Hello:

Every once in a while, someone somewhere in the family gives me a jar of deer meat. For the longest time, I never thought anything of using it, until I started canning a few years ago. Everything I can, I go by the ball blue book tha I purchased with the pressure canner.

So with this knowledge, I'm aware that low acid food and meats have to be canned in a pressure canner to achieve the required temprature of 240 degrees.

My problem is, I'm certain I'm the only one in my family who uses a pressure canner. Everyone else cans everything in a boiling water bath. Including meat. Granted, they boil it for hours, but it's still just boiling water.

Will someone get sick from eating meats canning in a boiling water bath? Of course it's possible, to say that no one in my family has never had food poisioning isn't true, it happens to someone in the family at least once a year.

I've had LIGHT food poisioning before, and I know it's something I'd rather not do again. And I do like deer meat, but I'm afraid to cook it. I'm wondering if the lid hasn't popped on one of these jars, can I reprocess the meat in the pressure canner without ruining the food? Or would it do any good at all?

And yes I know that should I do that, I would have to use a clean hot jar, with a new lid.

I wouldn't take a chance if at all possible. Or call a butcher . You would be surprised how many times before the net I would call professionals and just ask if I could ask a question.So many people, if given the time love to share their craft with you.

I've had people tell me if you cook something hot enough all the bacteria is gone.
I'm quite sure that does not always apply.

I don't know what food poisoning lite is like LOL but I had food poisoning before and I can see why you would never want it again.

You seem to know what your doing but 1 case per year in your family seems like a lot for food poisoning.

Take care!

Thanks for the reply, I'll give that a shot next time I'm around a professional meat cutter.

By "light" food poisioning, meaning I never went to the hospital or anything, but I was definitely thinking I was going to die for about a week.

And by family, I mean, cousins, aunts uncles, the whole shabang. Probably a total of 200 or so people.

I wouldn't take a chance if at all possible. Or call a butcher . You would be surprised how many times before the net I would call professionals and just ask if I could ask a question.So many people, if given the time love to share their craft with you.
That's why I love being a librarian - we go right to the horse's mouth to answer patrons' questions. And people love to be asked, love to be considered an expert. Go to your local library if you have a similar question, so the librarians can make the call on their dime.

To Andrew, be very very careful with home-canned food. Not only can you get sick, but you can also get dead!

Only trouble is, around here, 2/3's of people who home can, are afraid of a pressure canner and don't use one.

So, it stands to reason, that 2/3's of the people I ask will give me tha "ahhh, it'll be alright"...

But then, there is that one out of three.

To Andrew, be very very careful with home-canned food. Not only can you get sick, but you can also get dead!


Yea, I have a great respect for the proper canning process. In some areas around the house (as will be evident by some of my advise here) I'm all for rigging, and fixing things with duct tape and sticks, BUT

When it comes to consumables, I'm all about safety. Last summer while watching the canner, I would just sit there on a stool in the kitchen and just read the ball book, page for page.

Everything I can goes strictly by that book. However it doesn't say anything about what to do with food that you really want to eat that wasn't canned "by the book", hence my question here.

My mother's motto is, "When in doubt, throw it out."