Canning Hamburger

A Mennonite friend of mine taught me how she learned to pressure can hamburger by some ladies in her church.  It's a tried and proven method in many circles... so thought I'd give it a try.  Here's what I did:

• Simmer inserts on stove while building jars.
• Cut up onions and add to raw hamburger (optional)
• Pack pint or quart jars tightly with hamburger/onion mixture to 1" from the top.  
• Indent a finger in the center of the hamburger because it tends to rise up in the middle and pop the inserts if you don't.
• Add inserts and rings
• Pressure can according to your altitude.  I live at 0-1000 ft so I can quarts 90 min/10#   or     pints 75 min/10#

 

 

 

Finished product

 To get the hamburger out...  I simply put jar in microwave just long enough to melt some of the fat that had solidified as it cooled and drain it off.  Then just use a fork or knife to remove.

Another option:  Fry your hamburger as you normally would when preparing a dish.  Drain grease.  Then add to jars with 2 tablespoons water in the bottom and process as above.

Both options turn out wonderful.  I've done it both ways, but prefer putting it in the jar raw when I have lots to do because it's too time consuming to cook it first.  Besides, the pressure canner will cook it thoroughly anyhow.

I'm still using hamburger I canned two years ago and it's still good!

Canning Cheese

Please note right at the start that canning cheese is purely experimental on my part because I haven't found it in any canning books as of yet.  I have read of others out there having tremendous success so I've patterned my processes after theirs.  I've used cheese that I canned 2+ years ago and it's still perfectly good!!  The taste is somewhat sharper though.

I believe it's fairly safe to experiment with the harder cheeses because they are high in lactic acid making them a safe bet in the world of canning.  If cheese goes bad it will simply get moldy and you shouldn't suffer food poisoning.

Personally, I've canned cheddar and mozzarella with great results.  Others have done pepper jack as well.  I've read never to can soft cheeses so stay away from those.

Here's what my cheddar cheese looks like finished:

Here's how I did it:

• Place lids in simmering water on stove.
• Cut cheese into 1" squares and fill wide mouthed pint jars.
• Place jars in pan of water on stove...  make sure water never gets into jars though. 
• Cheese will melt as it heats up so I stir a little and add more cheese.  Continue until melted cheese is about 1/2 " from top of jar.  Do NOT let cheese get on rims because the grease will keep your lids from sealing.  
• Wipe rims with hot wash cloth and add lids and rings firmly.
• Cover jars with 2" water in a water bath canner and process jars 25 minutes.  NOTE:  Begin timer after water comes to full rolling boil.
• After cooling, label and put in a cool, dark, dry place for storage.

To remove cheese from the jar:  Run a little hot water over the outside of the jar, or place it in a sink of hot water for just a few moments.  Then run a knife around the inside edges and pry it out onto a plate.  Be careful not expose it to too much heat as the cheese will begin to melt again and you'll have a gooey mess.

Refrigerate after opening!

Gardening Video

I just watched the most amazing video on gardening I've ever seen.  My garden is composed of large sections covered with plastic as you can see in my initial blog post, but won't be after harvesting this year.  I've already informed my husband that when this garden is pulled...  the plastic is going with it.  I'm switching over to this method for next year!   Truly amazing!  To see how God has provided everything we need already in nature for a healthy garden is mind boggling.   The video itself is 1 hr 45 min ...  so carve out a chunk of time to watch it.    All aspects of gardening are covered....   watering, weeding, fertilizing, pests, etc.     I believe you will find it worth your time to watch if you're an avid gardener.

http://backtoedenfilm.com/

If the video freezes up while you are watching it...  simply mouse over the bottom of the screen to bring up the status bar.   Click on the  "HD" (High Definition) at the bottom right of the player to turn it off and allow the video to playback in SD (Standard Definition).

Canning Butter

Ok, you might be wondering why a person would can butter?   My personal motivation is saving money.  If I find a good quality butter on sale I purchase 12 lbs and can up two cases of the 8 oz jars and put them in my basement.  It lasts up to 3 years at room temperature this way as opposed to only a few months in the freezer.


Isn't the end product beautiful!  The creamy, buttery yellow color is amazing!  

Ok, so how do you can butter? Here's what you do.......  

• Purchase high quality salted butter.  Cheaper brands tend to separate, but go ahead and experiment with your favorite and see what happens.  I found Kroger brand did just fine.
• Sterilize jars by putting them in a 225 degree oven for 20 min.  I just do this step first and let them heat up while I continue on.
• Melt butter in saucepan and bring to a very gentle boil.  While it boils skim the foam off the top and discard. Don't take longer than 5 min skimming. 
• Fill hot jars with hot butter.  Wipe rims and put on hot inserts and rings.  Jars seal as they cool.
• After jars have cooled a couple hours, gently swirl or shake the butter to keep it from separating.  NOTE:  I put pressure on the insert with my fingers so butter doesn't creep up under it while doing this step and prevent the jar from sealing.  
• When cooled...  label and put into the pantry. 

6 lbs butter will yield 12 - 8 oz jars.