Want to can some deer meat for a future quick meal? Here's how.
Over the years as a deer hunter, I found an easy way to become popular at holiday parties.
Just bring a tray of deer bologna and jerky, and there’s a good chance you’ll be invited to more events in the future. But while bologna is a good "hors d'oeuvre" for gatherings, it really isn’t a good meal throughout the year.
Venison steak and tenderloin are well-known meal options, but another one that is great for spur-of-the-moment meals is canned venison.
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Having a jar of venison with rice or potatoes or in a sandwich is an easy, healthy and delicious meal option. It’s something that dates back probably more than a half a century.
I was fortunate to get two deer this fall, and one of them has been used for canning. While it may seem complicated, it’s not. In my canning supplies I keep a photocopy of the recipe my mother shared with me from a December 1981 Game News — the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s monthly magazine.
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It’s a simple process if you make the time for it, and there are just few ingredients needed.
To can venison you will need the following:
• Canning jars, rings and lids.
• Venison cut into bite-size portions. (Remember it does shrink a little during the canning process).
• A teaspoon of salt for each jar.
• Piece of bacon to add on top of the meat for additional flavor.
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When you have the ingredients placed in the jar, heat the lids in a pot of water to make the rubber seals become soft. Then make run your finger or paper towel over the rim of each jar to make sure the surface is clean. Next add the lid and ring to the jar and fill your canner and water.
It’s now up to your pressure cooker to do the rest. My 40-year-old recipe says quart jars require 90 minutes at 10 pounds of pressure. Pint jars only need 75 minutes. Check the suggested settings on the chart that's included with your pressure canner for comparison.
Penn State Cooperative Extension doesn’t recommend using the boiling water bath canning option instead of pressure canners because it may not provide enough heat to destroy bacterial spores that can cause illness. Visit https://extension.psu.edu/canning-and-freezing-venison to learn more about safely storing and freezing venison.
When you remove the jars from the water, it’s fun to hear the jars seal with a popping noise as they cool on your counter space.
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The canning process makes deer meat extremely tender. The extended heat and or pressure breaks down a lot of the wild game making it an ideal quick meal.
Instead of having to wait for a pack of steak to thaw for supper, canned venison just needs to be heated up with your favorite side dish. It’s a good way to remember your successful hunting season throughout the year.
If you have a great recipe for wild game you’d like to share, please email me at bwhipkey@gannett.com and I’ll work on a recipe roundup for a future feature.
Brian Whipkey is the outdoor columnist for USA Today Network sites in Pennsylvania. Contact him at bwhipkey@gannett.com and sign up for our weekly Outdoors Newsletter email on your website's homepage under your login name.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Venison is great for future quick meals. Here's how to can it.
