Canning Chili Con Carne
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Enjoy the convenience of your own homemade canned chili straight from your pantry shelf! Canning chili is easy and it enables you to enjoy shelf-stable food that will keep for up to a year. Just grab a jar, heat it up, and enjoy!
Be sure to also check out my tutorial on Canning Baked Beans!
I’ve been canning for many years, but the first several years only used the water-bath method. So that means I had mostly been making jams, relishes, chutneys, pickles, salsas and other high-acidic foods that are safe for water-bath canning. For most other things you need a pressure canner. Pressure canning enables you to safely preserve a ton of other foods, like this chili con carne. Unlike freezer meals that take up a lot of space in the freezer and generally only keep for up to 3 months, pressure canned meals can be stored on the shelf and keep for about a year.
So forget the canned foods at the grocery stores that are full of preservatives, additives and fillers – can your own food! It not only tastes a heck of a lot better, it’s a heck of a lot better for you! You have full control over what goes in it – and what doesn’t.
I’ve been pressure canning up a storm of foods lately – mostly soups, stews, and a variety of flavored beans, and I’ve gotta tell you, it’s so satisfying to walk into your pantry or basement and see shelves stacked with homemade canned goods that you know will be there when you need a quick and tasty meal! Not to mention they’re perfect for emergency preparedness and food storage should the need ever arise.
Canning chili is easy and I’m going to show you how!
Canning Chili Recipe
Let’s get started!
The beans: Soak them in water overnight so they’re covered by at least 4 inches of water. The next day, drain and rinse and boil in fresh water for 30 minutes. Drain and set aside until ready to use.
Prepare the pressure canner: (Depending on which brand and model you use – follow the instructions for you pressure canner) Fill it with 4 inches of water, put the lid on (but do not put the weight on) and bring it to a boil while you’re finishing up the last steps of the chili-making process.
Now on to the chili: Fry the beef in a little bit of oil until no pink remains. Add the onions and garlic and cook until soft and translucent, 5-7 minutes. Drain off as much fat as you can. (Too much oil will interfere with the canning process and prevent the jars from sealing properly.)
Add the seasonings and cook for another minute. *Do not add any flour or cornstarch for thickening, it will interfere with the canning process.
Add all remaining ingredients.
Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
Ladle the chili into hot sterilized jars leaving 1 inch headspace. Using a funnel is best to avoid spillage. You can get this Ball Utensil Set which includes the funnel and jar lifter, both of which are musts.
Then use a wet paper towel or cloth dipped in vinegar and run it along the rim of the jar to make sure there is no sauce or oil (which will prevent the lids from sealing).
Tap the jars to remove any air bubbles (again, bubbles will interfere with the canning process and can cause the contents to leak out).
Place the lids on each jar and firmly (but not excessively so) screw on the rims. Follow the directions for your specific pressure cooker. I use and like the Presto 23-quart Pressure Canner. It’s good quality and big enough to hold quart- and gallon-sized jars and lots of pint-sized jars.
You’ll need to process pint jars at 10 pounds for 75 minutes. Quart jars are processed for 90 minutes.
Keep the jars stored in a cool, dark place. They’ll keep for at least one year.
Enjoy the convenience of wholesome, ready-made homemade food!
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Pressure Canner Chili Con Carne
Ingredients
- 3 pounds dried kidney or pinto beans (or combination) , soaked overnight then drained and rinsed
- 3 tablespoons oil
- 3 pounds lean ground beef
- 3 large yellow onions , chopped
- 6 cloves garlic , minced
- 1/3 cup chili powder (click link for our homemade chili powder!)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 tablespoons salt
- 2 tablespoons ground cumin
- 3 tablespoons beef bouillon base
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 6 14.5 ounce cans diced tomatoes
- 6 14.5 ounce cans tomato sauce
- 3 cups water
Instructions
- Place the soaked/rinsed beans in clean water in a large stock pot and bring to a rapid boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 30 minutes. Drain and rinse. Set aside.
