Freezer tetris.
It’s a thing, y’all.
We have two full-size freezers in the barn, as well as an additional fridge/freezer in the shop. (And a fridge/freezer in the house, of course). And we STILL run out of room…
There’s a certain element of stress that enters in every time the butcher calls to say the latest animal is ready to be picked up… It’s a balancing act of rearranging, organizing, and even giving meat away sometimes.
Don’t worry, I’m absolutely not complaining– this is a good problem to have. But it’s time to start canning meat more frequently to free up some space in the ol’ freezers– especially considering we have 30 meat birds that’ll need to be processed in March. Gulp.
Thankfully, not only is home-canned beef stew a great way to free up some freeze space, it also makes a quick, convenient supper when you don’t have time to cook, and pizza delivery is out of the question. (Welcome to my life.)
The only kicker to this recipe is you MUST use a pressure canner— a water bath canner is NOT safe for this recipe, since we’re preserving low-acid foods. Thankfully, pressure canners aren’t as scary as they seem, and you can get my full pressure canner tutorial here.
Raw Pack vs. Hot Pack
I ran into some unanswered questions when I set out to write this post.. The Ball Blue Book’s only recipe for beef stew calls for you to put all the ingredients in a big pot and simmer it before you place it in jars (aka hot-packing).
However, I found many recipes online saying you can safely raw-pack beef and veggies for stew (aka put the browned meat and raw veggies right into the jar and covering with boiling water). To be honest, the raw-packing method appeals to me much more than the hot-packing method does, since it’s faster and will produce slightly less-mushy veggies.
That being said, I couldn’t find any “official” canning authorities who gave recommendations for raw packing homemade beef stew. I even contacted my county extension agent, and she didn’t know either. Soooooo… I’m going to have to recommend you follow the “official” rules and hot pack your stew. (Although I may or may not have raw-packed mine…. ahem.)
How to Can Beef Stew
For Quart Jar You Will Need:
- 1 1/4 teaspoon sea salt (I use Redmond Salt.)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup beef stew meat, cut into 1″ cubes
- 1 cup potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
- 1/2 cup carrots, cut into chunks
- 1/2 cup onions, diced
*I won’t go into the details of pressure canning in this post. However, if you are new to the process, check out my pressure canning tutorial before you proceed.
**IF I was telling you how to raw pack this recipe, I would say to put the herbs, salt, pepper, and garlic in the bottoms of clean mason jars, then add the browned stew meat, the potatoes, the carrots, and the onions before filling the jar with boiling water. But since I can’t recommend raw packing officially, I’ll proceed with hot packing recommendations below…. Ahem.
Add 1 tablespoon of lard, bacon fat, or coconut oil to a large dutch oven or stew pot and brown the meat. It doesn’t need to be perfectly cooked through, just browned on the outside.
Add the rest of the ingredients to the large dutch oven, and cover with water. Bring the stew to a boil, then ladle into hot, clean, quart-sized jars. Leave 1″ headspace.
Clean the rims of the jars, adjust the two-piece lids, and process in a pressure canner at 10lbs of pressure for 90 minutes. (Or if you live at altitude, remember to adjust to 15lbs of pressure accordingly.)
To serve: Reheat your beef stew in a saucepan on the stove for 10 minutes before serving. Definitely taste before serving and add more salt or seasonings if needed.
Try my favorite lids for canning, learn more about FOR JARS lids here: http://theprairiehomestead.com/forjars (use code PURPOSE10 for 10% off)
Home Canned Beef Stew Notes
- You can also use pint jars for this recipe– just reduce the processing time to 70 minutes.
- If the meat you are using is very fatty, it’s wise to drain the fat from the dutch oven after browning but before you add the rest of the ingredients for simmering. Otherwise, the excess fat can bubble up around the rim of the jar during processing time and will cause your lids not to seal.
- It is NOT advised to add any thickeners to home-canned stew before you can it. So if you’d like to add flour or cornstarch to this recipe to make it thicker, you’ll need to add it after you open the jar for reheating.
- If you don’t have stew meat, you can also cut up various roasts you may have hanging out in the freezer.
- Home-canned foods taste the best if you eat them within a year of preserving. However, they will last on the shelf much longer than that, although the nutrition will being to decrease over time.
- Feel free to adjust the herbs and seasonings in this recipe to fit your tastes. You can also easily add more salt, etc, when you are heating up the canned soup for serving.
