Saturday, January 1, 2011

We Like Meat

We never completely finished processing all the meat from the musk ox C.O. shot last fall.  Dealing with the meat and the hide all at once can be a daunting task.  So we threw some big chunks of meat in the freezer to process at a later time. Christmas break allowed us the time we needed to make our final meat treats.  

Homemade Musk Ox Jerky.
 
Step 1: Grind Meat
Step 2: Add seasoning
Step 3: Extrude
Step 4: Dehydrate / Cook
Harold's cheeks get bigger when he's concentrating.

The rest, we canned.  We're big fans of canned meat.  We save the toughest, less choice cuts of meat for canning.  Cooking under pressure breaks down the fibers leaving it ultra tender.  Also, the meat is thoroughly cooked, so it makes a good last minute meal.  Just throw it in the microwave or in a stew and heat. 
First pack the meat and add some seasoning of your choice.  
Be sure to add at least one tsp of canning salt per pint.
 
Then cook in a water bath until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 170 degrees.
 
Wipe the rims clean before adding the lids.
Cover in the pressure cooker and bring to 11 pounds of pressure.
Cook for 90 minutes.
The final product!  The house smells delicious.  
It's best to wait a few weeks before eating. 
It takes a while for the flavors to peek.
Our go to resources for projects such as this.
~AnnMarie

4 comments:

James and Charity said...

Wow, those pictures (not to mention all that work) are fabulous!

Charity

tiff said...

WE did this when we were living in Elim...and then gave it as gifts...only to find out the following summer that all that hard work was sitting on the shelf in every families pantry...fortunately or unfortunately for all of them...we made dinner using the canned caribou, so they could all try it! smiles!!!!

your photos are fantastic...love seeing the process done!

Soren said...

If any of this makes it's way back to Minnesota, I want to try it. I need to add Musk Ox to my list of animals eaten.

The Rudstroms said...

Thanks for the photo compliments!

@Eluciq -- I often wonder about that happening to some of the gifts we give. Does anyone actually put those furry baby booties on their kids? Hmmmm?

@Soren-- I'm surprised you didn't get any either time you were at our house. Are you sure you haven't had it? We'd be happy to share.

~AnnMarie