[Mrs. Hammer]

How would you preserve meat or would you only hunt what you could eat in a day or twos time? Salt preservation and smoking it for preservation could that be a possibility in a situation like this?

 

[mhead]

Smoking definately wood be a must . You could make I guess what would be close to jerky that would keep alot longer .

 

[Guest]

There are too many ways to presserve meat not to do it. Why expend a couple of dozen rounds when you can use one and cure the meat. Pickling, drying, smoking and canning are the most popular methods. I've eaten canned mullet that was three years old and still good. I've had canned beef that tasted fresh in a stew or with rice and gravy. And I can't count the meals of chicken and dumplings and pork and dressing I've eaten from canned meats.

Get a pressure canner and go for it.

 

[Methos]

Biltong - google it.

 

[fastback65]

My wife and I cannned 24 pints of chicken and 3 gallons of chicken stock. Almost instant soup.

 

[shoeshooter]

My Mom has told me about when she grew up on a farm in the '30's. No electricity = no refrigeration. They pressure canned lots of meat: sausage, ground beef, etc. When they wanted chicken they just grabbed a slow one and snapped its neck. I've seen that done, kinda creepy, they really do "run around like a chicken with it's head cut off"

 

[btr568]

http://www.foodsaving.com/store-categories-can-sealers_2521659.html
http://www.houseofcans.com/sealer-manual-operation-equipped-seal-open-p-1823-l-en.html
http://ehcan.com/CanSealers.html
http://freundcontainer.com/product.asp?pn=200&bhcd2=1286111038
http://www.canningpantry.com/master-can-sealers.html
http://foxfire.org/thefoxfirebooks.aspx

The Foxfire books are worth their weight in gold,old time knowledge.I'll also post some other stuff I have later

http://www.uaf.edu/ces/preservingalaskasbounty/index.html (this a home page with clickable links)

 

[Roosty]

Is there an advantage to canning in "tin cans" as opposed to mason type jars?

 

[btr568]

From what I have been reseaching,longer shelf life and less prone to breakage...both are labor intensive and time consuming..mason jars is the cheapest rout,but for storage and packing up for a fast getaway cans hand down.
My wife and I already do the mason jar method,but for long term storage I'm really looking hard at this.also,I vacuum seal stuff to,I'm also thinking,vacuum seal seeds,then store in the cans also,should last for years and years.
I forget which link it is but they list how many ounces each size can will hold,some of them are pretty big cans.....

 

[Mrs. Hammer]

Just be sure whatever you use is sealed well because if not you run the risk of contracting botulism which can be deadly. Jars seem like they would be easier to seal than cans but I have never done it so I don't know for a fact which would be easiest.

 

[Roosty]

Yeah, we have always used the jars, but never done any meat. It always goes in the freezer. I guess you fill the cans then process by water bath?
....we've also stocked up on jar lids...

 

[btr568]

the bottom link shows how to do meats and fish

 

[johnson27885]

Biltong - google it.

Looks pretty interesting. Might give it a try.

 

[DBLTAP]

Kill a hog either salt or sugar cure it .It will be good

 

[Netseal]

DBLTAP is right. Remember in the dark Ages where many people were paid in SALT. It was in so much of a demand and hard to come by that salt was made into a currency...