How to Make Home Can Ground or Chopped Venison -an Easy Guide for Wild Deer Meat

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Canning Ground and Chopped Venison at Home

Here's how to preserve (can) ground and chopped venison, based on information from the National Center for Home Food Preservation (see references at the bottom of the page)

Field-to-Refrigerator

Use care when field dressing the deer. Contaminating the carcass is one of the most common errors hunters make. Refrigerate the carcass as soon as possible for best quality; usually within 3-4 hours after killing if the air temperature is above 45 degrees Fahrenheit.

Aging Venison

Aging will help dissipate the game taste and permit natural occurring enzymes to tenderize the tissues. Proper aging also firms the meat, giving it better cutting quality. Aging should be conducted between 32 - 35° F for 7 - 10 days. Never age at room temperature. Venison may be cut within 24 hours after the kill and still be acceptable for aging. Improper storage facilities increases risk for spoilage.

Canning Ground or Chopped Venison

You can safely can venison at home with a pressure canner.

Basics of canning venison meat

1. Use a pressure canner ONLY: Meat, poultry, and game are low acid foods and must be canned or processed in a pressure canner
2. Process at:
   11 pounds pressure with a dial gauge pressure canner.
   15 pounds pressure with a weighted gauge pressure canner for required times.
3. Handle meats quickly and cleanly and keep the process moving
4. Choose only good venison meat for canning, and handle it quickly and with total cleanliness, because bacteria grow rapidly in meat held at room temperature.
5. If you have a large amount, store the part you're not working on in the refrigerator (33 F to 40 F)
6. These recipes are closely based on the "Complete Guide to Home Canning," Agriculture Information Bulletin No. 539, USDA, revised 2015 and other authoritative sources such as MSU Extension, Ball Blue Book. .

Key points about canning venison

1. Start with properly cleaned and chilled meat
2. Can fresh meat within 2 days or freeze it.
3. To can frozen venison, thaw in the refrigerator until most ice crystals have disappeared, then handle as if they were fresh.
4. Trim gristle and fat off meat before canning. Fat left on meat melts and climbs on the sides of the jar during processing and may interfere with the sealing of the lid.
5. Salt is optional in canned meat and poultry..

 

Directions:

1. Choose fresh, chilled venison meat.
2. Since venison is so lean, add one part high-quality pork fat to three or four parts venison before grinding.
3. Shape chopped meat into patties or balls or cut cased sausage into 3- to 4-inch links.
4. Cook until lightly browned. Ground meat may be sauteed without shaping.
5. Remove excess fat.
6. Fill jars with pieces.
7. Add boiling meat broth, tomato juice, or water, leaving 1-inch headspace.
8. Add 2 teaspoons of salt per quart to the jars, if desired.
9. Adjust lids and process following the recommendations in the tables below according to the type of canning method used.

Process following the recommendations in Table 1 and Table 2 according to the canning method used.

Table 1. Recommended process time for Ground or Chopped Meat in a dial-gauge pressure canner.
			Canner Pressure (PSI) at Elevations of
Style of Pack	Jar Size	Process Time	0 - 2,000 ft	2,001 - 4,000 ft	4,001 - 6,000 ft	6,001 - 8,000 ft
Hot	Pints	75 min	11 lb	12 lb	13 lb	14 lb
	Quarts	90	11	12	13	14

Table 2. Recommended process time for Ground or Chopped Meat in a weighted-gauge pressure canner.
			Canner Pressure (PSI) at Elevations of
Style of Pack	Jar Size	Process Time	0 - 1,000 ft	Above 1,000 ft
Hot	Pints	75 min	10 lb	15 lb
	Quarts	90	10	15

References and Cooperative Extension Game processing resources

1. Handling wild game meats, Clemson University
2. Penn State has a complete guide to processing wild game and fish PDF
3. The Hunt is On: Know the Basics of Venison Preservation UGa
4. Wild side of the menu No. 3 preservation of game meats. (Marchello M, Beck P. 2001. Wild Side of the Menu No. 3. Preservation of Game Meats. Fargo, ND: North Dakota State University.
5. Preserving Game Meats. Clemson, SC: Clemson University Preserving game meats (Hoyle EH. 1999.
6. National Center for Home Food Preservation,
   September 2002- Brian A. Nummer is Project Coordinator with the National Center for Home Food Preservation, Department of Foods and Nutrition, College of Family and Consumer Sciences and Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Food Science and Technology, The University of Georgia, Athens. This material is based upon work supported by the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under Agreement No. 00-51110-9762.
   National Center for Home Food Preservation
   208 Hoke Smith Annex
   The University of Georgia
   Athens, GA 30602-4356
   
   Tel: (706) 542-3773
   Fax: (706) 542-1979