Canning pulled pork

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buzzy

Smoking Fanatic
Original poster
OTBS Member
Feb 11, 2007
875
475
Cumberland Co. PA
Has anyone tried pressure canning their pulled pork? I’ve been thinking it might be better than going through the freezing process but thought I’d see if any first hand knowledge out there.
Thanks in advance!
 
If you can pork, you will have pulled pork.
If you try to can already made pulled pork, you will have pork mush. 250F is powerful in the pressure canner.
 
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Has anyone tried pressure canning their pulled pork.
Sure, for 30 something years... but you don't start with pulled pork, you start with partially smoke/cooked meat, and it tenders up during processing. Now, you can't get meat that resembles a real time 16 hour smoked pork butt, but it's very good. Here is the prep, first you cube a pork butt.
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Then you season and flavor smoke.
9MPAMEM.jpg
Next you can make smoked broth, or regular broth, to add to the jars (hot pack method). For smoky broth, I smoke some neck bones, then pressure cook them tender, and use the pot likker for a base for broth.
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The meat by-product is wonderful itself because it's now pulled pork.
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Anyways, back to the canned pork....The next step is you process the jarred meat. Here is the end result. It's shelf stable for at least 18 months.
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I used a jar last to make a Cassoulet, and it saved me a couple of hours because the pork was already tender.
KoIrFTr.jpg
For making a PP sandwiches, just smash it with a fork and heat with some jar liquid and you are good to go. Same with enchiladas or birria tacos
 
Sure, for 30 something years... but you don't start with pulled pork, you start with partially smoke/cooked meat, and it tenders up during processing. Now, you can't get meat that resembles a real time 16 hour smoked pork butt, but it's very good. Here is the prep, first you cube a pork butt.
View attachment 639428
Then you season and flavor smoke.
View attachment 639429
Next you can make smoked broth, or regular broth, to add to the jars (hot pack method). For smoky broth, I smoke some neck bones, then pressure cook them tender, and use the pot likker for a base for broth.
View attachment 639430
The meat by-product is wonderful itself because it's now pulled pork.
View attachment 639431
Anyways, back to the canned pork....The next step is you process the jarred meat. Here is the end result. It's shelf stable for at least 18 months.
View attachment 639432
View attachment 639433
View attachment 639434
I used a jar last to make a Cassoulet, and it saved me a couple of hours because the pork was already tender.
View attachment 639435
For making a PP sandwiches, just smash it with a fork and heat with some jar liquid and you are good to go. Same with enchiladas or birria tacos
Sure, for 30 something years... but you don't start with pulled pork, you start with partially smoke/cooked meat, and it tenders up during processing. Now, you can't get meat that resembles a real time 16 hour smoked pork butt, but it's very good. Here is the prep, first you cube a pork butt.
View attachment 639428
Then you season and flavor smoke.
View attachment 639429
Next you can make smoked broth, or regular broth, to add to the jars (hot pack method). For smoky broth, I smoke some neck bones, then pressure cook them tender, and use the pot likker for a base for broth.
View attachment 639430
The meat by-product is wonderful itself because it's now pulled pork.
View attachment 639431
Anyways, back to the canned pork....The next step is you process the jarred meat. Here is the end result. It's shelf stable for at least 18 months.
View attachment 639432
View attachment 639433
View attachment 639434
I used a jar last to make a Cassoulet, and it saved me a couple of hours because the pork was already tender.
View attachment 639435
For making a PP sandwiches, just smash it with a fork and heat with some jar liquid and you are good to go. Same with enchiladas or birria tacos
Thanks thirdeye ! That is very helpful info. About how long do you smoke the meat pieces?
 
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Thanks thirdeye ! That is very helpful info. About how long do you smoke the meat pieces?
I try for 1.5 to 2 hours... but you need to monitor the internal temp, and don't worry about color. I usually use my electric box smoker as it will run at lower temps, and I can block the lid open a little.

