Canning Canning question for the gang.....(need advice).....

tiredude

tiredude

Veteran Member
It has been years since I canned anything. Last week i started again. 6 quarts beef and 3 pork. I have a small mirro (8 QT) canner that does 3 quarts per load. I did everything correct. 90 minute raw pack at 10#. Seals are good, etc. but with this canner there is no pressure gauge, just the jiggle thing. The food would cook and pressure would build then it got to a certain point the pressure would blow and go back to what I am assuming is the ten pound pressure the weight was set for.

There was not a lot of 'jiggling' going on. I think I am good to go. Everything sealed and looks like it always does. I know they say to restart the process if your pressure goes below the desired setting.. I dont think this happened but cannot be sure. I dont want to poison anyone. Is there any indicators I should look for besides just blindy warming it up and eating it?

Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks. Tiredude

(Thanks Packy)
 
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summerthyme

Administrator
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Oh, boy... is your "canner" actually sold as a "canner" and not a pressure cooker?

The rule of thumb with the rattle gauges is it should rattle *at least* once a minute. Anything less, and it's almost certain your pressure has dropped below the required 10#.

At the least, make sure you heat the stuff thoroughly and *boil it for 10 minutes*, before tasting. If it foams or smells "off", get rid of it where animals can't find it.

Carefully prepared meat is probably much less likely to have botulism issues than many low acid veggies, due to the proximity to soil (where botulism spores are found) when growing. But it's still something you don't ever want to deal with!

Summerthyme
 
tiredude

tiredude

Veteran Member
summerthyme said:
Oh, boy... is your "canner" actually sold as a "canner" and not a pressure cooker?

The rule of thumb with the rattle gauges is it should rattle *at least* once a minute. Anything less, and it's almost certain your pressure has dropped below the required 10#.

At the least, make sure you heat the stuff thoroughly and *boil it for 10 minutes*, before tasting. If it foams or smells "off", get rid of it where animals can't find it.

Carefully prepared meat is probably much less likely to have botulism issues than many low acid veggies, due to the proximity to soil (where botulism spores are found) when growing. But it's still something you don't ever want to deal with!

Summerthyme
Click to expand...
Thanks Summerthyme. It is a pressure cooker without a physical gauge.... just the jiggle thing.
 
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summerthyme

Administrator
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tiredude said:
Thanks Summerthyme. It is a pressure cooker without a physical gauge.... just the jiggle thing.
Click to expand...
Well, most pressure cancers only have the jiggle gauge these days... one reason I love my All Americans is because they have both the jiggle weight and a dial gauge... leaves the guesswork out!

But my concern is that pressure cookers tend to be lighter weight, and aren't tested for maintaining safe pressure for canning. It MAY be more of a bureaucratic problem than actual, physical insufficiency to safely can in them, but USDA says you should use an approved "canner".

If you want to do pressure canning, I'd suggest watching various thrift stores or Facebook marketplace for a used canner in good shape.

Summerthyme
 
kyrsyan

kyrsyan

Has No Life - Lives on TB
My understanding is that there is a minimum that it must hold to be used for canning. IIRC, it's 4 quarts but you'll want to check the USDA data. I looked it up a couple of years ago when a cousin wanted to get the smallest size she could.
 
kyrsyan

kyrsyan

Has No Life - Lives on TB
And boil for 15 minutes before eating. I don't have the brain power to explain today but that's the old guideline that has disappeared from the manuals.

The stuff that creates the toxin in an anaerobic environment is hard as heck to kill. Hence pressure canning and canning times, etc. And the toxin it makes in that environment is deadly. But the toxin is destroyed by boiling (full rolling boil) for 15 minutes. Just make sure it doesn't touch your skin, or cooking utensils, or pretty much anything until after that boiling. Which is also why pressure canning and etc.

You can also research that and make your own judgements.
 
phloydius

phloydius

Veteran Member
tiredude said:
There was not a lot of 'jiggling' going on.
Click to expand...

I am beyond careful, so for mine, I make it dance.

This 7 minute video shows the jiggling for the type I have at about the 5 minute mark.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WP_HHkOibQ4



tiredude said:
I dont want to poison anyone. Is there any indicators I should look for besides just blindy warming it up and eating it?
Click to expand...

