Toni, water boils at 212º F / 100º C; to kill the Clostridium botulinum, bacteria that makes botulism, and also de-activate any spores and botulism (a toxic product of the bacteria) you need to heat food to 240º. This can only be done under pressure. It can also be killed in an acid environment. If you don't kill them they can grow and produce a pretty poisonous sauce! I always thought tomatoes were acid but not enough. I've seen recipes lowering the acidity by adding lemon juice or citric acid but leaving well enough alone for fresh tasting tomatoes, you need to pressure cook. this bacteria is normally found in soil! read more here: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fs104 http://www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/botulism/cl ... ontrol.asp http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botulism http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/ki ... nt-eng.php After researching botulism, I suddenly found myself more grateful than fearful of my new pressure canner. Mine says it can also be used as a pressure cooker but I can't imagine cooking in a 23 quart pot or cooking in aluminum... but I may need to feed a hoard fast someday, you never know!
Stuffed Cabbage My pantry is getting so filled up these days. It's cool. Today I went against the norm and canned cabbage. It smells so good. I didn't use rice but wild rice which is what I usually use for stuffed peckers and cabbage. It turned out to be 5 pints which is good for a tester batch. They say the cabbage gets strong when canned. Tomorrow I have 40 more bell peckers to dice up and freeze for a friend and 29 apples to quarter and can. Then I should be done for a while. I still have some jalapenos on the vines that I may let turn red and dry for crushed red peckers. Hubby likes that. It's nice to have so much put up, going into the Winter for a change.
I canned stew the other day. I browned the meat in the oven after I diced it and packed the par cooked vegetables into the jars and put the meat on top and pressure cooked it for 1 1/2 hours at 10# pressure.
carolyn keiper, Why did you process it for 1 1/2 hours? I presume you did quarts. I process meats in qt for 90 minutes and pints 75 minutes. I am using a 15 pound weight, would that be why?
Barb, it was quarts and 90 minutes is the same as 1 1/2 hours. My book says 10# pressure or 15# pressure over 1000' elevation. Are you 1000' above sea level? I don't know that I have any recipes that call for 15# pressure other than if it is for elevation adjustment.. I did go look up our elevation and it is 1100', but I don't think I am going to re can my meat. I have always done it at this pressure, but the next time I will do it at 15#. Thanks for the inquiry, Barb, otherwise I would keep doing it at 10#, but I don't think that would really hurt any, we haven't gotten sick from it yet .
Well, Now there goes Barb doing her silly little things again. 90 minutes is 1 1/2 hours..... I am at 1001 feet. It's probably good enough that I can use 10 pound weight but i really like to be safe. I guess if I moved my stove out in the driveway, I would be at 1000 feet then I could use a 10 pounder....... Thank you for teaching me about hours and minutes......
Barb, You are very welcome I was figuring that you weren't thinking of the time in hours as I was...I think it sounds like it takes less time than saying 90 minutes...It just seems to take a long time to get finished with it....And you could do the 10# weight. I haven't harmed us yet . I hope not to ever, either.
You are right, sometimes my brain just won't work even though I think it is doing just fine. Like right now I probably only slept for an hour last night and along will a million little jobs I have done so far I diced over 50 bell peckers. I am beat. So my brain needs to STOP for a few minutes. :idea: I don't know how my grandmothers family all lived so long, all over 80, with the way they canned and preserved food. She was totally self sufficient. Everything has it's place and all was clean. Now I can't seem to get the new canning rules straight nor can I keep up with the house and canning too. Guess if the house gets a little dirty or the canning is not done, just right, we will all survive.
I have canned meat Toni. I hit a good sale on pork and so I canned some pork cubes as my boys love pulled pork sandwiches. It was easy! I too, was scared of pressure canners. When I bought mine, the book suggested that I get acquainted with my cooker by just boiling water and learning how to build pressure and how to keep pressure steady. It was the best thing I did ... I learned how to use it and got over my fear. It really WAS easy! Now I will can anything!
