Stew is a durable product. You can store it without a refrigerator for quite a long time, if cooked correctly. Canned meat has become a real help not only for tourists, but also for all people who sometimes need to cook something for a quick hand. The information provided in the article reveals the main culinary tricks of cooking homemade stew in an autoclave. We will also talk about what the aggregate is, how the product is obtained. Errors will be considered, due to which the result may be unsuccessful. Next, share the best recipes for stewing in an autoclave.
Does it make sense to cook the stew yourself?
About a third of the Russian population eats stew, which served to increase its production. About a hundred items of meat preparations from beef, pork, poultry and rabbit are supplied to stores. A product made from large pieces of pulp, as well as in the form of pastes, is produced; combinations of stew and cereal are often found.
There are TU and GOSTs for food production. As for stews of the highest and first grade, the content should be as follows:
- not less than 54 percent of the pulp in pieces of about 30 grams;
- no more than 17 percent of fat;
- salt;
- pepper;
- Bay leaf.
Other grades may contain veins, pressed meat, offal, cartilage, trimmings, skins and soybeans. In addition, food additives are allowed in the preparation, which make the taste and color more similar to the "real" meat.
Despite the huge assortment of names and varieties, out of 14 tested domestic canned meat, only 4 passed the control for compliance with the declared variety and the number of food additives. That is, the remaining 10 are lower quality products with a high content of preservatives, dyes and other harmful additives, but for the price of a premium product. Here's the answer to the question, is it worth it to tinker with homemade products, or is it easier to buy a finished store product.
Cooking stews in an autoclave is not a difficult task, and everyone will cope with it. The company will be beneficial not only to everyone who has a household, but also to people who buy meat in a supermarket.
What is an autoclave?
It is a specially designed unit for sterilization. It is used in medicine to sterilize instruments; in the automotive industry, an autoclave is needed to produce distilled water, which is needed for batteries. Only in the sixties of the last century, the device began to be widely used at home.
The unit itself resembles equipment from a laboratory. This is a metal case with a tight-fitting lid. There is a manometer, a thermometer and a fitting on top! Air is pumped into the system, and the instruments can monitor the pressure and temperature inside the device.
Despite the apparent complexity, cooking a stew at home in an autoclave is quite simple. You do not need to be a specialist in the aviation industry to learn how to use the device. Once you understand its functioning, you can no longer refuse the services of such an aggregate. In addition, the recipes obtained through this production are very tempting. A detailed preparation of the stew in an autoclave will be discussed in the following.
Principle of operation
After startup, the device quickly heats up to about 120 degrees, and the pressure in it is maintained at a level of 4-5 atmospheres, under these conditions, preservation is performed. The design of the device itself is so simple that many craftsmen create it independently, and an empty gas cylinder is suitable for these purposes.
If you decide to buy a ready-made autoclave, then you can choose from the available options:
- volumes: from 20 to more than 40 liters;
- designs: vertical and horizontal;
- control panels;
- heating methods: electric, gas;
- Materials: food grade steel or aluminum.
Most often, the classic technology for cooking stews in an autoclave is used for meat preparations. But you can diversify recipes by adding all kinds of ingredients in the form of vegetables and cereals.
Technology
This technology is applicable to any kind of meat. You can use beef (but only fatty, or with the addition of this ingredient, since the product is stored little without it), pork, rabbit, poultry.
- For the preparation of stews in the autoclave do not use frozen products. You need to take fresh or thawed meat - any, cut it into pieces that can easily go to the jar. It is advisable to use pieces from different parts of the carcass. In this case, you need to remove all the brain guests. If you want to make a stew on the bones, then choose the ribs, chop them so that they fit freely in the container. Adding fat is additionally mandatory, with it the stew will be stored many times longer. The meat itself does not absorb it, it will be juicy, and with further cooking, excess fat can simply be removed.
- Cans and lids must be thoroughly washed. Next, inspect the container, it should not be chipped and rust.
- Spices and salt are put in the jars first, only then the meat is laid.
- Pieces should be arranged in such a quantity that several centimeters remain to the top, this place will be needed for the juice that stands out.
- Roll up the jars tightly, or close them with metal lid-twists, set in an autoclave with a small distance from each other. Next, fill in water in an amount that completely covers the container.
