Canning chicken

Earlier this week, we had a couple of cold and rainy days. So cold, in fact, that the higher elevations got some snow.

It was a good time to do some canning.

I had a 40-pound box of boneless skinless chicken breasts taking up room in the freezer, so I pulled it out and let it defrost overnight (though most of it was still frozen by morning).

I pried off a portion and put it in a pot to boil.

While the water was heating up, I pulled some canning jars out of the barn. Older Daughter has been using smaller quantities of chicken when preparing meals, so from now on I decided to can chicken in pint jars instead of quarts.

The jars were dirty and dusty, so I used my handy-dandy improved jar washer to get them clean.

My canner holds 18 pints at a time, so I washed just enough jars for the first batch.

When the meat was cooked enough...

...I pulled out a few pieces at a time...

...and started cutting them into small enough pieces to fit in the jars.

Adding a half-teaspoon of salt to each jar.

Topping off each jar with clean hot water.

Into the canner.

Meat in pint jars is processed for 75 minutes at about 14 lbs pressure (for our elevation).

While the first batch processed, I started on the second batch.

First batch done...

...and second batch into the canner.

I processed a third batch the next day. Altogether I got 43 pints of chicken. I could probably have compressed it down to 40 pints, which follows the rule of thumb of about a pound of meat per pint.

Before dating and storing the jars in the pantry, I gave them a good scrub. Jars fresh out of the pressure canner get a sort of "scum" on them, especially those on the lower level.

Then came the tedious task of scrubbing the rings. Uncleaned, rings can rust and get nasty, so I always scrub them after each use.

I also scrubbed and rinsed the inside of the canner, and upended it to drain.

This canner (an All American) is unquestionably one of the most valuable tools I own. I bought it shortly after Don and I were married in 1990, and I've processed thousands upon thousands of jars of food in it. With maintenance, it should last the rest of my life and probably the lifespan of our daughters as well, if not longer. Hard to beat quality like that!

It's a good thing I canned the chicken when I did. The weather is warming up and we're seeing temps in the high 80s and low 90s. It wouldn't be any fun canning in these conditions. But now we have an extra 43 pints of chicken in the pantry.

Canned chicken

I stumbled upon a YouTube video recently in which someone calling himself "Chef Prepper" did a comparison of 12 brands of canned chicken (Kroger, Kirkland, Tyson, Sam's Club, etc.).

He carefully accounted for total weight (with liquid) of each brand, weight of the actual meat, ingredients (including additives), taste, etc. His goal was to determine the best bang for the buck in terms of price and taste. Most of the chicken was canned in 12.5-ounce cans. When he calculated everything out, the very best deal he came up with was Sam's Club chicken which, when all was said and done, cost about $5/lb.

We don't have Sam's Club around here, but I got onto the Costco website and looked at their canned chicken.

The online price as of Dec. 18 was $15.00 for a pack of six cans. Zooming in on the actual amount of meat:

So that's 2.6 lbs of meat for $15, or $5.77/lb

Here's the thing: I can my own chicken meat. What I do is purchase bulk frozen 40-lb. boxes of boneless skinless chicken breasts from Chef's Store, a regional chain of restaurant-supply stores (and my favorite place to shop for bulk foods). I defrost the meat and fit about one pound of meat per pint, or two pounds per quart, after it's all canned up.

As of Dec. 18, the price for a 40-lb. box of boneless skinless chicken breast at Chef's Store was $56, or $1.40/lb.

This frugal alternative to commercial canned chicken, Don reminded me to add, is because I already have a pressure canner, jars, lids, and all the other canning accouterments – as well as the skills and experience – necessary to process the meat properly. And, of course, there's the time spent. It usually takes me an entire day to process all 40 lbs. of meat. How much is my time worth?

Still, when everything shakes out, it's nice to have canned chicken in the pantry – and for a lot less than I might spend at Costco for the same amount.

Canning chicken

A reader posted a comment as follows: "Sure hate to be off topic but I need some help from you ladies that pressure can. Have stored large amount chicken breast in freezer. The potential of electric power curtailment is worrying me so would like to pressure-can some of the chicken. All I can find on Google is dealing with instant pot thawing and cooking. Would one of you experienced ladies advise me how to pressure can in this situation. Am experienced canning raw chicken. Thank you for your advice. – City Dude"

City Dude, canning chicken breasts is easy. I have an older blog post that covers the steps (see here), so hopefully that will move you in the right direction. You're correct in that chicken breasts must be pressure-canned. In that long-ago blog post, I put the pressure at about 13 pounds for our elevation; more recent guidelines suggest 15 lbs. of pressure is a good universal recommendation. If you use pint jars, can for 75 minutes; for quart jars, 90 minutes.

For the chicken breasts in your freezer, pull them out to defrost, then boil them, cut them into chunks, and stuff them in a jar. Top with scalding water, add a bit of salt (if desired), and pressure-can.

Happy canning!

Will chicken skyrocket?

In mid-January, I took a trip to the city to stock up on some items. One of my favorite places to shop is Chef's Store (formerly Cash'n'Carry), a restaurant supply store which is excellent for purchasing bulk quantities of things.

