Outdoor Life Prepare for Anything Survival Manual (37 page)

When it comes to raising meat for the table, some people make the mistake of thinking big. But raising a cow (or two) requires a lot of work and space. The upsides will include several hundred pounds of processed meat (depending on breed and age), a variety of uses for both meat and hide, and a dairy source. Cattle need very little in the way of shelter (a shed for the winter and a chute to help handle them)—but there are plenty of drawbacks.

SPACE
You’ll need an average of 2 acres (0.8 hectares) to raise a single cow to processing age.

TIME
A cow won’t be ready to process for 12–18 months.

FEEDING
You’ll need to provide your cattle both roughage and concentrates. Roughage includes grazable pastures, grasses, and hays. Concentrates include supplemental feeds like grains, brans, and meals. This can be costly.

BREEDING
It’s much more challenging to handle cattle breeding on a small homestead, as you’ll need to safely house a bull. In most circumstances, ranchers turn to artificial insemination to breed their herds.

RISKS
If a chicken is lost to a predator or disease, a well-managed flock can take the hit. Replacing a rabbit would take a few weeks, tops. But losing a cow means losing an enormous investment, not to mention the time and effort to replace that loss.

You really don’t need much equipment for canning. All you really need are jars, a large pot, and a way to get your jars out of the boiling water. Start by buying a few items at a time until you have everything assembled.

CANNING JARS, METAL RINGS, & NEW LIDS
These are essential supplies for canning. Make sure you use canning-jar lids, as the undercoating is designed to resist the corrosion from the high-acid foods inside. Always use new lids when you’re canning, as the rubber seal is what allows the jar to stick to the rim, and you want to make sure your undercoating is strong.

DEEP POT
Remember those old-school enamelware pots—those blue or black ones with the white dots? That’s the kind you’re after. You can find them in most hardware stores or kitchen outlets. Make sure the pot also comes with a canning rack that fits inside the base of the pot and holds the jars in place. If you don’t want to go with enamelware (or you’re not canning very much), you can also use a 9-quart (8.5-l) stock pot.

8-QUART (7.5-L) PRESERVING PAN
This will take care of most of your cooking. You want a wide pan so that jams and preserves can boil off liquids in a hurry.

WOODEN SPOON
This is an essential item for every kitchen, whether you’re canning or not. When canning preserves, you’ll use the handle to remove air bubbles inside the jar.

MISCELLANEOUS OPTIONS
Some optional elements that will make your canning easier include a scale for precise measuring of ingredients, a measuring cup or ladle, a large funnel to help fill your jars easily, a jar lifter (you can DIY one with rubber bands around metal tongs, but you’ll be happier with a specifically designed tool), and a candy thermometer.

You should be canning by season to have year-round access to the fruits (and vegetables) of your labor. Water-bath canning is far and away the most common form of home-preserving food stores. Fortunately, it’s also easy as pie.

STEP 1
Fill your canning pot with water and turn the burner on high. The water will reach a boil in about a half hour.

STEP 2
While your water is heating, thoroughly wash your canning jars, rings, and lids, even if they’re new. Put them in the canning pot and let them heat up along with the water. If a recipe calls for sterilizing a jar (just make this part a habit in any case), be sure the jar, lids, and rings are submerged in a rolling boil for a full 10 minutes.

STEP 3
Use your jar-lifter to remove the lids and rings from the boiling water, and set them aside in a heatproof bowl. Leave the jars in the boiling water until ready to fill.

STEP 4
Make the preserve or pickle as called for in the recipe. You’ll actually be performing this step during the time the water is boiling and your jars are sterilizing.

STEP 5
Fill your jars. Use a ladle or measuring cup to pour the contents slowly into your funnel. Make sure to pour the contents as close to the bottom of the funnel as possible to limit air bubbles. To fill, pull a jar out with your lifter, empty the boiling water back into the pot, then immediately fill with preserves.

STEP 6
After eliminating large air bubbles with your wooden spoon handle, put the jar lids and rings on, and tighten them down (but not too tightly). Wipe the edges clean.

STEP 7
Put your jars into the hot water bath, then turn the heat up and put the lid back on. Leave things boiling for the amount of time indicated in the recipe.

STEP 8
Remove the jars and set them aside to cool. You’ll need to leave them alone for 12 hours, undisturbed, so have a space set up out of the way for them to cool.

STEP 9
Check that all your jars have a good seal. Push down on the lid. If it doesn’t move, you have a good seal. If it “pops” up and down easily, put it in the refrigerator and eat it immediately.

