Easy Italian Beef Loose Meat for Pressure Canning

This loose meat filling is so good and great to have on hand for sandwiches, sauces, casseroles, pastas, hand pies…. So many uses … so little time! Can some up today!

Ingredients and Variations

Ingredients: Ground beef, sweet Italian sausage, yellow onion, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, white button mushrooms, garlic, garlic powder, onion powder, water, powdered beef bouillon, salt an pepper.

Variations: Hot Italian sausage can be used, Red pepper flakes can also be added, Italian seasoning can be added, Use the bell peppers of your choice or add in hot peppers. White mushrooms or cremini can be used or left out all together if desired,. Beef bouillon is optional, it can be left out if desired.

Canning

Before you begin, be sure to do the safety checks on your canner per manufacturer instructions. Always inspect your jars for chips and cracks and wash all equipment needed for the canning project, in hot soapy water.

Be sure to check the recipe for recommended headspace and be accurate. This is important for shelf stability and safety. Consult the USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning and Preserving for more information. https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/publications_usda.html

Easy Italian Beef Loose Meat for Pressure Canning

Recipe by Jeni Gough

4.1 from 8 votes

Processing time

75

minutes for pints

Processing time

90

minutes for quarts

Yields

14

pints or

Yields

7

quarts

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 lbs. ground beef

• 3 1/2 lbs. Italian sausage (I use sweet or mild)

• 2 large onions, chopped

• 2 green bell peppers, chopped

• 2 red bell peppers, chopped

• 8 oz mushrooms, sliced *optional

• 6 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 tbsp garlic powder

• 1 1/2 tbsp onion powder

• 1 1/2 tsp Kosher salt

• 1 tsp fresh ground black pepper

• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning * Optional

• 1 tsp red pepper flakes *Optional

• 7 tsp powdered beef bouillon

• 7 cups Hot water (May need more or less watera0

Directions

• Inspect jars for cracks and chips. Wash jars, lids and rings in hot, soapy water. Prepare pressure canner per canner instructions, filling with water. Bring canner to a low simmer.
• In a large pot, cook beef and sausage making sure to crumble meat apart. Remove grease when cooked. Add garlic, seasonings, peppers and onions. Turn off heat. (Do not cook peppers and onions)
• Bring water to boil either in a pot or with a kettle
• Fill jars with meat mixture leaving 1-inch headspace, Add a tsp of bouillon to each quart or 1/2 tsp to each pint, fill with hot water to 1-inch headspace, remove air bubbles (adding more water if need to have 1-inch headspace), wipe rims, Place on lids and rings fingertip tight. Add jars directly to simmering pressure canner.
• Process quarts for 90 minutes and process pints for 75 minutes.
• To Use: Pour contents of jar into a pan and cook on medium heat until broth evaporates, a tbsp of butter can be added to crips up the meat. Serve on buns with swiss or provolone cheese if desired. This can also be served with some au jus.

Notes

• This can be added right to a jar of tomato sauce to make pasta sauce. Its great on pizza. in casseroles, lasagna, rolled up in bread dough and baked! Great in a Runza!