Canning Tomatoes 101 by: Patrick Barton

Click on Photo to go to the Canning Tomatoes 101 by Patrick Barton video for the full canning process.

Click on Photo to go to the Canning Tomatoes 101 by Patrick Barton video for the full canning process.

Here we are canning 50 pounds of NON-GMO Beef Steak tomatoes from Georgia. Canning tomatoes, especially a large amount of tomatoes, is one of the best ways to keep and store freshly picked garden tomatoes. Canned tomatoes will stay fresh for several years and are especially good for home made chili.

When preparing the tomatoes, wash, core, and blanch the tomatoes. Blanching means to dip the tomatoes in boiling water for approximately 30 seconds. What blanching does is makes the skin of the tomato come right off.

After blanching, place the tomatoes in an ice bath. After the ice bath, peel the skin off the tomatoes. The skins of the tomatoes will mostly come right off very easily.

Then cut the tomatoes into four pieces (also known as quartering). Continue reading

Frying with Water by B.Smith II

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How to Fry With Water

This is what I do.  This is a little tricky at first and may take  many tries and some experimentation to get it perfect.  It took me many tries to perfect it.

First, (lightly) spray a frying pan with cooking spray (optional).  (I use Spartan brand extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil because there is no fat of any kind, calories, cholesterol, or sodium.  They’re the healthiest I have found so far).  Place the meat (Steak, pork steak, pork chops, etc) in the frying pan and turn it on high heat.  Pour 8oz of water into the pan.  Season the meat as you like and place a lid over the pan.  (I use a large silver frying pan with a blue glass lid that is fairly tight to hold the heat and steam inside).  Let it “boil” for about 3 to 5 minutes.  (Honestly, I am not sure about the exact timing, because I have never timed it.  I would just look at the meat and turn it over when it looks ready.  I don’t know how else to put it into words).  Remove the lid, flip the meat over, and replace the lid, for another 3 to 5 minutes.  After this time remove the lid for good.  (With the lid, the water evaporated but was quickly replaced right back to where it started from).  Now without the lid the water will boil out.  (Pay close attention to this… you don’t want to burn the future gravy this will make).  After a few minutes the liquid, will start to thicken up.  At this time, turn the heat down to medium.  Take a flat steel or plastic spatula and press down on the meat.  Let all the water evaporate and yes this will turn the bottom of your pan brown (but try not to burn it).  (You may want to turn the heat up a little here).  Flip the meat over a couple times to brown both sides of the meat like you normally would.  Once the meat is to your liking, remove it and place it on a plate. Continue reading