I'm confused (canning question)

brshooter · 08-13-2003, 05:21 PM

OK, I did my first attempt at canning tuna last night. Had some trouble getting the crab cooker dialed in for pressure. Did everything as per the instructions with one little snag. As the canning process was going, the pressure was creaping up to around 13 pounds. I cut the cooker down to where it was just burning in an attempt to to drop the pressure. A gust of wind must of put it out as I went to check a bit later and the pressure was down to 8 pounds. Could not have been there for more than a few minutes. I got the pressure back up to about 12 pounds and ran it 10 minutes longer than instructed.

Is the brief drop to 8 pounds a problem? One post on another thread said that if you dropped below 10 pounds, you need to start your time over, afterwhich, you will probably have cat food grade tuna. I have no desire to risk anyone's health over this tuna. Not anxious to waste it either.

Would you eat it and would you feel comfortable sharing it with others?

Bait O' Eggs · 08-13-2003, 05:57 PM

I would not worry about eating it, or sharing it.

Though the older blue ball books say 10lbs at 90 minutes, the newer ones say 10lbs at 100 minutes. Who is to say all of the gauges are the same from pressure cooker to cooker. Are you sure your gage is calibrated exactly.

A couple minutes is no big deal. It is not uncommon for ours to creep up to 11 or 12 pounds for several minutes if not more. I would be more concerned with lower pressure than higher, a couple minutes in a 100 minute run is 2% of the time at 80% of the recommended pressure.

We have double canned tuna to get a seal, and I dont believe it makes it cat food grade, it does make it softer, but in a sandwich you probably wouldnt tell.

What elevation is your house at? USDA recommends the 10 lbs from sea level to 1000 ft, and 15 lbs for 100 minutes above 1500 feet.

LINK

It is wise to be cautious, but I think you did a fine job and the tuna will be just fine. If I was really concerned I would give a few jars to the mother-in-law and after she ate them I would check in to see if she was OK

It is probably to late to use Waterdog for a guinea pig,

he might have already read this thread.

corrirod · 08-13-2003, 06:56 PM

Their bad!

If you want, I can dispose of them for you though.

WildHawg · 08-13-2003, 07:23 PM

Noone can or should really say. My gut instinct says no problem, but to kill spores of anerobic bacteria, as I recall, the FDA or somebody says it take 250 something degrees for 100 minutes, which definitely equals 10 #'s of pressure the whole time.
Canning is very specific. Any question you can think of is addressed in the ball bluebook. Available at most Bi-Mart's.
Good luck!

Gregotis98 · 08-13-2003, 07:27 PM

I did the same thing last year with the crab cooker, not able to dial it in. Mine varied in pressure all over the place and it is the best tuna I've ever had. I wouldn't worry too much.

TWB · 08-13-2003, 08:42 PM

I wrote this up once to night and accidently deleated the whole thing.

I will try this again.
I thought about you all day, should I throw the fish away or should I eat it? Yes, that was an information overload on that post.

First, we should analyze what is happening inside the canner. The water is boiling and is creating a vacuum. The vacuum is pulling the air out of the jar. At the same time the boiling water is cooking the fish. The temperature of the fish must reach a minimum of 143 degrees to kill the botulism. If you follow the pressure and time requirements the fish will reach a much higher temperature than this. When you remove the jars from the canner you will see the water in the fish boiling in the jar. As the jars cool the vacuum will pull down the lid. If the lid does not pull down you have an improper seal and in time ,the fish will spoil and it is still possible for the botulism to grow. Something about spores? If they don't seal eat that fish right away.

Now to your question, if you let the pressure drop for a very, very short time the fish will be ok. The canner and the fish did not cool enough to be a problem. Remember the pressure is creating a vacuum.

If you have any second guessing as to consuming the fish, this is what I would do. Call the OSU Extention Service in your area. My local office is at 503 623-8395. Give them your information and I am sure they will be able to help you. If you like they will send you information about canning all types of foods. I use their times and pressure recommendations. Also if you have a canner that you think may not be working correctly, just take it down to them and they will test it out for you.

If you or anyone else has further question I would be glad to hook you up, by E-mail, with my neighbor and fishing partner. He is a USDA Government meat inspector and knows all about these things. However, after talking to him about meats, you might become a vegetarian!!!

Oh, by the way, where did you catch all those tuna?

Jerry

Mello-Yello · 08-13-2003, 08:59 PM

Call it wreckless, but even though my pressure dropped a couple pounds for a few minutes, at least I'm aware of it. How much food did I buy last year that I had no involvement in during processing? Scary proposition...

I would suspect that to get a "don't worry about it" from any authority would be like pulling their teeth. Too much liability.

What I hate is...every time I eat some, or someone else eats some, a little knot will tighten up in my guts. What if...

I'd call it a calculated risk. Kinda like heading out on big blue with what you think is a good day, with good equipment.

That which does not kill you, makes you strong...

though you might have the squirts for a few days... :shocked:

TWB · 08-13-2003, 09:11 PM

Mello-yello, I agree, if your gut feeling tells you to get rid of it, do it.

The problem with botulism is, that it's more like, plant you in the ground, six feet under! Not just a day on the pot.

Jerry

Mello-Yello · 08-13-2003, 09:30 PM

Yeaaaaahh, actually not. 50 years ago, you had a 50% chance of death, now it's somewhere around 8%. With that, there are a little over 100 cases of botulism a year on average, with only 25% being food-born botulism.

I'm not playing this down by any means...in fact the recovery from botulism can be horrible, and can actually take years to fully recover. The 'squirts' comment was my lame attempt at humor. It wasn't meant to downplay the subject.

08-18-2003, 07:04 AM

It's probably safe but I would have started the timing over. When I am canning I try to stay close to the pressure cookers and keep an eye on them for the first hr and then check often at the end. You usualy have to keep turning down the heat at the end to keep from over pressureing. My smoker is usualy close to the canner so I don't have far to go to check both. Canning is easy but the rules should be followed closely.