HI! great article. I have never canned but I want to start. So my question is, in order to avoid overly cooked mushy veggies. Could one do everything , except add the veggies about 15 minutes before the stew is done, so they are only partially cooked and then canned that…they can finish cooking in the steamer and when they get reheated to eat..maybe only 5 minutes before your done with the stew…15 minutes might be too long and still end up with mushy…although i hate tough potato’s
that have been stewed or in soap..thanks!
If you are hot packing stew for canning, you do not cook it. You brown the beef, add the veggies and just heat it to boiling before you place it in the jar. As I recall, when my mother cold packed stew she placed the salt in the jar, added the beef then the veggies, and then added boiling water to the jar. I think she added a couple or three minutes to the processing time when she cold packed.
Can all vegetables be canned in a Water bath for 3 hrs. My mother in law use to can everything by water bath.,or cold pack
No. Most vegetables will require pressure canning due to the low-acid nature of vegetables. Before you take on canning, please learn how to do it properly. The USDA website has an extensive guide on how to do it safely. Please don’t risk your life of that of your family by improperly canning your goods.
https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/publications_usda.html
Low acid vegetables must be pressure canned. Stick by safe canning methods.
No. Vegetables will require pressure canning due to the non-acidic nature of vegetables. If you are unfamiliar with canning procedures, please learn how to do it safely. Don’t risk your health or that of your family. The USDA has an extensive guide on canning safety. https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/publications_usda.html
Could I can a Brunswick stew?
How long?
I’m new to this, too, but as far as I have seen, it’s 90 minutes for a quart and 75 minutes for a pint.
Great instructions! We have freezer space issues, too, so we just can everything. We can chicken/chicken breasts, ham, ground beef, pinto beans, french onion soup, milk that is about to expire- everything! We always have ready-to-eat meals on hand and don’t have to worry about the freezers when the electricity goes out.
How do you can milk and is it shelf stable?
Do not can milk or any recipes with a milk base (clam chowder, etc.).
No– it is not recommended to can dairy products.
You can’t can milk for safety reasons, but you can try to dehydrate it (aka make powdered milk). That can be reconstituted when you’re ready to use it. It won’t taste as good as fresh milk, but if you’re worried about power outages, it might be something worth trying.
how do you make powdered milk ? I have always wanted to try this.
Not enough Feeezer space for all the food!! First world problems! LOL!!
I busted the back out of one of our upright deep freezers last fall trying to cram 3 pigs in there. Good times!!
Candi
Yes indeed! Good problems to have!
I see you are using a traditional pressure cooker. Is the new electric pressure cookers not acceptable for canning meat?
She’s using a pressure canner, not a pressure cooker. Different beasts altogether.
Can I add green beans to this recipe?
Absolutely – just not too much.
On the stew , you said just open and eat. I was taught to always boil home caned items 10 or 20 minutes. Like green beans and such. Is this true or not?
As far as I know, you cannot can in the electric pressure cookers. I know mine is too small, anyway
What I found out about the new “Insta pots”Or electric pressure cooker’s… Is you are unable to hold X amount of pounds of pressure for X amount of time for it to be safe. You can cook your food such as bean soup and then pressure Can it…they are not safe to actually do the Canning… cheers
There is an electric pressure cooker/ canner that is safe and approved for canning – including canning meat.
CAREY DPC-9SS Smart Pressure Canner & Cooker
It is only capable of canning 4 quarts at one time, and I think those have to be wide mouth quarts due to the small mouth being a bit taller.
You can can with an electric pressure CANNER not cooker. I can with the Presto electric pressure CANNER and have been very pleased as I have a glass top stove that cannot use a regular pressure canner.
Correct, Jennifer…the electric ones are not safe for canning. Details about this at National Center for Home Food Preservation website. I hear they are great for meals tho!!
Check out the CAREY DPC-9SS Smart Pressure Canner & Cooker – it is available at Amazon. Since their are only two of us in the family now, I think I will get myself one for Christmas this year. I can then cook up a big pot of whatever (ham and beans, meat for carnitas, etc) so I can plan extra to can. The info I have read says that the Carey canner is safe to use to can any recipes that are in the Ball canning book. Do keep in mind that the normal electric cookers are just that – cookers only, and are not safe for canning.
I have had a Carey electric canner for almost a year now and I love it. It does only 4 quarts at a time, but you can set it and forget it. I can get four quarts ready to go after dinner and start the unit before I go to bed. In the morning I take the jars out of the canner. Because of this, I have canned more this year than any previous year and my 21 quart All American Canner has not gotten used much at all. By the way, I think they changed the design with the newer units, I use regular mouth jars all the time.
I plan on making some beef stew with some leftover beef brisket, and the Carey is great for using up stuff that might otherwise be wasted.
