# I always canned my own but I bought some canned meat



## Coco (Jun 8, 2007)

Well, I always canned my own meat, but with my back being blown out and not being able to do it this year. I bought a few cans of chicken meat from Aldis at $1.79 I also purchased walmart brand at $2.50 per can.

I'm going to do the taste test this weekend.

If you buy canned meat where do you get it and do you like it?

I like to store what I eat and eat what I store.

thanks


----------



## where I want to (Oct 28, 2008)

Only after it's rinsed well and covered in sauce. Except Spam of course but that stuff goes straight to your arteries.


----------



## Coco (Jun 8, 2007)

I have never ate spam , I have onlyhad store bought tuna,sardines, red salmon, oysters. 

I was thinking maybe I should try some canned ravaloi but took a look on the nutrition label and thought no I don't need that. 

It truly does bite when one gets a tad bit up there in the years , and one needs to find good alternatives for stored food.


----------



## Old Vet (Oct 15, 2006)

Any store canned meat or vegetables have more salt that you would use.Look at the ingredients list and see.


----------



## unregistered29228 (Jan 9, 2008)

We've bought Yoder's canned meats, which don't have added ingredients other than salt. I usually rinse them like Where I Want To said, but otherwise they're handy (although expensive). We don't buy the "sausage", "ground beef", or "taco meat" because it was a lot like Alpo dog food. But the "chunks" are tasty and identifiable. We also like the canned bacon.

I can some meats at home (mainly rabbit and chicken), but the Yoder's is good because it's in metal cans, which are much tougher than glass if storing it in various places. We live near an earthquake fault line, so it makes me feel secure knowing that even if all my canning jars break we'll still have some cans that survive. We keep some of the bacon in our BOBs, too.

You might also consider some dehydrated/freeze dried meats. They're also expensive, but work great and are lightweight and shelf stable. I especially like the ground beef! I dehydrate my own "hamburger rocks" but have been known to open a can of freeze dried too.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres (Jul 22, 2013)

We like the Keystone brand canned meats available at Walmart.


----------



## unregistered29228 (Jan 9, 2008)

I forgot to add - Costco has roast beef and chicken in smaller cans. The chicken isn't one of our favorites, but the beef is nice. It has more ingredients than the Yoder's but sometimes you don't want to open a huge can. And all the cans will last for years if kept climate controlled.


----------



## belladulcinea (Jun 21, 2006)

I buy the small Hormel cans of turkey and ham. I use the ham for ham salad, quiche and omelets, I've even put in my beans when I didn't have a ham bone in the freezer. Yes it's a bit salty but I just don't add anymore to what I'm cooking. The turkey is rinsed off and used in pot pie. I do not like the canned chicken. 

I also keep Spam! Sliced thin, rolled in a little flour and fried up crispy it can take the place of bacon in a pinch. I would love to try either the Keystone or Yoders.


----------



## Vosey (Dec 8, 2012)

We like the Kirkland brand of canned chicken. I rinse off the salt as well. But we use it pretty much just for sandwiches.


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

I will be happy to see your taste test results. We stock up on canned herring often. The big difference between your home canned vs store bought is the sodium and maybe chemicals that leach from the cans interior. 

I know it is not as break resistant as metal but I much prefer food canned in glass.

I will be stashing away more dry beans for winter meals. Nothing like a hot bowl of soup with plenty of onion and garlic and bay leaves cooking on the stove. And maybe a big slice of Countryfied's homemade bread recipe to go with it. :happy2:


----------



## 7thswan (Nov 18, 2008)

Dh bought a can of Spam once, I still have it. I'm not really sure what to do with it, it might come in handy for an emergency. My mom used to slice and fry it for my Dad, it was gross IIRC. I do buy canned crab, just for stuffed mushrooms, but I'll have to rethink that now with all the strange countrys we get food from,same with tuna. I used to eat alot of that when I was bodybuilding, but now, it looks like mush in a can. Food is so diffrent now, so it will be nice to see others input, but maybe this new stuff is normal to people who use it. I like my own canned .sure would like to get some fish canned up like I read about those near the ocean. Hum, I wounder if the airlines will let me take my canner down to Key West. a good excuse to go fishing with my brother.


