Jars for home canning.
Making your own stock is an essential cooking technique that can elevate your kitchen creations. Broth is easy to make but must simmer for a long time for best flavor. It is not always practical to make stock as needed for soups, stews, rice, and sauces. Freezing is the easiest way to hold stock for several months. If you lack sufficient freezer space, home canning is a solution that requires only a little more work. When canning a low-acid food like beef broth, you must use a pressure canning method in order to kill bacteria that can cause botulism.
Instructions
Make the Beef Broth
1. Brown approximately 4 pounds of beef bones and scraps in the bottom of a large stock pot. Browning will add color and flavor and allow you to pour off any fat that is rendered before adding water to make the stock.
2. Cover with 8 cups of water and add an onion, a carrot, a stock of celery, and a bay leaf. You can vary the classic recipe to taste. Add salt, peppercorns, and other vegetables and seasonings to taste.
3. Cover, bring to a simmer for 2 to 3 hours or until the beef broth has achieved the desired depth of flavor.
4. Strain to remove beef, vegetables and seasonings. Cool and skim off fat that rises to the top. Return to a boil when you are ready to can the broth.
Prepare Jars, Lids and Canner
5. Inspect canning jars for cracks or chips. Ensure that the sealing compound on the underside of the lids is unbroken. When reusing bottles, it is best to purchase a new set of lids to ensure a proper seal.
6. Clean the jars and lids in soapy water. Rinse and place the jars and lids in a large pot and cover with water, filling the jars so that they do not float. Bring the jars to a simmer and keep hot until ready to fill. You may choose to prepare a few extra jars to allow for variances in the amount of broth produced.
7. Pour 2 to 3 inches of water into the pressure canner. Bring to a simmer until ready to add the jars of beef broth. Low-acid foods, such as beef broth, MUST be heat processed at a temperature of 240 degrees Fahrenheit in order to eliminate the risk of botulism, a serious food-born illness. Botulism is caused by bacteria that produces a harmful toxin when deprived of oxygen (as occurs in the canning process). Simple boiling water canning techniques cannot reach temperatures higher than 212 degrees Fahrenheit. You must use a pressure canner when canning beef broth.
Fill the Jars
8. Remove a jar from the water with tongs, turning carefully to empty the water inside.
9. Ladle the beef broth into the jar, using the funnel and leaving one inch of head room. Clean the rim with the damp cloth to remove any food that may interfere with the seal.
10. Place a lid on the jar and attach a lid ring. Turn the ring tight by hand without applying extra force.
11. Fill each remaining jar in turn until all of the beef broth has been used.
Can the Broth
12. Place the jars of beef broth into the pressure canner.
13. Cover the canner and lock the lid in place, leaving the vent open at the top.
14. Once steam starts to escape through the vent, wait 10 minutes to ensure that there is no air remaining in the canner, before closing the vent using the weight (or method specified for your canner).
15. Process under 10 pounds of pressure for 20 minutes. If you are using quart jars, add 5 minutes. You will also need to adjust for altitude.
16. Turn off the heat, allow the pressure to return to zero before removing the weight. Unlock the cover and tilt the canner away from you before attempting to open it.
17.Remove the jars of beef broth from the canner, placing on a towel. Allow to cool for 24 hours.
18. Test the seal on each jar by pressing in the center of the lid. A lid that flexes up and down is not properly sealed.
19. Remove the jar rings and ensure that each lid will not lift off with finger tips.
20. Clean and label the jars that are properly sealed and store the beef broth in a cool, dry, dark place for up to one year. Jars that are not properly sealed must be immediately re-processed or refrigerated for near-term use.
Tags: beef broth, jars beef, jars beef broth, pressure canner, properly sealed