We culled our stewing hens back in the fall and froze them so over this past weekend I needed freezer space , I cooked and canned the stock from the chicken so we almost have a meal in the jar!. 🙂 Actually I take chicken or beef broth to work with me to have for lunch. Especially around flu season.
Great post, Thanks
Would you use half the quantity of beef, seasonings and vegetables for a pint jar?
You can either make the recipe as it is and you’ll just make extra pint jars or you can half the recipe.
Lol I love you. The “**Ahem” I really did laugh out loud. if you knew me your know that is unfortunately rare, I’m very stoic. I’ve been wanting to can me up some stew for a while, I’d better dust of my poor unused canner. (stupid moves, had to give up tons of canned goods, now I’m… scared to do all that work just to loose it again)
Glad I could make you laugh, Marie 😉
Is there a reason people don’t use broth instead of boiling water? Just seems it would be more flavorful??
You are correct. I always use broth. Chicken broth works in everything if you don’t have homemade beef or ham broth (depends what you are making).
Hi Jill. Love your site, been following for some time now. You mentioned having a hard time finding a reliable resource for cold pack vs hot pack methods, so I thought I’d offer you mine. My favorite go-to resource for canning is Jackie Clay. She has an “Ask Jackie” column in Backwoods Home Magazine and has published many books. She ‘hot packs’ her stew – but says “don’t cook”. She brings the ingredients just to a boil then immediately ladles into hot jars. Here’s a link for her step by step instructions for canning beef stew: http://www.backwoodshome.com/blogs/JackieClay/2010/12/ . It’s about 3/4 of the way down the page, or just do a ctrl+f to find ‘stew’. This isn’t an affiliate link; just an avid reader/subscriber of the magazine with the utmost respect for Mrs. Clay and her experience and knowledge.
Awesome! Thanks Sherrie!
This recipe sounds delicious. I’d change two things; use red potatoes and leave the peels on (type of potatoes wasn’t specified), and use beef broth instead of water. Never miss a chance to add more flavor.
I do something similar with chicken soup to use old hens at the end of their laying usefulness.
It is against all food safety guideline to leave peels on any root vegetables as it increases the risk for botulism.
90 minutes at 240 degrees F is going to take care of any botulism.
It is definitely SAFER to skin, but as long as you process properly (90 minutes at the right pressure the whole time, don’t start timing before up to full pressure.) there really is no risk.
The guidelines pack in a lot of room for people to make mistakes and still stay safe. Which is why the official guidelines don’t let you cold pack, but it is safe to do so… IF you follow proper germ warfare rules. 🙂
Hi Jill, I so enjoy reading your articles. I hope my note will help someone. Years ago, actually back in the 60,s, I found my mom’s old Burpee pressure canner out by the side of the road for pick up. I was so dismayed as I remembered all those cold winter mornings when we started the wood stove and could smell the delicious aromas of our canned goods drifting through the house. Our appetites increased with each step! The cinnamon, rosemary, apples, pears and so much more.
I collected all my moms old canning things, contacted Burpee and never looked back. I always thought my sons, like my siblings, were fortunate to eat so well. My trick was to gather everything I wanted to can together, look up all the cooking times and needs and make a plan. Whatever needed to be cooked the longest went into the pot first. Somethings had short cooking times and were added to the canning jars raw and so it went. We had venison stew, oxtail soup and more by using this method. We my be dying of natural causes, however; none of us died of food poisoning and we are still canning. Thanks for all your articles.
Thanks for sharing your experience Teresa! 🙂
I LOVE to can up thing by the jar rather that the recipe or lot of something… Recently made many quarts of beef barley soup, many quarts of white beans with ham, quarts of chicken soup…And, yes, I cold pack everything. In fact, the stock is done up ahead, the veggies prepped/chopped ahead…Everything ready to go for the next day-CANNING DAY. For soups, pour measured ingredients into a bowl to mix up, then funnel into quart jars, add spices and broth, cap, go on to the next one…Then process. Several people working assembly line fashion can accomplish a lot. I’ve had three pressure canners going at once on occasion! Great fun. Great convenience when done!
I believe pints are meant to be canned for 75 minutes, not 70 as stated in your article. We only do pints, for easy single serve options. 😉
You are correct.
Great post! I really need to do this. I love how you say officially what do even though most of us will raw pack it and be fine. Better safe than sorry. Thanks for the recipe!
This is from Montana State University: It seems that to hot or cold pack has nothing to do with food safety:
Style of pack: Many fresh foods contain 10-30 percent air. Hot-packed foods will remove more air from the foods than raw packing, prevent floating of food, and yield a greater quantity product.
