Have you ever canned salmon? I have been reading up on it and most say you need a pressure cooker. Have you done without? Basically just pack into jars an inch from the top and sprinkle with 1/2 tsp of salt and 1/2 vinegar to soften the bones if you like? Not sure if it effects the taste? Cook for 3 hours?
I think I want to try. Will fillet and maybe skin.
I was thinking peppercorn, lemon peel, onion slice, garlic,ginger. A fresh herb mabey bay,rosemary,oregano or basil leaf? One or a few in the jar? Touch of soysauce..? Dash of old bay...
Didnt think I would need a pressure cooker. Any thoughts?
Welcome to canning!
If you have never done any canning, I highly suggest before starting take the time and read about what you should and should not do. A good reference is the ‘USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning,’ 2009 revision, which I still personally use and check. It can be downloaded for free here:
http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/publications_usda.html
NEVER-NEVER-NEVER use any recipe from anyone, including myself, or any internet website without checking making sure it is a proven recipe and really don’t care how many years someone has been using it. Just pretend you and your FAMILY life depends on it. It actually could, as if you are wrong someone can end up seriously ill and/or actually could DIE! It appears some might want to read the
‘Home Canning Guide 1 Principles of Home Canning’ on the above website. If you check the above, you may find for most fish with a “weighted” pressure canner, up to 1,000 feet, you need a minimum of 10 PSIG. Again, that is a weighted pressure canner up to 1,000 feet. Low-acid foods are not acidic enough to prevent the growth of the bacteria. Acid foods contain enough acid to block the growth, or destroy them more rapidly when heated. ALL low-acid foods should be pressure canned. Whether pressure canned or even in boiling-water it is to control botulinum bacteria and depends on the acidity of the food. The processing times are also to ensure you are killing the heat-resistant microorganisms. NEVER-NEVER-NEVER change any recipe, UNLESS you know exactly how adding and changing the ingredients changes the pH, which also changes the heat and processing requirements.
Lookie here, what the
‘Home Canning Guide 1 Principles of Home Canning’ on the above website actually states:
“Caution: All home-canned foods should be canned according to the procedures in this Guide. Low-acid and tomato foods not canned according to the recommendations in this publication or according to other USDA-endorsed recommendations present a risk of botulism. If it is possible that any deviation from the USDA-endorsed methods occurred, to prevent the risk of botulism, low-acid and tomato foods…”
“Proper canning practices include:
• carefully selecting and washing fresh food,
• peeling some fresh foods,
• hot packing many foods,
• adding acids (lemon juice or vinegar) to some foods,
• using acceptable jars and self-sealing lids,
• processing jars in a boiling-water or pressure canner for the correct period of time.
Fish being a low-acid food and you really do need to use the pressure canning method and can add any of those herbs and/or spices you want for flavoring. Remembering it's your taste you want to satisfy and you are the one eating it and – not me! If you add a whole lot of vinegar to the point it becomes "pickling" it still needs to preserved by using the “boiling-water” method. You don’t need to add any salt or vinegar for either method, except for flavoring. It is very uncommon and really no need to add vinegar, salt, or anything else when you use the pressure canning method. It is all about heat and processing time to kill that bacterium. When adding enough vinegar, you change the pH and don’t need the heat that builds up while pressure canning. e.g. canning beets (low-acid) you need to use the pressure canning method. When pickling beets by adding that 4 cups of vinegar, the boiling-water method can be used reducing the heat required.. Vinegar and/or salt is not needed except for flavoring when pressure canning.
I agree, the All American Pressure Canner is the way to go and mine is the Model 921 and HIGHLY recommend any of their pressure canners. Wouldn’t even think about putting that heaving thing on my glass stovetop. I grew up canning which is why I spent the money for this very good pressure canner. I remember quite well when a cheap pressure canner blew a gasket, then blew the lid off. Luckily the lid hit the ceiling and lid din’t hit anyone; however, my mother setting across the room received 2[SUP]nd [/SUP]degree burns from the hot liquid that bounced off the ceiling. Not a pretty site, so do suggest going ahead and biting the bullet to buy a good one. When you die it will still be around for your kids to use. STAY COMPLETELY AWAY FROM CHEAP PRESSURE CANNERS!
I quit canning in the kitchen years ago and do all my canning in the garage, right at the edge of my overhead door where there is plenty of ventilation, using a portable outdoor propane cooker, which works way better than any kitchen range. Plus, it doesn’t heat the house or if that lid blows off, the lid and all contents will go straight up in the air
Under processing times and you stand a very good chance of not killing all the bacteria. Over processing you simply will ruin both the texture and flavor. For all you canning salmon, I certainly would be using: Raw Pack Pints, 100 minutes, weighted-gage pressure canner, at 10 PSI, from 0-1,000 feet and Raw Pack Quarts, 160 minutes, weighted-gage pressure canner, at 10 PSI, from 0-1,000 feet. Concerning the processing QUARTS of salmon, I might suggest reading the above reference and point out the following:
“Processing Change for Quart Jars: The directions for operating the pressure canner during processing of quart jars are different from those for processing pint jars, so please read the following carefully. It is critical to product safety that the processing directions are followed exactly. When you are ready to process your jars of fish, add 3 quarts of water to the pressure canner. Put the rack in the bottom of canner and place closed jars on the rack. Fasten the canner cover securely, but do not close the lid vent. Heat the canner on high for 20 minutes. If steam comes through the open vent in a steady stream at the end of 20 minutes, allow it to escape for an additional 10 minutes. If steam does not come through the open vent in a steady stream at the end of 20 minutes, keep heating the canner until it does. Then allow the steam to escape for an additional 10 minutes to vent the canner. This step removes air from inside the canner so the temperature is the same throughout the canner.
The total time it takes to heat and vent the canner should never be less than 30 minutes. The total time may be more than 30 minutes if you have tightly packed jars, cold fish, or larger sized canners. For safety’s sake, you must have a complete, uninterrupted 160 minutes (2 hours and 40 minutes) at a minimum pressure required for your altitude. Write down the time at the beginning of the process and the time when the process will be finished.