There are the normal spoiled food indicators. However, the truly scary one (botulism) is odorless & has no indicators (in an of itself). Post #7 talks about dealing with that. If you ever even slightly suspect canning issues -- I'd never "warm it up" and try it. The effects of botulism do not occur right away, and although it can be just hours, it typically can be days.
 
phloydius

phloydius

Veteran Member
When I googled the name you mentioned, this is what came up:
1699914143132.png

1699914253842.png

This one is listed as a pressure cooker. Is this what you have, or something else?




ETA: I should have read responses closer before responding. Leaving it here in case it is still helpful.
 
tiredude

tiredude

Veteran Member
phloydius said:
Depending on how heat resistant the handles are, it might be worth saving for using to cook with on some propane / white gas outdoor stoves (like a camping stove). Might come in useful for for power outages. would probably make a great soup and/or bean pot.
Click to expand...
Oh….. I will keep the cooker…..it’s good for ham hocks….. I will toss the food I tried to can…..I hate the waste but lesson learned

Thanks to you all
 
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WalknTrot

Veteran Member
I love my old Mirro canner, but it is a canner. Only has a rocker weight "gauge", but it's what I grew up with, and when my mom's old one's lid finally warped out past use, went on ebay and found another of the exact same vintage.

A rocker weight doesn't ever have to be tested, and I figure if it's set so it "spits" about 3-4 times/minute I'm right in the zone. The fine tuning is much easier to achieve on a gas stovetop BTW. Then while still listening for that timing, can go about the house doing something else for the rest of the cycle.
 
tiredude

tiredude

Veteran Member
summerthyme said:
Well, most pressure cancers only have the jiggle gauge these days... one reason I love my All Americans is because they have both the jiggle weight and a dial gauge... leaves the guesswork out!

But my concern is that pressure cookers tend to be lighter weight, and aren't tested for maintaining safe pressure for canning. It MAY be more of a bureaucratic problem than actual, physical insufficiency to safely can in them, but USDA says you should use an approved "canner".

If you want to do pressure canning, I'd suggest watching various thrift stores or Facebook marketplace for a used canner in good shape.

Summerthyme
Click to expand...
Okay.....another question. If I am looking for a canner...... I have come across some that say 'canner/cooker'. Lots are only 'cookers'. Should I be looking for only canners? Or is that the same as a cooker/canner (they throw the cooker part in for free...marketing)

have you ever heard of the brand 'Barton'? They are a cheap solution for the time being till I get my feet wet. It is a cheap product so I wont expect much. It gets the job done now. I will buy quality later while I look out for opportunities.
The barton one is sold thru walmart for like 70 bucks for the same size as my 'cooker'.....
 
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summerthyme

Administrator
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tiredude said:
Okay.....another question. If I am looking for a canner...... I have come across some that say 'canner/cooker'. Lots are only 'cookers'. Should I be looking for only canners? Or is that the same as a cooker/canner (they throw the cooker part in for free...marketing)

have you ever heard of the brand 'Barton'? They are a cheap solution for the time being till I get my feet wet. It is a cheap product so I wont expect much. It gets the job done now. I will buy quality later while I look out for opportunities.
The barton one is sold thru walmart for like 70 bucks for the same size as my 'cooker'.....
Click to expand...
Anything that says "canner" should be fine. Any pressure canner can be used for cooking as well, but not the reverse.

I haven't heard of the brand, but that's not surprising. Lots of off/new brands out there. Go for it!

Summerthyme
 
ginnie6

ginnie6

Veteran Member
I changed my old canner over to just the rocker gauge as I'm sure that's what it originally came with. I learned that it needs to look like a Hulu dancers hips...back and forth nice and steady.
 
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summerthyme

Administrator
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ginnie6 said:
I changed my old canner over to just the rocker gauge as I'm sure that's what it originally came with. I learned that it needs to look like a Hulu dancers hips...back and forth nice and steady.
Click to expand...
Because my All American canners have both the rocker gauge and the dial gauge, it gave me an excellent way to learn what the pressure was, depending on the behavior of the rocker. Just because it stops rocking for a few seconds *doesn't * mean the pressure has dropped below the safe range. And if the stove is set too hot, it still takes some serious extra heat before it starts to climb above where you want it.

However, if it is streaming a steady column of hissing steam, it's probably above 12# psi... and I've seen it get up to 15# psi (with the rocker gauge set on 10#).

The old books say you want it rattling 1-3 times per minute, but steady, gentle rattle works just fine.

Summerthyme
 
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