# [VENISON] canning venison question?



## Guest (Nov 30, 2003)

With one of the deer I killed yesterday I'm planning on canning. Something I have never done before.(Help!) So my question is can I use any of the deer meat so long as I trim the fat off or do I only use only select cuts of the meat? Such as Hindquarters and backstrap? Can I can the shoulder meat or neck meat? Would I be better off making sausage out of the neck and shoulder meat and then can it? Thanks for your input. 







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## cowgirlone (May 9, 2002)

:haha: :haha: 

R.H., I can all of it, doesn't have to be the choice pieces. I just cut off the fat, cube it and can it. You can even can it after it's ground into burger.

When canning pork, you have to be careful not to include much fat. It melts and gets under the lid causing the cans not to seal, But since venison isn't as fatty overall, it doesn't cause a problem.
Best of luck to ya!


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## comfortablynumb (Nov 18, 2003)

can it all...
I start with a giant pot of water... simmer the cubed meat till its almost done, dump it right into warm jars, and cover the meat with the liquid. youll have lots of broth left, thats ok... it gets better.
thats your first batch, pressure cook those jars ( i use pints only) at 12-13 lbs for 60 min... i have read you only need 30 but I prefer safe than sorry, and it doesnt harm the outcome.
second pile of raw cubes, dump them in the broth you have from the last biol, simmer the meat and can it like the first... MARK the jars, first batch, second, ect.
the farther along you go and the more "used" the broth is, the more concentrated the flavors in it become. I can get about 4 or 5 canner loads per pot of fluid before I run out. 
why do this?
when your done with 4 or 5 cooker batches, open one of the first jars, and compare it to the last batch with the thick, rich broth... youll see why. you get a distinct flavor difference with each progressive batch, the last doesnt even taste like deer, more like the softest most flavorfull rosat beef you ever had.

when you simmer the raw meat, use ONLY salt and pepper. you can add other stuff when you cook with it later. 

just my method... hope ya like it


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## Guest (Dec 1, 2003)

Comfort that sounds great! I was just wondering if you could just go ahead and simmer all the meat first and then start packing the jars? Wouldn't that make all the jars equal in flavor?


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## texican (Oct 4, 2003)

Hi R.H,
I can all of the ugly pieces, with tendons and whatnot, after canning, it gets real tender. Use some salt, but no spices. The heat affects the spices, changing the intended flavor.

BTW, you better copy cowgirlone's recipe down fast, couple weeks ago, I gave specific instructions on how to can venison, and the moderators deleted my post. Found out you can't give specifics on something, need to link to somebody else's website for the specifics, and I don't have a canning website. If I want cold hard facts, I go to Google.com. I come here for the community.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Time for canning meat in pints is 75 minutes @ 11# pressure, with a dial gauge, or 10# with a weighted gauge. For quarts, time is 90 minutes, same pressure as for pints.

Martin


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## comfortablynumb (Nov 18, 2003)

sure you can simmier al the meat all at once... but how many can you fit in the canner? my big vcanner I can fit 16 pints ( i think). 
and do you have a cauldron big enough to cook a whole deer?

sure you can if you have the stuff...

my way I can do it at my leaisure, take a few arms and legs and such out of the freezzer, cook it can it and I havent got a bunch of huge pots of meat that need canned NOW while they are hot...
you have to pack em while the stuff is boiling hot... well you dont have to actually you can pack the meat raw in the jars with no liquid then pressure can it, but i dont like it that way.. try it you may like it.
I got tired of canning (i ran out of room for the jars actually) so I dug out my 20 rack dryer and made salt jerky. salt jerky is different from jerky, jerky has a shelf life of a few months, salt jerky lasts forever. you have to soak out the salt, much like salt cod fish, but it lasts for years unaffected in the freezer, and if your freezer goes out, itll keep in a cool dark place for a long long time woth no freezer. thasnks to the salt.
I eat the jars, the salt jerk is my backup meat.... its pretty good, just soak the salt off first or youll throw up.
:haha:


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## Guest (Dec 2, 2003)

Thanks everyone for your tips. I hope in the next day or two to give it a try. I might try both cold pack and hot pack just to see which one does taste better. Then next year I'll know which way to can providing we like canned venison. 

I'm going to try canning sausage as well. I read somewhere to fry the sausage patties and then place in jars and pour melted lard in and let harden, and that is all I have to do. No pressure canning or water bath. Whenever I want sausage to eat all I have to do is unscrew the lid and reach in and get however many sausage patties we need, then replace the lid to keep bugs, etc. out. Sounds simple to me.


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## comfortablynumb (Nov 18, 2003)

i dunno bout that sounds dangerous... i'd can them in a bressure canner, just degrease the jar lid seat... thatll make em not seal.


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## LisaBug (Oct 13, 2002)

Please do process all meats in a pressure canner! Here's some links to help out, including canning sausage.

http://www3.extension.umn.edu/distribution/nutrition/components/DJ0516section5.html

MEAT GROUND OR CHOPPED (Beef, Bear, Lamb, Pork, Sausage, Veal, Venison)

Procedure: Choose fresh, chilled meat. With venison, add one part high-quality pork fat to three or four parts venison before grinding. Use freshly made sausage, seasoned with salt and cayenne pepper (sage may cause a bitter off-flavor). Shape chopped meat into patties or balls or cut cased sausage into 3 to 4 inch links. Cook until lightly browned. Ground meat maybe sautÅ½ed without shaping. Remove excess fat. Fill jars with pieces. Add boiling meat broth, tomato juice, or water, leaving 1 inch headspace. Add 1 teaspoon of salt per quart to the jars, if desired. Adjust lids and process.
Recommended Processes