If you want to can unpickled vegetables, soup stocks, meats, or beans, you must use a pressure canner. Of all the rules of canning, this one is nonnegotiable.

STEP 1
Make sure the jar rack is in the bottom of the pressure canner, then fill the canner with water to the manufacturer’s specifications. If an amount isn’t specified, start with 3 inches (8 cm) of water. If the pressure canner will be working more than 40 minutes, you’ll want to add even more.

STEP 2
If hot-packing the jars, go ahead and turn the heat on under the pressure canner. If cold-packing jars, don’t turn the heat on yet. You can crack the jars when you place them in the water.

STEP 3
Fill your clean jars no fuller than 1/2 inch (1.3 cm) from the top, then affix the lid and ring.

STEP 4
Close and seal the lid of the pressure canner, making sure to leave the petcock open in order to vent steam. When steam begins escaping vigorously, allow it to exhaust for 10 minutes.

STEP 5
Put the weighted gauge on top of the lid or close the petcock. Follow instructions for timing once the pressure canner has reached the appropriate amount of pressure (typically 10 pounds, or 4.5 kg). If the pressure drops, turn the heat up.

STEP 6
After the prescribed duration, turn off the heat and allow to cool 5 minutes. When the pressure gauge reads zero, remove the weighted gauge or open the petcock slowly. If it hisses, the canner is still under pressure and needs to cool another 5 minutes.

STEP 7
Open the lid of the canner slowly from the side away from your face. Use your jar lifter to remove the jars, then set aside to cool for 12 hours. Check for a proper seal at that time.

If you don’t have a jar lifter, you can use aluminum foil to fashion one—they’re essential for placing and removing jars or pans in your pressure cooker. Get a piece of aluminum foil that will fit all the way around the bottom of the jar, plus an additional 8 inches (20 cm). It should be long enough to loop underneath and give you handles on each side. Fold the foil lengthwise until it is about 3 inches (8 cm) wide, then grab the sides and lower the filled jar or pan into the pressure cooker. Gently fold down the handles during cooking, and use the same handles to effortlessly lift out the hot jar.

If canning vegetables makes you nervous, packing jars full of meat probably terrifies you. The reality, though, is that canning is an excellent way for you to preserve beef, chicken, pork, and fish. You don’t have to be a rancher for preserving meat to be in your best interest. If you’re confident in your canning abilities, your options for ensuring you have enough protein in an emergency situation increase exponentially.

STEP 1
You must use a pressure canner. Under no circumstances should you use a water-bath canning method. Set up your equipment and counter space as previously described (see item 172).

STEP 2
Trim the fat from your cuts. Fat takes up valuable canning space, and it also has a tendency to coat the lid of the jar, preventing a good seal.

STEP 3
Cut the meat into cubes or strips. You’ll be able to more economically pack your jars this way, rather than trying to stuff an entire steak into them.

STEP 4
Loosely pack the meat into the jars, then fill with water, brine, or stock. Stop filling about 1 inch (2.5 cm) from the top. A good guide is no higher than the lowest thread of the jar’s mouth.

STEP 5
Follow instructions for pressure canning. When you store the canned meat, make sure it is out of sunlight and in a cool, dry place.

When it comes to canning, two things can intimidate newcomers: the canning process and growing the stuff to can. The trick is getting your garden to grow the way you want it to. If you’ve been planting and cultivating a garden for some time, you already know what grows well where you live. If you’re just getting started, cut yourself some slack and follow these steps for long-term success. And remember, if you can eat it raw, you can easily pickle and preserve it.

START WITH TOMATOES
These are the root of many sauces and meals, so try planting a whole row of them.

KNOW WHAT GROWS
Expect it to take you an entire growing season to figure out what thrives in your soil. If a plant won’t grow, no amount of loving it will fill your jars.

KNOW WHAT YOU LIKE
There’s nothing wrong with planting the old standbys. Tomatoes, beans, and squash will keep you happy, and they’re usually easy to grow. But if you’re testing the soil, you should buy anything you find appealing, interesting, or even intimidating. You just might surprise yourself.

PLANT YOUR MENU
If you love spaghetti, then break down all the ingredients from sauce to pasta. With fresh eggs, you can grow your dinner from scratch.

KEEP A JOURNAL
Track the things you eat, and try to plan ahead for the things you love in the quantities you want. If those spicy canned green beans are a family favorite, plant enough for a jar per week—or more.

GROW MORE
The basic rules for a canning garden are no different than for your vegetable garden. But instead of worrying about overproduction or food going to waste, you anticipate the surplus and can it when it’s ready.