----------



## 7thswan (Nov 18, 2008)

light rain said:


> I will be happy to see your taste test results. We stock up on canned herring often. The big difference between your home canned vs store bought is the sodium and maybe chemicals that leach from the cans interior.
> 
> I know it is not as break resistant as metal but I much prefer food canned in glass.
> 
> I will be stashing away more dry beans for winter meals. Nothing like a hot bowl of soup with plenty of onion and garlic and bay leaves cooking on the stove. And maybe a big slice of Countryfied's homemade bread recipe to go with it. :happy2:


yummm, smoked Kippers.


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

Yup. Kipper snacks, cheddar cheese, crackers and crisp apple slices. :bouncy: Some of my favorite foods in the fall. Maybe a little Black Cat to go with it... :bouncy:


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

Maybe 2 bouncing figures are annoyance overload.


----------



## 7thswan (Nov 18, 2008)

light rain said:


> Maybe 2 bouncing figures are annoyance overload.


I don't know is Black Cat something I can bounce too:clap:


----------



## Mutti (Sep 7, 2002)

We tried the Aldi canned chicken last trip and definitely will buy more next trip. Made chicken and rice and a broccoli/rice/chicken casserole and they tasted great. Aren't big beef eaters but will try their brand of that, too. Not big on their tuna but local store had Chicken of the Sea water packed for 69 cents can so bought a couple of dozen cans.


----------



## gweny (Feb 10, 2014)

Aldi's has great beef stew at a reasonable price. Their canned chicken tastes the same as walmarts IMO. I can't eat tuna so I can't help you there; and I don't eat any other meat that I haven't canned myself.... Mostly because it just don't taste right to me.


----------



## Spinner (Jul 19, 2003)

I've used the Aldi canned chicken and canned beef. The chicken was good in every recipe I used it in and I'll buy it again. The beef was chunks instead of slices (the can had pic of slices and it said sliced beef on the can.) It had good flavor and probably would have been good in a stew, but I made hot roast beef sandwiches and was fully committed to the sandwiches before discovering it was chunks instead of slices. I ended up shredding the chunks as best I could and it was ok. 

I like spam, but only after simmering in teriyaki sauce. It might be good if it was marinaded in the sauce overnight. I hate it right out of the can. Heating doesn't help. The flavor of that stuff has to be covered with another flavor to make it palatable.


----------



## Ozarks Tom (May 27, 2011)

I remember Spam breaded in crushed cracker crumbs, and fried. Don't remember it being bad, but then, my mother was a lousy cook so who'd know good from bad?

Sam's chicken is terrible. Might as well eat cardboard. Canned hams (non-refrigerated) we've bought were obviously scrapings from the filler machine hopper pressed together and held in place with slime.

Maybe that's why we raise rabbits, chickens, and sheep. Under the right circumstance the cat might be tasty too.


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

Just to be clear, Black Cat is German white wine and I was too lazy to look up the German name. Liebfraumilch is another good one that I haven't had in years but really went well with fall kind of foods. 

It is a shame that so many folks in America don't have any inkling of what home raised meat, vegetables and fruit taste like.


----------



## wes917 (Sep 26, 2011)

Aldi tuna is pretty good. I use the canned beef to make a quick meal of beef and noodles. I have yet to try the chicken. I like the beef, just add pepper but is a bit salty, my wife hates it. The tuna tastes, well like tuna. Can't see any difference there. Seeing some others recs for the chicken will make me try some especially since we are more bird people here too.