- The cooking time for stewed meat in an autoclave is the same for any kind of meat, regardless of whether it has bones or not. And you can calculate the approximate amount guided by the cooking process itself: tightly close the lid of the device, pump up pressure in 1.5 atmospheres, maximum 2, so as not to rip the lids off the future stew. After half an hour, increase the temperature to 120 degrees, with it the pressure rises - up to about 4.5-5 atmospheres. Cook for 20 minutes, and then begin to gradually lower the temperature. First, reduce to 30 degrees, then to cool completely, only then can pressure be set to zero. You can’t let out more hot air, because of the sharp pressure drop, the cans can burst.
- Open the lid of the device, pull out the cans after they have completely cooled. Wipe with a cloth, put in a safe place from children and animals upside down, so that the fat rises.
- Once the fat has hardened, the cans can be turned over, put into storage in the refrigerator, underfloor, closet.
Next, we offer you to get acquainted with the best recipes for making homemade stew in an autoclave. From the meat we will choose chicken and beef, and we will cook with cereals, vegetables, or already pickled pieces. You get a real merger.
Chicken stew
It is advisable to take chilled whole chicken or meat in the store, but only farm. Industrial products often contain harmful additives, and the result is not a stew, but something resembling jelly. The following ingredients will be required to make chicken stew in an autoclave:
- a kilogram of boneless chicken;
- 500 grams of pork fat (not fat, it is fat);
- 100 grams of carrots and onions;
- bay leaves - according to the number of cans;
- black and sweet peas - 2 pieces per half-liter jar;
- salt to taste.
Autoclave Chicken Stew
- Divide the meat into portions, which are conveniently placed in a jar and removed from it.
- Onions need to be cut into rings, carrots in round shapes.
- Place the pork fat in a pan and melt it.
- Wash the jars well, check for chips and cracks, it is more convenient to use half-liter. Covers should be free of rust.
- Put one bay leaf, two peas of black pepper and two allspice on the bottom of the jar, pour salt (ideally 1 teaspoon without a slide, but this is a matter of taste).
- Put a layer of meat, on top a layer of onions, then carrots, and so alternate until the last layer of meat is obtained from above. There should be a distance to the top of a few centimeters.
- Pour pork fat into each jar so that it passes between the pieces, but does not cover them from above, the distance to the edge should remain the same.
- Close the containers, place the autoclave, cook according to the technology described above.
Pickled Chicken Stew
This is not a kebab, and we will pickle chicken for stews differently, which we will write further. In the meantime, check out the ingredients necessary for cooking:
- kilogram of chicken;
- 400 grams of butter;
- three tablespoons of finished mustard;
- two large onions;
- two bell peppers;
- bay leaf (piece per jar);
- two peas of black and allspice per 0.5 l can;
- salt to taste.
Cooking method
- Chicken should be cut into convenient pieces, mixed with mustard and marinated for an hour.
- During the pickling period, we will prepare an additional component: chop the onion in half rings, peel and chop the cubes, melt the butter in a frying pan, lightly fry the onion and pepper on it.
- Check cans for damage, rinse well.
- Put peppercorns, bay leaves and salt on the bottom.
- Put in a jar for 2/3 of the meat, put the fried vegetables on top and pour oil, and so on in each container. Do not forget to leave a distance.
Autoclave beef stew recipe
Beef can be cooked according to any of the prescribed recipes, because it is also lean. In addition, we offer to get acquainted with another great cooking method, which will be a real salvation for busy people. And for a regular family dinner in haste, such a recipe is suitable. Cook the stew immediately with the cereal.
Ingredients:
- a kilogram of beef tenderloin;
- 200 grams of any favorite cereal (rice, barley, buckwheat);
- 300 grams of butter;
- two onions;
- big carrots, you can have two;
- Bay leaf;
- peas of allspice and black;
- salt.
How to cook stew with cereals
- The meat must be cut, removing the veins.
- Boil the cereals after boiling for ten minutes without salt.
- Melt the butter, fry the onion in half rings and carrot sticks on it.
- In prepared jars, put on a bay leaf, two peas of one and the other pepper.
- Mix the meat with rice, fried vegetables, arrange in banks, observing the proportions. Leave a few centimeters to the top, otherwise the container will explode!
- Cook according to the prescribed technology.
With these simple methods you can cook a varied, delicious homemade stew!