Roast Mutton in Cans
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the cans
Cut the raw mutton into pieces that fit into 2-lb. cans.
Sprinkle coarse sea salt over the meat.
Stuff the meat into the cans and cap them.
Process the meat
Cover the cans with water and process in a retort.
Screw down the cover securely and introduce live steam to reach 10 lbs. pressure (240°F).
Maintain this temperature for one hour.
Release the pressure.
Remove the cans.
Shower them with cold water until they "blow" 2-3 feet high.
Vent and finish
Open the cans at the vent with a suitable awl.
Stop the vents again.
Return the cans to the retort and boil for one hour at 12 lbs. pressure.
Remove the cans.
Shower them again.
They are ready for labeling.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Raw mutton
- Provides the meat, which becomes tender as sustained high-temperature steaming breaks down its connective tissue.
The step that matters
Holding the pressure steady for one hour. Sustained temperature well above boiling is what tenderizes the meat and destroys microbes. Shortening the hold or letting pressure drop can leave the meat tough and the canned product unsafe.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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