I am in full Canuary mode in my house and it’s going great. I love adding the unexpected flavor profiles that you just wouldn’t expect to come out of a jar to my pantry shelves. Over the years I have found, or I have created some incredibly flavorful canning options. Not all of these methods are USDA approved. It’s what some might call “Rebel Canning” so all the recipes I share within my blog are to show you how and what I do in my kitchen. It’s entirely up to you whether you decide to try them. I’m not advocating either way. I’m just sharing some of my absolute tried and true favorites from over the years. ~ xo, Shawn
I decided one day in December as I was sitting with a nice hot cup of Christmas Tea from the Bar Harbor Tea Company, which is literally my favorite tea in the world, that for Canuary 2023 I was going to share canning recipes that had unexpected flavor profiles. I wanted jars to contain not only delicious contents, but ones with pizzazz. After thinking about it for a while I narrowed it down to the few I could share during this special month. So far, I have shared those Ah-Mazing peppered bacon green beans… a total flavor game changer! It’s like southern cuisine in a jar! Life doesn’t get much better than that… or does it? Because after that flavor profile, I yanked you all into the unexpected canning atmosphere by canning Asian chicken thighs! The flavor in that sauce… oh my word, it’s tangy but slightly sweet, the sriracha doesn’t lend heat, it lends flavor. Each and every ingredient in that dish can be tasted in the most cohesive way possible. The sauce is so versatile it’s just an absolute must in one’s recipe repertoire, whether you’re a canner or not. And now I’m sure you’re wondering where this is heading flavor wise, so let me get right down to it. We’re heading back to 1950-ish and we’re going to can an iconic and staple in Continental cuisine: Steak Diane. For those unfamiliar with this delicious dish, allow me to give you a little information about it.
Steak Diane was created in the 1930’s in London. Originally cooked table-side and sometimes flambeed it quickly became a standard in Continental cuisine from 1940-1960 and could be found in many upscale restaurants. Recipes vary slightly but this dish basically a great filet with this classic British sauce served over steak. In essence this sauce is a creamy pepper sauce flavored with brandy, mustard & Worcestershire sauce which creates a wonderful and unexpected bold flavor profile … and we all know how I like to keep these types of unexpected flavors in my canned jars. This dish is now considered vintage cuisine and not seen too often, but I think it’s time to revive this amazing flavor profile in a unique and ingenious way… In the canner! This dish does require an additional ingredient when heating it up, and that’s some heavy cream. But that’s an easy addition to add and that is what gives this dish it’s creaminess. Now. For those worried about adding brandy to the dish and serving to kids, don’t worry. When you cook with liquors or wines the alcohol content is cooked completely out of the dish leaving only the flavor behind. And what a wonderful flavor it is! It’s nothing like the raw taste of liquor. This recipe calls for the hot pack method which means our jars, contents and canner will all start hot. Always important to remember so you don’t have thermal breakage. I’ll be using wide-mouth quarts for this recipe; you can use pints if you’d like. If you only have standard size jars it would work as well. If you’d like to watch me prepare this canning recipe, just click here!
[recipe title= "Canning Steak Diane" Difficulty= "Easy"]
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp. Avocado Oil
- 5 lbs. London Broil Roast, cut in half and sliced into medallions
- Sea Salt
- 1 tsp. Pepper
- 1 c. Brandy or Cognac
- 1 c. Sweet Diced Onion
- 5 Cloves garlic, minced
- 1 Shallot, diced
- 3 Tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce
- 2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
- 4 c. Beef Stock
- 6 oz. Can tomato paste
- 1/4 c. Dried parsley
Start by inspecting the jars, lids, and rings you’ll be using to make sure they free from cracks, defects, rust, or dents. Replace any item that has any of those and as always, when in doubt, toss it out. Next, clean them up in hot soapy water and rinse well. After they are cleaned and rinsed fill each jar with hot water and let it sit in there while you prepare the ingredients. This keeps the jars hot which we need to do to avoid thermal breakage when we put them in the hot canning water.
Next, I’m going to add them to a hot cast iron pan that has a little hot coconut oil waiting in there and add a little salt and pepper. This should only take a minute or two. You want you pan searing hot and ready. I’m not trying to cook the meat, just give it a little bit of caramelization. Just to give it a little bit of color, which is ALSO flavor. And I’m going to do them in small batches for two reasons.
- The pan is hot and ready to seer the meat so without crowding it will happen quickly, and I can remove it quicker. I’m not trying to cook it.
- If you crowd your meats in a pan, it creates steam withing the small pockets of the crowded meat. Steam doesn’t caramelize, it does however create LOTS of liquid which will completely steam cook the meat.
So, for those two important reasons I never crowd my pans. The one and only Julia Child taught me that and I’ve never forgotten those rules. Once each batch is done, I just set it aside in a bowl. Now I’m going to add the mushrooms also in batches for a super quick minute on each side, again just for some caramelization and color and I’m going to remove them as well when they’re done. If you used too much oil and there is still quite a bit in the pan, use a paper towel to sop up the grease. You don’t want that in your jars. Next add the brandy and deglaze the pan on high heat making sure to scrape and release all the bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. That’s flavor you don’t want to leave behind! In a large pot add the meat, the deglazed pan drippings, some onions, and garlic, and shallots, some Worcestershire sauce and Dijon mustard. Mix well and boil for 5 minutes stirring occasionally. In a separate bowl mix together some good beef stock and some tomato paste. Incorporate them well into each other and then add that to the pot with the other ingredients. Bring to a boil and again let it go for 5 more minutes.
Dump the water out of a hot canning jar and using a spider strainer and a jar funnel remove the meat from the pot and fill each jar about ¾ of the way full. Repeat for each jar you’re processing. Once the meat has been disbursed take a ladle and add the broth from the pot into the jars leaving a 1” headspace. Do this for all the jars. De-bubble and readjust the liquid into any jars that may need it, so they all still have a 1” headspace. Clean the rims and the sides of your jar necks with white vinegar reserving any left-over vinegar for your canning pot. Set the lids on top and add the rings finger tight.
Place the jars in your hot, ready-to-go canner, dump the leftover vinegar in and lock the lid in place. Let the pressure build up and the canner vent. Once you see a steady stream of steam set a timer for 10 minutes. Add your weight after 10 minutes and allow the canner to come to your specific PSI number. Once it reaches that number start your timer. An hour and a half for quarts, and an hour and fifteen minutes for pints. Once done remove to a surface to cool. When it’s safe to remove the rings, take them off and leave the jars overnight. Check the seals in the morning. If any did not seal place them in the refrigerator and use for up to 5 days, or you could reprocess. Label and date the jars and put them up on your pantry shelves until it’s their time to shine. You will also want to include on the lids to add ¼ c. heavy cream when you’re heating it up.
Don’t forget to journal your experience in your canning journal for reference. If you find it too watery for your liking when you’re heating it up, you could add a little slurry of arrowroot to it. Cornstarch works just fine too. I wouldn’t use flour however as it will still tend to kind of taste raw. This dish is fabulous with roasted potatoes and a nice little side salad or served over buttered buttermilk biscuits. I even enjoy it over creamy, buttery mashed potatoes. It’s a great unexpected flavor for your shelves. And I hope you ‘ll give it a try.
[/recipe]
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