THE RURAL NEW-VORKER 
071 
Canning Meat and Vegetables 
Meats for Summer Use. 
Although not feeding Summer boarders, 
the family has to be fed; so I will ven¬ 
ture to tell you how the table is supplied 
with meat. When the Winter’s supply 
of beef comes to the house, we see that 
the quantity is large. That designed for 
Summer use, we treat in the following 
manner: Cut it in pieces of convenient 
size to pack in pint or quart cans. Pack 
as closely as possible to within an inch 
of the top. Fill this space with suet. 
Leaving off rubber bands, put covers in 
place. Place cans in boiler with wire or 
wooden rack under them. Add cold 
water to half the height of cans. Cook 
for four hours after the water boils. 
When cool enough to handle remove 
from boiler—put on bands and seal. The 
use of paraflin will insure perfect seal¬ 
ing. Some cook the beef the second 
time, but I have had good success with 
one cooking—the meat keeping perfectly 
until late in the Fall. Meats treated in 
this way have a fine flavor as none of the 
juices are lost by evaporation nor diluted 
with water. Meat could be canned at 
any time of year in this way. Some of 
my neighbors can veal, mutton, chicken 
and turkey in the same way very success¬ 
fully. It means something always ready 
for the unexpected visitors, the picnic 
lunch or the dinner when time is limited. 
The ham for Summer use is cured and 
smoked in the usual way. It is then 
sliced, cooked slightly and packed in jars. 
A weight is placed on top and enough 
melted lard poured over it to cover fully. 
Sausage is also cooked, packed, and cov- 
ei’ed with lard in same way. These 
meats always keep well, and family and 
visitors pronounce them most excellent. 
NETTIE C. ROYCE. 
Canning Vegetables at Home. 
Sterilization Necessary. —Nothing 
adds more to the health and well-being 
of the farmer’s family than a good sup¬ 
ply of the various vegetables which are 
raised during the season, and having 
these vegetables available during the 
greater part of the year. For this pur¬ 
pose some of them are canned, some are 
dried and others stored in the cellar 
packed in earth. Formerly only tomatoes 
were canned, as the other vegetables were 
thought to be beyond the average house¬ 
keeper. but now, thanks to the efforts of 
the State and United States experiment 
stations, a thorough knowledge of can¬ 
ning all kinds of vegetables, from pars¬ 
nips and rhubarb in the Spring through 
to pumpkins and Winter squash in the 
Fall, is within the reach of every house¬ 
wife if she cares to avail herself of the 
opportunity. We are taught that the 
spoiling of vegetables is due primarily to 
bacteria, one of the three classes of 
germs which cause decay, the other two 
being yeasts and molds. The reason that 
some vegetables spoil more readily than 
others is because they furnish a better 
medium for bacterial growth. The re¬ 
production of bacteria is brought about 
by one of two processes. The germ either 
divides itself into two parts, making two 
where one existed before, or else repro¬ 
duces itself by means of spores. These 
spores may be compared with seeds of an 
ordinary plant and they present the 
chief difficulty in canning vegetables. For 
while the parent bacteria may be readily 
killed at the temperature of boiling water, 
the seeds retain their vitality for a long 
time even at that temperature, and upon 
cooling will germinate, and the newly 
formed bacteria will begin their de¬ 
structive work. Therefore it is necessary 
in order to completely sterilize a vege¬ 
table, to heat it to the boiling point of 
water and keep it at that temperature 
for about one hour, for two or three suc¬ 
cessive days, or else keep it at the tem¬ 
perature of boiling water for a long per¬ 
iod of time—about five hours. The pro¬ 
cess of boiling upon successive days is 
the one that is always employed in scien¬ 
tific work, and is much to be preferred. 
The boiling in the first day kills all the 
molds and practically all the bacteria but 
does not kill the spores or seeds. As 
soon as the jar cools these seeds germin¬ 
ate and a fresh crop of bacteria begin 
work upon the vegetables. The boiling 
upon the second day kills this crop of 
bacteria before they have had time to de¬ 
velop spores. The boiling upon the third 
day is not always necessary but is ad¬ 
visable in order to be sure that steriliza¬ 
tion is complete. 