While there, I asked about the availability of a 40-lb. box of frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts, since I had it in mind to can up some additional chicken. The fellow shook his head and said they have it in stock, but I wouldn't like the price.

"How much?" I asked.

"$110," he replied, himself scandalized. "It dropped to $80 for a while, then went up to $110."

That's $2.75 per pound, bulk. I decided not to get the chicken breasts.

However today, I noticed an article entitled "Bird flu detected in Michigan flock, federal authorities say." The article reported, "The virus strain is potentially deadly to commercial poultry. The bird flu cases are among the latest in the U.S. that have put farms that raise turkeys and chickens for meat and eggs on high alert, fearing a repeat of a 2015 bird flu outbreak that killed 50 million birds across 15 states and cost the federal government nearly $1 billion."

Now I wished I'd bought that case of chicken breasts back in mid-January.

So this morning I called Chef's Store and inquired if they had cases of chicken breasts in stock – they did – and what was the price?

$135 for a 40-lb. box. That's $3.37/pound. Now I really wished I'd bought that case of chicken breasts a month ago.

Don and I talked it over and decided we would not purchase the chicken. I still have some canned up in the pantry.

However the fact that bulk chicken breasts leaped from $2.75/lb to $3.37/lb over the course of five weeks – a 22.5% increase – is disturbing. Now if the bird flu takes off, that could ratchet prices up even higher.

If anyone's in the market for chicken to can or freeze, I wouldn't waste any time.

(Addendum: Due to a Google glitch, I can't reply to comments. Someone asked what I do with canned chicken. Usually I make chicken pot pies with it, but of course it's excellent for soups, stews, or anything else where shredded chicken is an ingredient.)

Canning chicken breasts

I try to keep a number of staples canned up in my pantry because staples are so useful as base ingredients for many different meals. One of these items is boneless skinless chicken breasts.

I started canning chicken breasts about four years ago when I came across a good bargain on them. They proved to be so handy in so many recipes (curry chicken, chicken pot pie, chicken turnovers, etc.) that I decided to always keep a supply on hand.

Whenever I had a few dollars to spare, I purchased three-pound bags of frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts at Winco for $6. Don suggested I might be able to find a cheaper cut of chicken meat -- thighs, perhaps? -- for less money, but to my surprise boneless skinless thigh meat was costlier. I wanted to keep the meat both boneless and skinless since that way I can pack the most bang for my buck in each jar.

A couple weeks ago, while in our local wholesale grocery (Cash & Carry), I saw they had a sale on chicken breasts: 40 lbs. for $60, or $1.50/lb.

$60 is most of our weekly food budget, so I made a note on when the sale ended (November 18) and skimped on other groceries for that week.

I got the box just before the sale ended. I knew I could fit about two pounds of meat per quart jar, so I estimated I would get 20 quarts of canned meat from this box.

I optimistically thought I could get it canned up right away, but it was so frozen that I had to let it defrost slowly over a few days. I did that by putting the box in our "outdoor refrigerator" -- the top of our chest freezer. In this kind of weather, our outdoor fridge is quite handy.

The day came when I could finally start canning. It was a day of pouring and unrelenting rain...

...a day when the chickens darted from their coop into the shelter of Matilda's pen because they didn't want to face the weather. In other words, a perfect day for canning.

I washed seven quart jars -- all I can fit in my canner at one time.

Some people like to raw-pack chicken, but I prefer to cook mine first.

While I've used narrow-mouth jars for canning chicken, obviously the wide-mouth jars are easier to pack.

The chicken pieces need to be cut up in order to fit as many in a jar as possible. Feel free to cut the pieces as small as necessary. I suppose you could even dice the chicken if you wanted to, though I don't go to that extent.

Seven jars, filled with about two pounds of meat per jar.

I add a teaspoon of salt to each jar...

...then top everything with clean boiling water.

I leave about half an inch of headspace. My guide is the bottom of the bands on the mouth of the jar.

Wiping the rims. (This also allows me to check for any nicks on the rim I may have missed. A jar with a nicked rim won't seal.)

Scalding the Tattler lids.

Lids on...

...then rings.

Into the canner.

I use two kitchen timers while canning -- THE secret ingredient for stress-free pressure canning. The top timer gives me the overall canning time (ALL meats must be pressure-canned for 90 minutes for quarts). I set the bottom timer to go off about every five minutes, to remind me to check the pressure. At this point I'm waiting for the pressure to rise to the correct level, so I haven't started the top timer yet. (Timing doesn't start until the canner is at the correct pressure.)

Between twelve and thirteen pounds is the correct pressure for our elevation. Now I start the top timer and maintain the pressure for 90 minutes.

While the first batch of chicken was in the canner, I washed a second set of jars and got a second batch of chicken cooking in the stock pot.

By evening I had twenty quarts of chicken breasts canned up, just as estimated.

Canned chicken shreds beautifully, making it excellent for soups or stews or anything else.

Having a solid inventory of chicken is a versatile addition to anyone's pantry. If you can find boneless meat at a decent price, take advantage of it!