A while back, I mentioned that I’m having to change some of my preparedness food stocks due to digestive issues from being hit by lightning. For all that I am Blessed to have gotten up again, and have seen some miraculous healing on the cardiac front, my digestive system has some issues. A few weeks ago, after the first major intestinal flare in two or three years sent me to the ER, I decided to go hardcore.
I won’t bore you with all the details, but among other issues is the need to avoid beans and bean products (including oils from beans, like soybeans among others). In fact, avoiding most seed oils has been presented as a good idea, along with avoiding legumes, sugar, grains, and other delights. Given that I was born allergic to almost everything but meat, dairy, chocolate, and potatoes, I’m eating pretty much what I could eat then just minus the potatoes. In short, I’m pretty much on a carnivore diet via eating meat, cheese, mushrooms, and some onion. I do get some peppers on occasion, but have to watch them as they can set things off. To answer a question I was asked recently, spices are not a direct cause, but they can be an aggravating factor.
So, I went hardcore about four (five?) weeks ago. Add in no alcohol to the above too. Week before last met with my doctor after having blood work done. Amazingly good results, and anything that wasn’t where I wanted it was trending towards where I wanted it. My triglycerides were down by half, the digestive system was happy, and we are on a path that could see me off most or all cardiac medicines in a year. Part depends on getting the gym on a regular basis for some intense workouts, and I’m trying to make that happen despite coursework and other demands on my time.
So, I’ve been working to add a lot more meat to my emergency stocks. A couple of months ago, I bought into a bulk deal that got me about 60 pounds of beef for a very reasonable price (less than a formal 1/8 of a cow) from a local farm and butcher. I think you can guess my thoughts on some of the USDA regulations and the processing monopoly (President Trump nuke that nightmare now!). Half the beef was ground beef, all was frozen, and I wanted to explore a shelf-stable option for some of it. So, I tried my hand at canning some of it.
For my first time canning ground beef, it didn’t go too bad. I got some very good advice from a friend (who is a certified food preservation expert) and went at it. I par-cooked the ground beef and tried to get rid of as much fat as I could. In a true survival situation, getting enough fat is the big problem. Eating six large moths as I was taught really wasn’t that appealing. Yet, fat in canning can have a negative effect on the sealing. I actually ended up with more fat than I expected, and plan to do things a bit different next time.
Yes, I used boiling water as dry canning isn’t the way to go no matter how many rebel canning videos you watch. May switch it for homemade beef stock next time. Besides, the “water” ends up filled with nutrients, including fat, and can be used to add to your water/liquid requirements for the day. It is a very useful way to augment your water supplies. Neat watching the jars continue to boil even after coming out of the pressure canner.
And, as you can see here, more fat in there than I intended. Next time, plan to do the separation differently so as to reduce the fat in the jars while adding to the fat I can render/refine into beef tallow. Yes, I have started rendering my own beef tallow to go with the bacon drippings and other delights.
Number of lessons learned, and plan to kick things up a notch next go round. Plan to do some ground beef with homemade taco seasoning, some with homemade chili seasoning, etc. Really want to can some of my good chili, and in reviewing what the big book of Ball has to say seems doable. Also, plan to can soups and some broth here soon. More on that when it happens.
Next up, my adventures canning some beef brisket. Nice thing was, not only got canned meat, but some really good tallow and beef consomme out of it.
Getting hit by lightning is not fun! It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. If you would like to help me with seminary courses, pilgrimages, and more, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. Thank you.