----------



## Calico Katie (Sep 12, 2003)

The canned chicken is okay to cook with. I haven't eaten it out of the can on a sandwich. I gave a can to my daughter and she finally used it to make a casserole with. She wasn't a fan of the idea of canned chicken but the casserole was good and she liked how quickly she could make something without having to cook the chicken first.

I ordered a case of the Yoder's bacon a few months ago. I haven't tasted it yet but I gave a can to a grandson. He has his own apartment and I worry about him having enough to eat - it's a grandma thing. Anyway, he had some friends over on his day off to play video games. He opened the bacon in the afternoon and the three of them ate the whole can by that night. He said it was good and he was really surprised at how much there was in that one small can.

I used to keep a couple of cans of Spam on hand all the time when my kids were growing up. I'd slice it thin and fry it to use for breakfast or to make into a sandwich. I would also cut it into cubes and put it in potato soup. 

Underwood's deviled ham was handy to make a ham salad sandwich. I'd also mix it into scrambled eggs and put it on toast. One of the original breakfast sandwiches. 

There was always tuna but after eating it for a lifetime I finally got so burned out that I won't keep even one can around. I used it for casseroles, croquettes and sandwiches.

I haven't bought any of the canned roast beef in years but I liked it. You can also get cans of corned beef/ corned beef hash at just about any grocery store. The last time I tried one of the small one pound canned hams, it was awful so I scratched that off my list.

There's a pretty good selection available in the canned meat section of your local grocery store. It just gets a little pricey experimenting until you find the ones you actually like and will use.


----------



## Alice Kramden (Mar 26, 2008)

PSA: Don't even *think* about buying or eating the canned shrimp. GAG. The cats wouldn't touch it. The raccoons and possums didn't touch it. "Product of Indonesia" on the side of the can. I can see someone buying it to make a quick shrimp salad. They will most likely be in the emergency room within hours :yuck:

Canned corned beef hash/roast beef hash can be greatly improved by dicing up some onion in it while it is frying. It also tastes better when warmed over. Cook it today and eat it tomorrow. 

Anyone else remember the Morton House canned meat and gravy meals from years ago? They were so good. At least I thought so. Salisbury steak with mushroom gravy, sliced chicken with gravy, sliced beef and gravy, and sliced pork with gravy. Put them over mashed potatoes. They made many a meal for me way, way back then.


----------



## Calico Katie (Sep 12, 2003)

Somebody asked where I got my Yoder's bacon. The best deal I could find was a place called G&R Foods through Amazon. After adding the shipping in, it came to $14 a can. Since bacon has been so high, around $4.50 a pound most of the time, it actually cost about as much for each can as I would have paid for the bacon in the store. Each can is supposed to equal about 3 pounds. I'm making food baskets for all my kids for Christmas and each will get a can of bacon in it.

I actually have another case on order right now. I'm afraid the price is going to go up even more this winter. Here's the link.
http://www.amazon.com/Cans-full-Yode...oder%27s+bacon 




Alice Kramden said:


> .... Anyone else remember the Morton House canned meat and gravy meals from years ago? They were so good. At least I thought so. Salisbury steak with mushroom gravy, sliced chicken with gravy, sliced beef and gravy, and sliced pork with gravy.
> 
> 
> > Yep, and the Salisbury steak was my favorite. I mostly just put it on toast for a fast meal. I have a couple of cans of corned beef hash put back that I'll use this winter. I'm thinking about trying it in a casserole with noodles, onions and bell peppers.


----------



## Alice Kramden (Mar 26, 2008)

The corned beef hash is rather greasy, so you might want to stack up some paper towels and drain it well. 

Hope your casserole turns out good!


----------



## Backyardcreek (Aug 24, 2014)

Picking up on the spam... Heard all the old tales 'horse meat, etc...but my papa loved it. Easy to keep on the shelf & my preference was scrambled eggs & fried spam.
Then went to Hawaii & discovered the Hawaiians love spam. Had a meal called loco moco which comprised of fried spam over white rice smothered in brown gravy. Ok I wasn't worried about the calories (gravy runs through my veins  & I loved it. Found out that spam is in a lot of Hawaiian recipes because the locos love it (thanks to WWII). So even though DH doesn't run to the dinner table when I mention loco moco, I'm happy relishing the meal & fond memories  even today, I'm looking for current Hawaiian recipes to utilizing Spam (still buy it in cases at the local warehouse stores).


