach the correct temp for the right amount of time. (Hot food, hot broth/water, hot jars, hot water in the canner) All equipment etc should be as close to the same temp as possible to avoid thermal shock to your jars)

No BUG clumps inside the jar please. 

 

But correct Midnightmom. For minced meat. I was referencing chunks of meat. Chunked. 

 

The one case of chicken I have is the first, and last, time I canned it raw. AKA ugly chicken and ugly it is. I don't like that white stuff in the jar. And it's hard to scrape off the jar too. I'm not a big meat eater and anything in the jar other than breast meat makes me uncomfortable. I can't even eat chicken off of the bone. It's not a PITA or animal rights thing. I don't know where that stems from. Visual, texture, taste? Plain weirdo most likely. 

[Littlesister]

I'm not familiar with the electric pressure canners but yes it is a very good idea to have a traditional one on hand. Electric goes out that can be an issue if food in freezer starts to thaw. 

 

Jeepers your chicken looks good. I have been canning meats for years. DH liked the chicken breast best so I have mostly chicken breast canned. But have canned chicken legs and thighs on the bone as well as the wings. We sometimes would pull a can of those out and barbeque it for a snack. I have lots of beef canned, turkey and hamburger. As well as poor man's steak. That is a two day job to make that. Only one you can use flour for gravy and can. 

 

Becca Anne, you will get hooked on canning. it's a lot of fun and the satisfaction you get from having all that food on pantry shelf for hard times is a blessing. 

[snapshotmiki]

A 14 cup food processor has been  so valuable to me. I use mine almost  daily. If I do need to cut by hand, I use a cutting  glove. The prep is the biggest thing  for me. 

[Littlesister]

I'm not familiar with the electric pressure canners but yes it is a very good idea to have a traditional one on hand. Electric goes out that can be an issue if food in freezer starts to thaw. 

 

Jeepers your chicken looks good. I have been canning meats for years. DH liked the chicken breast best so I have mostly chicken breast canned. But have canned chicken legs and thighs on the bone as well as the wings. We sometimes would pull a can of those out and barbeque it for a snack. I have lots of beef canned, turkey and hamburger. As well as poor man's steak. That is a two day job to make that. Only one you can use flour for gravy and can. 

 

Becca Anne, you will get hooked on canning. it's a lot of fun and the satisfaction you get from having all that food on pantry shelf for hard times is a blessing. 

[Becca_Anne]

Thank you good to know to use only pre-cooked hot pack with ground meat. I had planned to can in chunks and also ground so that is helpful. 

[Littlesister]

Miki, those food processors are a lifesaver. I love mine also.  Need to get started back on pressure canning from the freezer soon. Been looking at new things to use veggies with for canning.  Maybe some different soups or something. Going to make more tomato soup to can after the tomatoes start ripening. 

[Ambergris]

I have wanted one of the electric pressure canners since I saw it on Rose Red, partly because it has the smaller capacity.  I figured I might be able to lift and maneuver it without help, while I need a helper to use a manual canner--unless I want a big chance of damaging my back and shoulders, and probably dropping the thing.

Edited July 15, 2023 by Ambergris

[Becca_Anne]

Ambergris I was thinking the same they are lighter and much easier to manage when full of water