Having home canned soups, stews and beans on hand is a must for me. It is so easy to have a hot meal ready when I’m busy and its a great way to use up what is in the garden each year.

Last year’s beef stew

Here’s how I pressure can Beef Stew.

I can 7 quarts at a time in my Mirro 22 quart Pressure Canner.

This is not a tutorial on how to use a Pressure Canner. You’ll need to learn how to do that before you attempt this method.

All meats must be pressure canned. I know a lot of older ladies used to water bath meats, but I don’t take the chance of not getting the food hot all the way through. Meat needs 90 minutes at 10 pounds of pressure.

The first way you can do this is to make the beef stew like you normally would, then ladle the hot, cooked stew into the jars, add lids and rings and pressure can quarts at 10 pounds of pressure for 90 minutes.

The second way you could use is adequate and a good way to get that stew canned if you’re in a hurry. Its just not as nice looking in the finished jars. It is also canned at 10 pounds of pressure for 90 minutes for quarts.

Both methods give good results but cooking the stew first helps all the ingredients stay immersed in the liquid after canning and the solids don’t float to the top of the jar. That’s not a big deal really.

Here is the recipe and instructions for canning the first recipe which is cooked, then canned. For each quart jar you will need:

1 1/4 teaspoon sea salt OR 1 teaspoon beef bouillon paste, or use 2 cubes of bouillon
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme, optional
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary, optional
2 cloves garlic, minced, optional
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 1 cup beef stew meat that has been browned. Browning improves the flavor but you could skip it. Boiling water

Brown the meat with a little oil. No need to use flour just get it nice and brown in the oil. You can season it with some salt and pepper if you like. Put all ingredients in a big pot with the browned meat and cook til tender and the meat is done.

Ladle the hot stew into hot jars leaving a 1 inch head space. Wipe the mouths of the jars with a clean, wet cloth. Add hot lids and rings, pressure can.

After the pressure canning time is up, allow the canner to vent naturally. Don’t take off the weight if you use a weighted canner. If you allow the pressure to go down too quickly, the liquid in the jars will likely be drawn out of the jars and you’ll be left with little liquid in each jar. So let the pressure in the canner dissipate naturally.

Take the jars out of the canner, they will still be really hot. Let them cool on a clean towel on the counter.

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Here is how to make the second recipe where you put all the raw ingredients in the jars and then can them. This is the one I usually end up using because its fast and easy.

You’ll need basically all the same ingredients, just divide the dry ingredients up between 7 quart jars.

After you’ve filled all the ingredients into the jars, pour in boiling water and leave a 1 inch head space. Wipe the mouths of the jars with a clean, wet cloth. Add hot lids and rings, then pressure can. 10 pounds pressure for 90 minutes for quarts.

After the pressure canning time is up, allow the canner to vent naturally. Don’t take off the weight if you use a weighted canner. If you allow the pressure to go down too quickly, the liquid in the jars will likely be drawn out of the jars and you’ll be left with little liquid in each jar. So let the pressure in the canner dissipate naturally.

Take the jars out of the canner, they will still be really hot. Let them cool on a clean towel on the counter. As they cool they will seal. I like to leave the rings on the jars because it protects the edges of the glass.

This year’s beef stew