----------



## unregistered29228 (Jan 9, 2008)

Calico Katie said:


> I ordered a case of the Yoder's bacon a few months ago. I haven't tasted it yet but I gave a can to a grandson.


We love the canned bacon! It comes all rolled up in waxed paper, but it's fully cooked and ready to eat. It's hard to get the paper out of the can, but if you set the can in hot water or near a campfire for a while it slides right out. I always crisp up the bacon since it's kind of limp right out of the can. And the grease it gives off is just enough to fry some eggs.


----------



## Coco (Jun 8, 2007)

well here is the taste test results for the Aldi Brookdale brand,

stats are white premium chicken with rib meat in water

net wt 12.5
98% fat free
No preservatives
US inspected
Gluten free no msg and fully cooked
serving size 2 oz serving per can 6
Calories 60 calories from fat 10

Cholesterol 25mg 
Protein 12 g
Sodium 230
Vit A -o Vit C -o Calcium-o Iron-o

0 carbs

Well I tasted straight out of the can and I can say it was salty, but good.

I drained and rinsed , broke it up with a fork and added 2 tbs onion, 1 rib of celery and 2.5 tbl of Mayo, I added pepper. I liked it and so did my hubby, We would have been able to have 5 good sandwiches out of it, 6 if you made the sandwich lighter with the spread.

My husband also enjoyed it straight on some homemade bread with some cheese melted on top.

I will be stocking this brand for sure. I think it will work great in casseroles also.

THUMBS UP with this brand  At $1.79 a can it is more economical than tuna, But I do have to say home canned is better, but this is a good choice for my needs.


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

Thank you for doing the research and sharing your findings. I was going to go to Aldi anyway to buy beans. I'll have to include a couple of cans of this chicken.


----------



## Calico Katie (Sep 12, 2003)

Thanks for giving us your review. I hope you'll try some other things and let us know how they are. The first time I had the canned chicken was a pot luck at work. One lady brought chicken pot pie. The throw together kind with canned chicken and biscuits on top. It was really good.


----------



## countryfied2011 (Jul 5, 2011)

> And maybe a big slice of Countryfied's homemade bread recipe to go with it.


LR, sounds good to me...lol Just got done making a couple of loaves...have you made it yet?


I like to have my own canned meat also, but I also store bought canned stuff and freeze dried stuff. For the store bought canned food, I didnt care for Aldi's beef. I tried it one time from recommendations from HT members. It would do in a have to situation but I too store what we eat and eat what we store so it does no good for me to store it. Both DH and I like spam and I buy the Aldi's brand which is good, I rarely eat it though because of the sodium but I do keep it on hand. DH loves potted meat, sardines,Vienna sausages and smoked oysters so I keep those on hand. He also likes Beenie Weenies...lol Sardines arent bad but I couldnt eat them all the time.

Aldi's beef stew is good, I also buy their canned salmon and tuna fish. I have always been a spaghetti o and beefaroni type of gal...so I keep a few cans on hand for emergencies.

I keep wanting to try Yoder's just never got around to buying any. Will try out the Aldi's chicken..thank you


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

No Countryfied I haven't made the bread yet but with the cooler weather coming I will soon. I really like homemade bread and homemade potato salad!


----------



## hengal (Mar 7, 2005)

Coco said:


> well here is the taste test results for the Aldi Brookdale brand,
> 
> stats are white premium chicken with rib meat in water
> 
> ...


 
Yes, thank you for the review! I have just recently begun shopping at Aldi's and still am not familiar with their brands. Thank you.


