Pressure Cooking

[sarafina]

Please be aware that while commercial canning facilities can food in oil, the use of oil in home canning increases the likelihood of botulism spores contaminating the processed foods.

It's possible to can with oil, but the risk is high that the food processed in this manner will be dangerous.

Oil is non acidic and is an excellent anaerobic medium for botulism.

[Capn Morgan]

Originally Posted by sarafina

Please be aware that while commercial canning facilities can food in oil, the use of oil in home canning increases the likelihood of botulism spores contaminating the processed foods.

It's possible to can with oil, but the risk is high that the food processed in this manner will be dangerous.

Oil is non acidic and is an excellent anaerobic medium for botulism.

Pickling might solve this. I used to pickle pheasants every winter in the shooting season. Never had a problem.

[Astrid]

In Asia, some pickling processes use oil, but also add vinegar and ground mustard seed or other spices to raise acidity. The resulting product produces lactic acid as it matures and this prevents the propagation of harmful organisms.

[JanetGroene]

Any bread can be baked in a pressure cooker. Grease bottom and sides, add a little cornmeal and shake to distribute, then discard excess. If making yeast bread, let it do its final rising in the pan. If not, put dough or batter in the pan. Remove rubber ring and bake over low-medium burner. With practice you'll learn to tell by the smell if it's brown enough, not too much and not too raw. Easiest bread:
3 cups self-rising flour
12-ounce bottle or can of beer
Mix until evenly moistened but do not beat. Put in prepared pressure cooker, lock on the lid without the rubber gasket and bake. It will not brown on the top.
You'll also need to do some trial and error with your cooker and your stove. I prefer a cast aluminum pressure cooker for baking because stainless steel doesn't heat as evenly. You may also need a flame tamer. Don't peek too often and let heat escape. Also, the size of the loaf depends on the size of the cooker. A six-quart pressure cooker baking a 3-cup recipe makes a pretty short loaf. Beer bread and yeast breads are best for sandwiches and toast. Quick breads (e.g. baking powder breads) slice more easily after they are cooled, wrapped and "seasoned" for several hours or overnight.

Originally Posted by beau

Can someone give me the recipe for pressure cooker bread please.

[Capn Morgan]

Originally Posted by Astrid

In Asia, some pickling processes use oil, but also add vinegar and ground mustard seed or other spices to raise acidity. The resulting product produces lactic acid as it matures and this prevents the propagation of harmful organisms.

I cook the meat with two cups of vinegar and enough olive oil to cover the lot. Garlic, bay leaf, pepper corns and clove (just one or two pods). I've eaten this several months later with no apparent (to me) ill effects.

[hellosailor]

Canning with oil and garlic should require some caution, as garlic normally contains botulism spores simply because the garlic has come from the ground, where the spores normally will always be present. Yes, garlic preserved in oil is safe and common--but to be safe the acidity or salt level must also be high enough.

It is these little gotchas that have scared most folks away from home canning, when they have other options.

Wash or clean some fresh garlic cloves. Dice, place in small jar and cover with oil. Refrigerate for a month and watch the funny colors (green, pink, blue) develop in the jar as different critters grow in it. Yes, some of them are toxic.

[Capn Morgan]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

Canning with oil and garlic should require some caution, as garlic normally contains botulism spores simply because the garlic has come from the ground, where the spores normally will always be present. Yes, garlic preserved in oil is safe and common--but to be safe the acidity or salt level must also be high enough.

It is these little gotchas that have scared most folks away from home canning, when they have other options.

Wash or clean some fresh garlic cloves. Dice, place in small jar and cover with oil. Refrigerate for a month and watch the funny colors (green, pink, blue) develop in the jar as different critters grow in it. Yes, some of them are toxic.

Do you think the spores will survive the temperature and pressure of an hour in the pressure cooker?

[conachair]

Thanks for the info. I'm now long dead after doing everything wrong

But quick question after google didn't come up with a difinitive answer - wouldn't any anaerobic bacteria present release oxygen and mean that the dimple on the lid of the can would no longer be sucked inwards? Or more generally is it possible for a can to be spoiled if the dimple is still in?

Ta

[Greggegner]

my mother canned food her whole life, including tomatoes. We never got sick. Here are some facts:

http://www.canningpantry.com/botulism.html

Make sure you bring acidic canned food to a boil before eating them.

[hellosailor]

Capn, I don't know how long spores will survive. Nor do you know if anyone else is using your same "hour" in a pressure cooker, or maybe just 20 minutes. I've canned food and eaten canned food and I've also survived. OTOH, if I hadn't seen the funny colors in my garlic in the fridge, I could have easily killed myself.

Which many folks have in fact done over the years, one way or the other, with food poisonings, with or without canning.

I'm only suggesting that canning, like most food processing, needs to be done with attention to detail. Especially if you plan to be offshore and away from all possible aid when you are eating the results.

If I want to can, I'll use USDA or other conservative and proven safe recipes for the canning. Someone mentioned re-using lids and waiting the dimple to go down--but AFAIK every company that makes lids and seals will tell you never to re-use them, they require a perfect seal. Maybe that's just sales talk...or maybe that's a reason to use paraffin instead. But it is the little things that can get you. (Which is not to say allstorebought canned goods are safe either. Ever have a large can of tomatoes explode in the pantry? UGH.)