Different sources will use different descriptions of doneness for hot packing chunks or strips of meat. Some say to brown the meat in oven or skillet, some say cook to "rare", others say 1/2 to 2/3 done. So 115° - 125° internal is a good temp in my book.

The best tip when canning meats, (smoked or un-smoked) is to follow your procedure, but take notes for each batch if you make changes. My seasonings are salt as a minimum, but generally some coarse black pepper too. I don't add any BBQ rub or bottled seasoning for canning, it's easy enough to add when you reheat the meat.
 
Sure, for 30 something years... but you don't start with pulled pork, you start with partially smoke/cooked meat, and it tenders up during processing. Now, you can't get meat that resembles a real time 16 hour smoked pork butt, but it's very good. Here is the prep, first you cube a pork butt.
View attachment 639428
Then you season and flavor smoke.
View attachment 639429
Next you can make smoked broth, or regular broth, to add to the jars (hot pack method). For smoky broth, I smoke some neck bones, then pressure cook them tender, and use the pot likker for a base for broth.
View attachment 639430
The meat by-product is wonderful itself because it's now pulled pork.
View attachment 639431
Anyways, back to the canned pork....The next step is you process the jarred meat. Here is the end result. It's shelf stable for at least 18 months.
View attachment 639432
View attachment 639433
View attachment 639434
I used a jar last to make a Cassoulet, and it saved me a couple of hours because the pork was already tender.
View attachment 639435
For making a PP sandwiches, just smash it with a fork and heat with some jar liquid and you are good to go. Same with enchiladas or birria tacos

Sometimes lurker, first time poster, HI Y'ALL!!! <3 and nearly life long canner here: pressure canning, water bath canning and now approved steam canning, decades of experience.

Reviving an older thread as a result of poking around on the interwebs.

IMHO, ThirdEye gives great advice and guidance in his reply. This is *the best answer.*

On our best days, we slow smoke our pork butts over charcoal (NO LIGHTER FLUID EVAR) with a wood chip box and wood chips, and an S&S water reservoir, with remote reporting thermometers. We use a homemade mustard slather (often with homemade, home canned mustard!) and a homemade rub. Our bark is excellent, we ain't playin! We camp out in the den overnight and nap in between charcoal and reservoir refills. We pull the meat by hand at dawn, bag it up in portions, then double bag it in Ziplock freezer bags for the chest freezer. We also enjoy a dawn feast of hot off the smoker pulled by hand smoked pulled pork. It's sort of like a smoked pulled pork butt 'Grimm' episode at dawn: savage but delicious.

And then we shower and collapse in bed, lol.

THAT BEING SAID (those are my bona fides)

There are a couple of 'canning shortcuts.'

Ball canning recipes has a new-ish recipe for canned pulled pork bbq in sauce that is actually *really good.* It's great out of the jar, but the first year we made it, we added a few drops of commercial liquid smoke (I KNOW, I KNOW, THE HORROR!) to the sauce pan after we opened the jar, while we were heating it up.

This year we added a few drops to each jar while jarring up the pork, before processing. Be careful with this, a little commercial liquid smoke goes a *long* way. You can always add more after the fact but it's more difficult to mitigate too much.

I have canned pork loin cubes for decades.
It's a leaner meat than pork butt/shoulder, and more delicate, but it cans up well and easily and spices and flavorings are easily adjusted. I typically use boneless pork loin chops from Costco. I cube them up at home, spice them to taste, and quick roast/brown/sear them at high heat in Pyrex pans in the oven on high heat. If I have the luxury of time and good weather, I sear the whole chops over charcoal before cubing them up. Then we pack the jars and pressure can them.

ThirdEye has me lapped in this regard: I typically add plain water to those jars before pressure canning unless I'm canning in sauce. The meat is well seasoned before going in the jars, however.

We also garden, grow our own paste tomatoes, peppers, garlic and herbs. We make and can our own condiments, including ketchup, cocktail sauce and a couple of different bbq sauces. We also ferment and can our own hot sauce. So that also plays into the mix as well.

Hi, Y'all! Happy to be here!
 
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