System in Work. —The farmer’s wife 
has the advantage of having vegetables 
that are perfectly fresh and in prime con¬ 
dition for canning. They should be 
young and tender, and have made a rath- 
Part of Winter’s Supply. 
er quick growth. They should be thor¬ 
oughly cleaned and canned as quickly as 
possible after gathering; this gives a bet¬ 
ter flavor to the finished product. By 
preparing a few extra each day as the dif¬ 
ferent vegetables are made ready for din¬ 
ner, a fine assortment of different varie¬ 
ties will soon be accumulated, with very 
little extra effort, and by cooking them 
for an hour at a time for the two or 
three successive days, as given in above 
instructions, while cooking the dinner, no 
extra heat is necessary. Glass jars, new 
rubbers, a can filler, small dipper and 
stew kettles are about all that are ne¬ 
cessary. If one wishes to can a lot at a 
time the wash boiler will come very ac¬ 
ceptable, or a large granite kettle will 
answer the purpose. These should have 
a little rack or hay put in the bottom to 
An Armful of Sweet Corn. 
keep the glass from coming in direct con¬ 
tact with the bottom of the receptacle. 
The vegetables should be covered with 
boiling water for a few moments, after 
being cleaned, this turned off and then they 
are ready for the can, a teaspoonful of salt 
being added to each quart of substance. 
The tops are then adjusted but not sealed 
and the cans set in warm water, and 
brought to a boiling point and kept there 
about an hour, when they are set aside 
to cool after being sealed. The next day 
they are heated again, while doing the 
morning work, but the tops should be 
loosened first, and the third day they are 
again treated, when they are ready to be 
put away. In canning string beans 1 
cook all together, salt, and take a part 
of the beans out into the cans just before 
seasoning the remainder for dinner. I 
have put away a good many cans from 
just this one cooking, and nearly all have 
kept, but it is really better to be sure, by 
doing the extra heating as it can be done 
so easily. 
Dandelions and Swiss Ciiard are 
fine for canning. These should be steam¬ 
ed for about 10 minutes and then packed 
in the cans, a little hot water added. 
Beets and parsnips should be well cooked 
before putting in the cans. Rhubarb 
should be scalded for about five minutes 
and the water drained off; this removes a 
lot of the acid. 
Tomatoes should be covered with boil¬ 
ing water for a few minutes, then with 
cold, after which the skins can be re¬ 
moved easily. A few should be put on 
the stove in a kettle to cook, and as the 
others are skinned they should bo packed 
in the jars whole if possible and the 
juice from the kettle used to fill the cre¬ 
vices. These whole tomatoes are nice for 
slicing. If the smaller-sized ones that 
are solid are used, they will retain their 
shape nicely. 
Dried Corn. —For corn, I have come 
to drying it instead of canning, not but 
what the canned will keep all right, but 
the dried is preferred. For this purpose 
the raw corn is scored and scraped from 
the cob, as much of the milk being saved 
as possible. For a quart of pulp a table¬ 
spoonful of butt r is melted in a sauce¬ 
pan, and about a tablespoonful of sugar 
added. The pulp is then put in and 
stirred frequently until it is thoroughly 
heated, after which it is spread in dishes 
and set in the oven and warming closet. 
When dry it is put in a tight cloth bag 
and hung near the stove for a day or so, 
and then packed in fruit cans. I think 
peas (quite young ones) will be good, 
prepared in this way and am going to try 
it this season. 
Cellar Storage. —Turnips, beets, and 
celery are best packed in earth in a cool 
cellar. This will keep them fresh for a 
long time. Squash should be kept in a 
warm place, in the furnace cellar or near 
a stove pipe in the attic. If one does 
not raise celery and often buys a quanti¬ 
ty at a time, this can be kept for some¬ 
time by wrapping in an old sheet wrung 
from cold water, and then another dry 
one around the wet one. The wet sheet 
should be freshened occasionally. Cab¬ 
bage should not be gathered until dan¬ 
ger of severe freezing, it should be cut 
close to the ground and leaves left on. 
when it may be packed like the roots or 
put in a trench outside. farm wife. 
Fresh Meat for Summer Boarders. 
As to keeping meat fresh for days and 
weeks during the hot weather months, 
July and August, in the New England 
States, it is necessary to have either 
cold storage facilities or a canner with 
steam pressure retort. Each of these 
ways has its advantages, but the canning 
way is the cheaper and the more quickly 
to be equipped way, furthermore if it is 
done properly, why you will have a sup¬ 
ply of absolutely fresh meat, even at 
times surpassing that bought at the 
butcher shops. It also is practically 
ready to be served for the table any time 
at a moment’s notice or demand. 
A few years ago I sent to The R. N.-Y. 
our way of canning meat in tins; then, 
as we stated, a steer (moderate weight) 
can be packed into about 00 quart cans, 
but the processing was done in cold 
weather. At this season (June, July and 
August), we would not risk a whole 
steer because too slow, but that process 
would do for putting up lamb or a calf, 
geese or even a quarter of beef in these 
hot months. With home size canner (as 
mentioned above) having capacity of 2-3 
two-pound tin cans or 14 quart glass 
jars, one can put up 100 to 200 cans a 
day and with skill and facilities even 
more. It enables one to do the processing 
a good deal faster than we were able to 
do with our simple way. Our old way, 
though when done in the Winter in Wis¬ 
consin, delivered the goods when wanted. 