----------



## BlueRose (Mar 7, 2013)

New Aldis is opening up in West Plains. I cant wait it is going to be a bigger store. Hopefully they will have a scooter.


----------



## Wendy (May 10, 2002)

The only meat I have ever bought is tuna & salmon. When I looked at the price of canned meat in the store, I figured I have $1,000's of worth of my own canned on the shelf!


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

I bought the canned beef and cooked it up with a big onion. 

I grew up eating Slim Jim's, craklin and pigs feet. So I remember salt but maybe because I have reduced my salt intact I could barely eat the beef. I did not rinse because I didn't want to wash away flavor.(had it over rice) I will not buy the beef again. I will try the chicken next week. My husband said "its a little salty". :hrm: I am happy to see both the beef and the chicken said "product of the USA".


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

"intake" Sorry.


----------



## lathermaker (May 7, 2010)

My favorite tuna is the Kirkland brand from Costco. I like their canned chicken also. (not as good as mine....but it works) I have some chicken from Aldi, but haven't taste tested it yet. And yes, I do LOVE Kippers! Especially on buttered saltine crackers. The King Oscar brand in the red overwrap package are the best IMHO.


----------



## Riverdale (Jan 20, 2008)

Going to have to try the Aldi canned meat. Got a $5 off of $30 (or more) spent coupon. :happy2:

We prefer Treat to Spam, but hey 

We keep a case of cans of tuna, chicken, and ham (buy it at the local grocery store's case sale) for "quick and easy" meals and snacks (we have a DS who is 13 and a 'bottomless pit' :happy2: )

We also try to keep a dozen or so canned Polish-style hams (Krakus knock-offs). 

This is along with the chicken, rabbit, beef, pork and lamb we have canned ourselves.


----------



## sniper69 (Sep 23, 2007)

For store bought canned meat - I keep some canned salmon, only a couple cans of tuna, canned chicken, some Keystone brand beef, and some keystone brand ground beef. If corn beef hash is considered canned meat - then I keep a few cans of those on the shelf too - Mary Kitchen brand (made by Hormel ?). 

The secret to the corn beef hash is to let it crisp up in the skillet before turning and crisping on the other side. Then it will taste like the hash from some of the diners I ate at when I was younger.

The Keystone beef is decent, the ground beef might not look the most appetizing coming out of the can, but when browned in the skillet and seasoned it makes good meat for tacos, burritos, chili, about anything one would want ground meat crumbles for. The secret to making it taste good is to open the can, drain any liquid, then put the meat and fat (that is at the top of the can) into the skillet to cook. 

The canned salmon is for making salmon patties. For the tuna - any of the chunk light seems like shreds in liquid. The cans of tuna I have (for the occasional tuna sandwich or tuna noodle casserole) Say Bumble Bee Prime Filet solid white albacore 5 oz. The tuna is much nicer (and it goes on sale occasionally).

Canned chicken - it depends, I usually buy the breast chunk on sale - it is good when making chicken with yellow rice, a quick casserole, or for chicken salad sandwiches. The Sweet Sue brand canned boneless chicken or the whole chicken (two different products) is good when making chicken and dumplings.

As for Spam - the turkey spam is okay if sliced thin and browned in the pan (using some butter). Regular Spam - I haven't ate that since I was about 12.


----------



## Guest (Sep 13, 2014)

We use canned chicken for an emergency dinner before. A can of chunked chicken, fork fluffed to "shred" it, stir in some sour cream, some shredded cheese, and a can of Rotel. Roll in a tortilla, lay the little logs in a Pyrex dish, and bake for about 20 minutes to warm it through... Insta-Enchiladas a la Gringa! LOL!


----------



## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

I opened up a can of the Aldi chicken and made chicken salad for sandwiches. I like that a lot better than the beef. Just added mayo, onion and sweet pickle relish. DH agreed we'll keep several cans on hand for emergencies. Thanks for the tip! :thumb: Good price too...


----------