Raw-packing is the practice of filling jars with freshly prepared, but unheated foods. Raw-packing works best for vegetables processed in a pressure canner.
Hot-packing is the practice of heating freshly prepared food to boiling, simmering it 2 to 5 minutes, and promptly filling jars with boiled food.
Jill not sure if you ever tried this, but we can venison every year and I put 1 teaspoon of beef bouillon base in each quart jar before we pressure can it. Gives the meat a hearty beef flavor and makes stew taste wonderful.
Here is the recipe if anyone wants to give it a try:
http://oursimplehomestead.com/how-to-can-venison-tender-and-tasty/
I found your blog after searching how to process tallow. I feel it is important to honor life by using as much of an animal as possible. Once I found your blog, I took a tour.
Many years ago, I lived on an organic “Gentleman’s farm” (the farm had been a weekend getaway for a former New York Supreme Court Judg. His widow lived alone there and the farm was run by my father in law). We had chickens, goats and cows, hay fields and an organic vegetable garden. I learned how to make butter, process meat, and canning. Much of that information is so rusty now, I have been wanting to get back into *safe canning and I am thrilled to see you have such wonderful and clear instructions.
Oh I agree, freezer tetris is FOR sure a real thing lol! Great recipe 🙂
I made a stew with a thickener. (Flour) and because I made too much I’d like to can it since potatoes freeze terribly.
Why can’t I can it?
I totally want to try this! Because we have the same freezer issues, and because opening a canned jar of soup is so much faster than thawing a frozen jar of soup. Thanks for the unofficial raw pack tips… 😉
Hi Jill!
I enjoy canning, and have had to can to conserve limited freezer space, too. LOL. Do you happen to have any good recipes for beef liver? I have some in the freezer that I would love to can to make room for a half a pig that is coming soon. Love your site! Thank you!
I have leftover homemade stew beef. Everything is cooked. How long do I need to pressure can it
Jill, I just canned up 7 qts of this stew using your “Ahem” method of raw packing. My All American 21.5 qt arrived today on the brown truck and I had everything cut up and waiting for it’s arrival. Had a little issue with the lid not sealing on the first try, but got it on the second. I did add celery and corn to it. We’ll see how it turns out in a few weeks when we take it camping.
I hope it turns out perfect for you Chris– enjoy!
This looks delicious! I enjoy your weblog. It’s the best! I’m a mom of 4 who loves quick, simple, healthy, frugal and delicious meals and all sorts of of your recipes meet these needs plus the kids enjoy them. You’re brilliant! Thank you for all of your hard work!
Thanks for following along, Vanessa!
Why don’t you just cook the beef or meat and then put in the can with raw veggies, then they are not over cooked.
Just cann the meat by itself. That way you can use the meat for other things too. When your are ready to make stew throw in whatever other canned veggies you have. It is easy that way!
How long do you need to reheat this stew
Just a quick question . . . do you think browning the meat before canning is really necessary? I know a lot of people brown their roasts before cooking, but I’ve never been able to tell the difference and its a real pain LOL. I’m new to your blog and I’m LOVING IT!! I live on a cattle and poultry farm in Missouri, but I work full time in town. So I’m a part-time farm wife lol. I’ve done a lot of canning (green beans –we don’t add water–, lots of salsa, lots of jams and apple butter). I think the cold pack works just fine LOL!! Blessings from Missouri!
Would you please tell me about canning green beans without water. Do you put salt in the jars? Do the beans make liquid as they process?
Thank you for all the effort is providing this..What about adding mushrooms?
Of course. I’ll be adding them to my ham and bean soup tomorrow. I’ll also add to each pint jar a Tbsp of corn, green beans, and okra.
Save that Costco, Sam’s or grocery store chicken carcass and just everything in a big pot (including everything in the bottom of the black tray), cover with water, add a Tbsp of vinegar to help leach the Calcium out of the bones, a couple of Bay Leaves, and a little carrot, celery, onion, parsley – or whatever vegetable in the fridge that should have been used “yesterday”. Cook for a few hours, or an hour and a half in a pressure cooker, strain, discard the overcooked stuff, and you have a rich vegetable chicken stock. If you have no vegetables, just make “magic chicken juice”. Put the pot in the fridge overnight and the fat will harden and it will be easy to remove the next day. Don’t throw those old (well, not too old) carcasses away. I even have a neighbor who saves me hers. Happy canning!
My grandparents actually bought me a 14 quart capacity pressure canner (All American) as a house warming present a few years ago and it has been one of my favorite kitchen tools! I’ll be making this recipe with moose meat soon! My grandfather just tagged a moose (he’s 80!) and we have 350 pounds for the whole family to share.
