Ground Beef Mix
(A variation on a recipe from Farm Journal. Makes
about 8 pints. This is a "ready to go" sauce mix…the makings for
wonderful, quick main dishes such as spaghetti, lasagna, tacos, sloppy joes, pizza,
chili, etc. Spices can be added when it is heated up. This is a great way to
use up ground beef when a beef is slaughtered, saving freezer space and will be
a great addition to food storage when electricity is scarce.)
4 # lean ground beef (or even ground game meat)
4 Tbl. tomato paste
15 oz. can tomato sauce
1 quart blended
tomatoes (OR water and more
tomato paste.)
3 tsp. salt
pinch of pepper
1/3 c. beef
broth
2 c. finely
chopped onions
1 to 2 C. finely chopped celery (optional, but a really great addition.)
Brown beef until almost all pink is gone. Add other ingredients. Bring to a boil. Load into pint jars, leaving 1" head
space. Use a knife to remove any air
pockets. Wipe rims with a clean, wet
cloth and put on lids, then rings. Hand
tighten firmly. You CAN use a glass top electric stove, but
heat the canner SLOWLY, starting at no more than LOW or 3. Then gradually increase heat but DO NOT
use high heat. Put the lid on the canner WITHOUT the pressure
gauge until you see a good stream of steam rising out of the top. Place gauge on, about Med-High heat. Process
in pressure canner at 10# for 75 minutes.
15# for high altitude. Once it starts to jiggle, reduce heat and set
timer. Adjust heat so that it jiggles
a couple of times a minute. Usually, this is
Med-Low. You might have to keep
adjusting/lowering the heat. Do NOT
leave un-attended.
When timer goes off, turn heat off and let
pressure drop. When it has dropped
completely, remove gauge and lid. Jars may be left in canner until cool or
lifted out. They WILL be bubbling for a
long time. This is normal. Lids should seal within 20 minutes or so.