With the modern way we use the home 
canner with steam under pressure as 
high as 250 degrees Fahrenheit and 15 
pounds pressure for meats, corn. etc. 
With it all kinds of vegetables, fruit, 
meats, fish, soups, etc., can bo put up 
safely and expeditiously. Meats can be 
variously prepared, viz., corned, boiled, 
raw and roasted, again as sausage, 'veal 
loaf, potted poultry, etc. 
I will here give recipe for roast beef 
put up by this method : Cut the beef in 
can size pieces, allowing 20 per cent, 
for shrinkage; wrap the pieces with 
string and place on end in roasting pan. 
For a 50-pound batch sprinkle on the 
beef one ounce ground black pepper and 
place in the pan two quarts water in 
which has been dissolved one-half pound 
salt; place pan in a hot oven and cook 
20 minutes No. 2 pieces, 40 minutes for 
No. 3. (These numbers apply to size of 
cans). Turn the meat when half the 
time has expired and baste to prevent 
burning. When done, take out the meat 
and make gravy for a quart of the pan 
grease by adding one pint of flour, 
mixing smoothly; then two gallons of 
boiling water, stirring constantly until 
it boils; then add one-half pound of salt, 
one ounce ground black pepper and suf¬ 
ficient caramel to produce a rich brown 
color. Place the roasted meat in cans, 
fill with gravy; cap. tip and process. No. 
1 cans, 40 minutes at 250 degrees, 15 
pounds pressure; No. 2 the same as No. 
1 ; No. 3 cans 50 minutes. 
For containers, glass, stone jars and 
tin cans are used. As yet we have had 
no experience with the stone jars, but 
we shall try them, considering them very 
useful for all acid fruits and vegetables. 
Glass is also to be preferred to tin, al¬ 
though there are now on the market 
enamel lined tin cans, but if one will 
obtain the best grade or quality of glass 
jars with wire spring and glass top, thee 
should be, with proper care, but three 
per cent, annual breakage on the aver- 
a S e - mar-yo. 
Louisiana. 
Canning Peas and Beans. 
I’eas are selling for 50 cents per bushel 
wholesale, and it is hard to sell beans for 
•>•> cents. 1 his is the time for farmers 
and housewives to fill the cellars with the 
Winter’s supply of canned goods. With 
a small $20 outfit two people can can 
from three to four bushels of string beans 
per day. 
One bushel makes about 20 No. 3 
.cans; 20 cans sell for $3; 20 cans cost -10 
cents; balance, $2.00. 
One bushel of tomatoes averages 20 
cans, which bring $2, netting $1.60. 
Two people can put up about five to six 
bushels in a day. If the outfit is not at 
hand, surely a wash boiler is. A false 
bottom is necessary to prevent the jars 
coming in contact with the bottom as 
they will break in process of cooking. In 
this boiler outfit one can can all the home 
supply and be able to have a surplus to 
sell. 
The vegetables must be young and ten¬ 
der and canned the same day as picked, if 
possible. Clean the vegetables thorough¬ 
ly. Pour boiling water over such vegeta¬ 
bles as limas and string beans and let 
stand for about five minutes; this sets 
the color and destroys many germs of de¬ 
cay. Put into cold water to firm the veg¬ 
etables; pack in jars and fill completely 
wth cold water, adding salt if desired. 
Place a new rubber on the can and adjust 
the top of can. but do not seal it. Place 
cans on support in bottom of cooking 
vessel and pour enough cold water into 
vessel to cover jars to depth of two to 
three inches. Let come to boil and cook 
one hour, remove jars, set aside out of 
any draughts and repeat this process for 
three days. 
The same method is followed with corn 
only the corn is scalded on the cob for 
about 15 minutes. 
About all the vegetables require the 
cooking for three hours with the excep¬ 
tion of tomatoes. Very good salad toma¬ 
toes may be canned, by heating them 
thoroughly, packing in the jars and pour¬ 
ing hot strained tomato juice over them. 
This can be used for salad in the Win¬ 
ter and the juice for soup. 
New York State (Cornell) send a most 
complete bulletin, “The Preservation of 
Food in the Home.” Washington bulletins 
62, 203, 220, 255, 359, 433, 521 are most 
helpful. Send for them and solve the 
problem of canning vegetables in the 
home. MARY E. STOWELL. 