1) Dial-gauge Pressure Canner
Pintsâ75 minutes 11 PSI Quartsâ90 minutes 11 PSI

2) Weighted-gauge Pressure Canner
Pintsâ75 minutes 15 PSI Quartsâ90 minutes 15 PSI

MEAT, STRIPS, CUBES, OR CHUNKS (Bear, Beef, Lamb, Pork, Veal, Venison)

Procedure: Choose quality chilled meat. Remove excess fat. Soak strong-flavored game for 1 hour in brine water containing 1 tablespoon of salt per quart and rinse. Remove large bones. Cut into 1 inch wide strips, cubes or chunks.
Hot Pack: Precook meat until rare by roasting, stewing, or browning in a small amount of fat. Add 1 teaspoon of salt per quart to the jar, if desired. Fill jars with pieces and add boiling broth, meat drippings, water, or tomato juice (especially with wild game) leaving 1 inch headspace.
Raw Pack: Add 1 teaspoon of salt per quart to the jar, if desired. Fill jars with raw meat pieces, leaving 1 inch headspace. Do not add liquid. Adjust lids and process.

Recommended Processes (Hot and Raw Pack)
1) Dial-gauge Pressure Canner
Pintsâ75 minutes 11 PSI Quartsâ90 minutes 11 PSI

2) Weighted-gauge Pressure Canner
Pintsâ75 minutes 15 PSI Quartsâ90 minutes 15 PSI

MEAT OR POULTRY STOCK (BROTH)

Beef: Saw or crack fresh trimmed beef bones to enhance extraction of flavor. Rinse bones and place in a large stockpot or kettle, cover bones with water, add pot cover, and simmer 3 to 4 hours. Remove bones, cool broth, and pick off meat. Skim off fat, add meat removed from bones to broth, and reheat to boiling. Fill jars, leaving 1 inch headspace. Adjust lids and process.

Chicken or turkey: Place large carcass bones in a large stockpot, add enough water to cover bones, cover pot, and simmer 30 to 45 minutes or until meat can be easily stripped from bones. Remove bones and pieces, cool broth, strip meat, discard excess fat, and return meat to broth. Reheat to boiling and fill jars, leaving 1 inch headspace. Adjust lids and process.

Recommended Process (Beef, chicken, or turkey stock)
1) Dial-gauge Pressure Canner
Pintsâ20 minutes 11 PSI Quartsâ25 minutes 11 PSI

2) Weighted-gauge Pressure Canner
Pintsâ20 minutes 15 PSI Quartsâ25 minutes 15 PSI

http://cecommerce.uwex.edu/pdfs/B3345.PDF

http://cecommerce.uwex.edu/pdfs/B3573.PDF

LisaBug


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## Guest (Dec 2, 2003)

Okay here is my source of info for storing meat in lard. Although I am now skeptical about is since it doesn't mention other red meats besides pork.

Butchering, Processing and Preservation of Meat by F.G. Ashbrook.

Preserving Meat in Lard

Good lard has so many uses, it is so digestible, and forms a foundation for so many tasty dishes that it pays to render and store it with extreme care. It is also a satisfactory preservative for meat if only fresh meat is used and if precautions are taken to keep everything clean and sterile.

Cook meat as you would cook it for serving. Place it in a dry, sterilized crock and cover immediately with hot lard. Cover with clean wax paper and place on this a crock cover or plate. Store in a cool, dry place. Do not keep meat packed in lard during hot weather unless the storage place is always cold. 

When meat is removed from the crock, be sure to pack down the remaining meat and cover it again with melted lard so that no air will reach it. It is better to store this meat in small crocks than in large ones, for then it will not be disturbed so often. 

Roat pork, pork chops, pork steaks, and sausage patties can be cooked and preserved in lard.



This is the only meats he list that can be stored in lard and I assume he is only talking about pork sausage patties. So unless I find more info on whether a person can store venison sausage patties this way, then I guess I will try canning sausage instead.


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## LisaBug (Oct 13, 2002)

One of the things you want to look for is the date of publication. Older food storage manuals are often outdated and while cooking from them is often a delight, canning from the old recipes can be dangerous. Now I'm not saying you'll get sick from storing meat in fat but you might. There was talk of botulism at one time because that method of storage provides an airless environment for the botulism to grow. As with any dealings with food it's always better to be safe than sorry, imho. If you really want to give it a try though do it with only a small amount. Sorry, but this makes me cringe, the thought of food poisoning which I've had (and from pork sausage left sitting out too long). 

Good luck whichever route you choose.

Lisa


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## s.wilkes (Dec 12, 2003)

I can all sorts of meat, rabbit, chicken, beef, deer. No matter how tough the meat cuts are after pressuring they become tender. My family love it this way. Lots of ways to use. I have been canning for years and I enjoyed all these comments and even learn several things. shell


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## s.wilkes (Dec 12, 2003)

I was also going to had about the sausage thing. I do deer jerky and all the instruction I have used states that in order to dehydrate jerky you have to freeze the meat for atleast 30 days in order to kill some kind of parasite or something. I have always followed safety precausion when I knew them because it's better to be safe that sick. Pressure canning is the safest of the canning processes according to FDA regs. and recom.


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## Guest (Dec 15, 2003)

Okay here is a website that tells about placing meat inside a crock and covering with melted lard to preserve. www.waltonfeed.com In this website they call it potting meat. A lady at my church was telling me that this also is the way they done it when she was growing up on the farm. So I think I will give it a try, if you quit hearing from me then you may know what happened to me. 

www.waltonfeed.com


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## Guest (Dec 15, 2003)

Okay I'll see if I can get you there a little bit faster. Nostalgia is the person who came up with this site. Thank you very much Nostalgia.

www.waltonfeed.com/old/index.html


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