I too remember the fond aromas of my Mom’s canned goods especially chicken and various vegetables etc. She cold packed the chicken in quart jars and oven canned them. They browned beautifully and made the best gravy from the juices. Not sure what would be said of this method today but all of us lived on without poisoning. I honestly think some of the old methods (before electricity and freezers) are valid methods when precaution is taken from contamination etc.
Now assist my adult sons in canning venison. Cold packed and pressure canned.
I love this! I have freezer issues as well. We have a “beef” freezer and a “pork” freezer, and a “large cuts/turkey” freezer, plus the freezer in our kitchen. It is an issue every year when we get our beef… Ugh. Like you said, not complaining, but you definitely have to go into super organization mode!
I have LOTS of stew meat, and came across a recipe for stew that uses raw – not even browned – meat and veggies. Just layer it in the jar and pressure can. I have looked up recipes on Ball and other places, and found the same thing you did… Nothing to say it is safe/not safe, but the reputable sites all cook (to some degree) before canning. The raw pack is appealing because it is very simple and quick, but I do worry about the safety of the things I can, and therefore would rather follow a more complicated process and be safe that have a visitor find my entire family dead of beef stew. Thanks for justifying the correct approach. What we all do in our own kitchens is our own business, but your level of integrity is admirable and appreciated!
Can I omit the onions? My husband won’t eat them.
Absolutely! 🙂
**Ahem. I may or may not have raw packed my beef stew 6 months ago. And I may or may not have raw packed chicken soup in all this Corona Virus madness this week. Chicken soup cures everything, right?!
Thank you for posting this. When I did the beef stew I thought nothing of doing the raw pack method. It wasn’t until I started looking up chicken soup recipes that I realized hot pack is the recommended method.
My beef stew had dry Italian Herb mix and garlic. I thickened it when we served it with cornstarch slurry. Delicious! I will add noodles to the chicken soup when we open to serve it. Can’t wait to try it.
I just learned how to pressure can (thank you, Youtube!) and have been searching for recipes daily. We have a bunch of meat in the freezer and plan to move soon — I don’t want to lose all the meat, and definitely don’t want to have to find a way to keep it all frozen in the middle of a move. Transporting jars sounds much better! Thanks for your recipe. I’m off to read more!
Can I do it with a ground meat in a sauce?
Can I replace the boiling water with beef stock?
Yes! you can use boiling beef stock instead
I love canning meats ! I too often have the Freezer overage problem that’s SO nice to have. I started canning my raw venison late in 2019, and it turns out GREAT. Yes I used my 2019 Mueller Instant Pressure Cooker/Canner *that has the CANNING function button* and recommends 75 minute for pints. As 2020 season approaches, I am looking at taking MORE out of the Freezer and Canning!
As far as hot/cold packing for meat Stews – I have been Fully Cooking my venison stews under pressure in my InstaPot, because I love to be sure the whole schmeer is well seasoned and blended, before I CAN it. I KNOW you cannot open the vessel and TASTE the ongoing meal~~
Using my 2019 model Mueller Instapot I have had Excellent results. My Pressure cooker/canner holds 4 wide mouth Pints, or 6 taller 12 oz jars. Have not used any quarts, no experience there.
I started canning this *already cooked* stew type dish in Feb 2020, and have continued making up batches at random intervals. I have personally consumed many jars (almost all the Feb issue is GONE), and given several to friends. No one has become the least bit ill from my InstaPot CANNED product.
Just a few thoughts, and notations from 2020 on using an “electric type cooker/canner” –
So helpful and informative! However, I do stews that require long simmering for the meats to become tender and to absorb the spices. I’m fine with adding the veggies just before canning, but is there any problem with canning long-simmered meat?
Would there be any issue substituting venison for the beef in this recipe?
I am starting out by canning my puppy’s dog food. I do pre-cook everything before putting it in jars. I am processing like stew for 1 hour, with the jars covered with water. Is this the right way to do it? The regulators do not jiggle but the Pressure gauge says 30-40 lbs. What book do you recommend I get.. It has been years since i have used a canning pressure processor. Thank you for your help.
My husband’s favorite beef stew is Guinness beef stew, but I can’t find any canning recipes with Guinness / beer in them. Is it ok to can stews made with beer? I can’t think of a reason why not, though may hot packing would be good, since the carbonation / alcohol would be somewhat cooked out?
Thanks!
Is it safe to pressure can beef stew made with beer?
I’m not sure. I suggest you carefully research the information on this through these safe canning resources: https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2020/07/the-best-canning-resources.html