- Heat the oil in a very large stock pot (at least 12 quarts) and brown the ground beef. Add the onions and garlic and cook until soft and translucent, 6-8 minutes. Drain off as much fat as you can. (Too much oil will interfere with the canning process and prevent the jars from sealing properly.) Add the seasonings and cook for another minute. *Remember, do not add any flour or cornstarch for thickening, it will interfere with the canning process. Add all remaining ingredients. Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Ladle the chili into hot sterilized jars leaving 1 inch headspace. Using a funnel is is best to avoid spillage. Then use a wet paper towel or cloth dipped in vinegar and run it along the rim of the jar to make sure there is no sauce or oil (which will prevent the lids from sealing). Tap the jars to remove any air bubbles (again, bubbles will interfere with the canning process and can cause the contents to leak out). Place the lids on each jar and firmly (but not excessively so) screw on the rims.
- Follow your pressure canner's instructions for processing. I use the Presto 23 Quart Pressure Canner (you'll need one this large to process quart-sized jars). For this model you'll bring 4 inches of water to a boil, place the bottles inside and let it vent for 10 minutes. Then place the weight cap on it and process pint jars at 10 pounds for 75 minutes and quart jars for 90 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and let it cool until the temperature drops to zero. Remove the jars and let them sit undisturbed for 24 hours, then store in a cool, dark place. Will keep for at least a year.Makes about 22 pints or 11 quarts.
Nutrition
Hi, I’m Kimberly Killebrew and welcome to Daring Gourmet where you'll find delicious originals, revitalized classics, and simply downright good eats from around the world! Originally from Germany, later raised in England, world-traveled, and now living in the U.S., from my globally-influenced kitchen I invite you to tour the world through your taste buds!
I made this today substituted Turkey Breast meat for the beef and used Turkey Broth instead of water. I added 2 red and 2 green peppers. Omitted the beef bouillon. This was very good and easy.
I made a batch, using at least double the chili powder, and we tried a jar that didn’t seal. It was great! I am making another batch so my son’s family will have quick dinners for the cold winter ahead. Thank you for a great recipe!!
Thank you, Debbie, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Hello can I use dried black beans soaked overnight?
Hi Jamie, yes you can.
Thank you so much I’m new to pressure canning. I’ll let you know how it turns out
I’m from the Southwest, where adding a lot of vegetables other than onions, garlic, beans, and chile peppers is not even considered “chile con carne”. You can add anything you want to but it won’t be classic Chile. That includes adding a lot of tomatoes as well, although I do often add a smidgen to mine.
I don’t think you can get much further south than Raymondville Texas. We always had tomatoes in our chili.
Sorry, dear, that ain’t how it works.
We’re not all from Georgia, anyway. :)
Canning “authorities” are all over the country, they only approve what they have tested, and most of the testing is OLD OLD OLD. So we’re forced to learn the rules. Ball and a few others stay current.
I might gently suggest that you spend some time learning the basics of canning. Don’t use any flour, cornstarch, or thickeners. Stay away from dairy,whey, other than maybe a tiny spoon of real butter. Better N Bullion has whey, don’t use it. The rules are pretty easy after you know them.
All spices are approved, tomatoes are really good as they raise the acid level, most vegetables are fine, but a few come out disgusting. Everything in this recipe is fine.
Chili with only unadulterated chile powder (ground chilis) isn’t even good hamburger, let alone chili.
Just don’t listen to anybody on YouTube, they’ll kill ya dead.
Can you substitute canned kidney beans for dried? If so, do you know how many cups replace dried beans?
Can I add corn to this my family likes it like that
I want to can 1/2 pints of chili I already have made to use for chili dogs (it’s just two of us). I’m also going to be canning some ground beef in pints as well. Do I need to process the 1/2 pints for the full 75 minutes or should I do slightly fewer? If I have the space can I just process them with the pints of ground beef?
Half pints go for the same time as pints.
Your temperature is too high, when you reach 10 – 15lb (depending on your altitude) of pressure the regulator will jiggle and you can slowly back down the temperature while keeping the pressure constant. Turning the heat down too fast will cause siphoning.