# Need some canning advice please



## showmegal (Sep 14, 2011)

So I read a recipe for canning poor mans steak and it sounded a lot like my salisbury steaks. They use crackers, I use stuffing. So, is it safe to can the crackers/stuffing? One place I read yes, one says no. I also use eggs to hold it together. Will that be ok to can? I don't want to do anything stupid and make my family sick!


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## partdeux (Aug 3, 2011)

Anything in the ball book? Are you using any meat? If so, just can it the same length required for meats.


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## showmegal (Sep 14, 2011)

I don't have a ball book. Yes, it will have meat and using a pressure canner.


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## Possumfam (Apr 19, 2011)

I think partdeux is right. Just can for the same length as meat. A youtuber pressure cans meatloaf, so, I think you'd be okay.


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## showmegal (Sep 14, 2011)

Thank you both very much!!


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## goshengirl (Dec 18, 2010)

Always go with the longest time requirement - so, in this case, go with the time required for your meat.

As for the crackers/stuffing - it's safe, it just might not be very yummy. Stuff like that (and rice, and pasta) can get pretty mushy. But I don't know how much your recipe calls for. You can always try varying amounts, and see if that makes a difference.

I don't know about the egg.


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## showmegal (Sep 14, 2011)

Well, I normally make them with 2-3lbs of hamburger to 1 box of stuffing and add egg to bind. Then I bake them and then pour gravy over them. In this case I plan to stuff them in the jars after they are cooked and cover them with gravy and can them.


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## partdeux (Aug 3, 2011)

Meats get 75 min for pints and 90 min for qts


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## showmegal (Sep 14, 2011)

Well, had to shift gears because stupid me didn't check that I had wide mouth jars. So, I just made beef stroganoff.


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## JustCliff (May 21, 2011)

I can meatloaf and meatballs. Both have eggs and bread crumbs. I still have 1 meatloaf left in a wide mouth 1/2 pint. It is 2 years old. i had one not long ago and it was still pretty good. I am not a meatloaf fan but canning it seems to make it taste better.


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## partdeux (Aug 3, 2011)

meatloaf? you just mix it up and can it? what do you do to eat it later?


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## showmegal (Sep 14, 2011)

I was wondering that myself. Happen to have the recipes for those?


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## JustCliff (May 21, 2011)

Yup. Meatloaf. 
Mix it up,put it in thejar and pressure can it for 60 min. To eat it you stick it in the microwave for a few minutes then dump it on the plate. If I didn't have a microwave of electricity,I would put the jar in a pan of water and heat it for a while. You would have to experiment to see how long till its all warm. I guess you could fry it up in a pan if you cut it into little round patties.
It is usually enough for two people with your sides.


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## JustCliff (May 21, 2011)

I just make your regular meatloaf recipe. The meat balls are a my wifes, she has been doing them so long that she does not have a recipe. We really don't cook with recipes, we just kind of do it.


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## showmegal (Sep 14, 2011)

Thanks! So how are you canning the meatballs. Do you fry them first then put them in the jar? Do you add liquid to the jar?


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## goshengirl (Dec 18, 2010)

Yes! do tell! 

And the meatloaf, are you adding any water/broth to that? You don't pre-cook any?


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## Tank_Girl (Dec 26, 2011)

I like this web site for canning and it does seem to be a one stop shop that includes recipes.

Canning Meat, Venison, Beef, Pork, Elk, Chicken and Fish.


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## JustCliff (May 21, 2011)

meatballs: Yes they are fried then simmered in a tomatoe based sauce., kind of like a pasta sauce. It is one this that you do not let get too hot. Use 10lbs and dont let it go over. The tomato can scorch in the jar.

The mealoaf: I dont add anything. Just make it and put it in the jar. No precook, no water. It more or less bakes inside the jar. Do make sure you get any air out, so there are no pockets below the surface of the meat. Clean the rim of the jar really well after stuffing the jar, you don't want a failure from grease/oil on the rim. Use a medium to low fat meat. You don't want too much grease in the jar. It wont kill you but, you don't have to drain it much either. 


Sorry about being a bit vague. No one has ever really asked too much about it before. Usually people just ask "You can meatloaf?" "That's weird, I have never seen canned meat" Then I remind them about Spam, tuna and the like. 
Next time your canning something, just drop one or two in with one of your loads of pints. That way you dont have a bunch invested if you don't like it and have to modify it somehow. Like I said, meatloaf is not my favorite thing to eat but this stuff is pretty good. My wife will eat it but she likes heres make with oatmeal instead of crackers. 
Another thought on it. If I had nothing to eat, it would be like eating a fine cut of steak.


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## showmegal (Sep 14, 2011)

I will be trying the meatloaf for sure. It sounds so easy! Thanks for the help!!


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## partdeux (Aug 3, 2011)

Just a quick thought, 60 minutes is not long enough for meats... I would go 75 minutes for pints.


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## showmegal (Sep 14, 2011)

I planned on doing quarts for 90 mins:2thumb:


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## goshengirl (Dec 18, 2010)

JustCliff, don't apologize. Thanks for letting us pick your brain.  
I canned some meatballs a while back - wanted to let them hang in storage a couple months and then try them. Like you, I figure if we're hungry this stuff is going to taste mighty good - even if the kids are turning their noses up at it now. 
And I never thought of meatloaf before - like you said, if we're hungry.... And I can see slicing it up to make hamburgers, and that always goes over well with the kids. We make our burgers with bacon bits - maybe I'll try canning meatloaf with bacon bits. :2thumb:


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## kappydell (Nov 27, 2011)

From the Kerr Canning Co canning book: (for those who want recipes)

Canned Meatloaf
2 lbs ground meat (beef, venison)
1 cup cracker crumbs
1/2 cup sweet milk
2 TB chopped onions
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp sage
1/2 tsp celery salt
Combine, mix very, very well. Pack loosely into jars to 1 inch of the top. Wipe rims carefully and put on tops. Pressure can 75 minutes in pints or 90 minutes in quarts using 10 lbs pressure. I've made this and liked it.

Meatballs in sauce
3 pounds ground round steak
1 cup cold water
3/4 cup ground salt pork
1 1/2 cups oatmeal
3 eggs, beaten
2 teaspoons salt
2 TB minced onions
2 quarts tomato juice
1/4 tsp pepper
1 TB butter
1/2 tsp salt
Mix everything except tomato juice, pepper, butter and 1/2 tsp of the salt.
Make into egg-size balls. Combine tomato juice, butter, pepper and salt together in a large pot. Drop in meat balls and let come to a good boil, to heat them through thoroughly. Pack loosely in jars to 1 inch of top. Pour sauce over to fill jar 2/3rds full. 
Process 75 min for pints, 90 min for quarts at 10 lb pressure. My husband ate these as soon as he found the cans and said they were good.


Just remember, anything you can can poison you if you are sloppy, slovenly, or unsanitary in putting it up, so you do can at your own risk. However, folks have been canning for years, so it is not as dangerous as it is made out to be in todays lawsuit-prone society, in my OPINION.


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## Clarice (Aug 19, 2010)

Over this past weekend we got 7qts if chicken canned along with 12qts of chicken broth, 7qts of dog food, 12qts of vegie soup. Whew!


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