Questions and Answers

Q. Why must a pressure canner be used for canning meat and poultry?

A. To insure a safe product. It takes a combination of high temperature and sufficient processing time to make sure of killing bacteria that cause dangerous spoilage in canned meat and poultry. The only practical way to get the necessary high temperature is to use a pressure canner.

Q. How should meat and poultry for canning be handled?

A. Keep meat and poultry clean and sanitary. Chill at once and keep cold until canning time. (See p. 4.)

Q. Why is liquid sometimes lost from glass jars during processing?

A. Loss of liquid may be due to packing jars too full, fluctuating pressure in a pressure canner, or lowering pressure too suddenly.

Q. Should liquid lost during processing be replaced?

A. Loss of liquid does not cause meat to spoil, although the meat above the liquid may darken. Never open a jar and refill with liquid—this would let in bacteria and meat would have to be processed again.

Q. Is it safe to can meat and poultry without salt?

A. Yes. Salt is used for flavor only and is not necessary for safe processing.

Q. Is it safe to leave food in tin cans after opening?

A. Yes. Food in tin cans needs only to be covered and refrigerated.

Q. Is it all right to use preservatives in home canning?

A. No. Some canning powders or other chemical preservatives may be harmful.

Q. Should processing times be changed for different types of ranges?

A. No. Processing times and temperatures given in this bulletin are for canning in a pressure canner and may be used for any type of range.

Q. Is it possible to can frozen meat or poultry?

A. Yes, frozen meat or poultry may be canned. (For directions, see p. 4.)

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Publications About Preserving Food at Home

Publications of the Agricultural Research Service listed below may help you if you want to preserve food at home. Single copies may be obtained free by sending a post card to the Office of Communication, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C., 20250. Please order by title and number of publication. Include your ZIP Code.

	Order No.
Home Canning of Fruits and Vegetables	G 8
Home Freezing of Fruits and Vegetables	G 10
Freezing Combination Main Dishes	G 40
How To Make Jellies, Jams, and Preserves at Home	G 56
Home Freezing of Poultry	G 70
Making Pickles and Relishes at Home	G 92
Freezing Meat and Fish in the Home	G 93

U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1973—O-509-159

Transcriber’s Notes

• Silently corrected a few typos.
• Retained publication information from the printed edition: this eBook is public-domain in the country of publication.
• In the text versions only, text in italics is delimited by _underscores_.