Canned Meat

I was doing a little research, getting ready for hurricane season and I stumbled upon an article on canned meat. It is certainly heavier and takes up more space than freeze dried food but the more I read about the shelf life and the taste the more I thought I might give it a try.

I has to go to Walmart anyway (closest option for what I was looking for and they didn't even have it) so I hit the 'canned meat' section and here's what I got with [price size and nutrition per 2 oz serving:
DAK Canned Ham - $3.97, 1 lb, 100 cal, 7 fat, 0 carb, 9 protein
Great Value Chunk Chicken Breast in water - $2.38, 12.5 oz, 45 cal, 1 fat, 0 carb, 9 protein
Great Value Roast Beef in Beef Broth - $2.74, 12 oz, 70 cal 1.5 fat, 0 carb, 13 protein
Great Value Vienna Sausage - $.43, 4.6 oz, 120 cal, 20 fat, 2 carb, 14 protein

Everything I got has a best used by date of mid 2018, but from everything I've read they should be good for 10 years if the can stays intact.

I'm sure the water is taking up a portion of the weight in each can, but these prices seemed pretty reasonable to me give the cost of meat at the grocery store versus having to can them myself, which would mean buying the gear and then actually doing it.

From a nutrition and hunger standpoint, I can't really see eating 2 oz, unless I was going to have to live on it for quite some time. For instance the Ham would cover a family of 4 for a meal at 4 oz each, but even then it's only 200 calories so the rice and beans will have to cover a lot of the rest of the caloric intake.

That load cost me about $10, so for $100 I could get 10 of each and that would seem to cover about 20 days of fat and protein for 4 and with pretty easy preparation - it could also be eaten cold as it is all fully cooked. Any other good options you guys know of?

Try the tuna, smoked oysters, sardines and salmon in your local store. They add variety and valuable fish oils to your diet; they taste fine cold; they are often lower in sodium that canned land meats.

Cost per ounce may be higher but packages are usually smaller and you won't have to worry about chilling leftovers ( except maybe salmon).
These would be to supplement what you have going on, not replace it.

I like canned seafood, but the wife doesn't. I'm going to grab some tuna for my bag at a minimum. What's the cheapest you've seen? I saw them for $.83 at Walmart.

Man, I could eat some smoked oysters and sardines with crackers (no pun intended) right now :-)

I just ate the vienna sausages cold ouot of the can. they were ok.

I can tell you from personal experience that the DAK hams last at least 10 years if properly stored. We used one a couple of weeks ago for a big breakfast omelet meal. No worries at all.

Spam, the canned meat of the gods.

I roll my own when it comes to the canned meats and soups. I like it bc you can add your own spices before canning. Walmart has the pressure canners for 70 bucks and with a good supply of jars and extra lids you can preserve and save food even if the power goes out for an extended period of time. Also doesn't need to be refrigerated,

I've grabbing a Canned ham, chicken chunks, beef chunks, spam and tuna each time I Go to Walmart, which is at least once a month to pick up prescriptions.

I should look at home canning.

It's actually quite fun and addicting once you get started

I have 4 40 gallon totes of Yoders canned meats (All of them...lol) and my favorite is the canned Bacon and hot dogs. Also chicken chunks, Turkey, Pork, Hamburger and sausage etc.
Freeze dried eggs with ham and bacon and peppers.
Mountain house also has a lot of freeze dried foods and they are very tasty.

Nanner snawsages mmm mmmm with some saltine crackers

Tell us about your methods of canning meat.

I also can my own venison and beef. Have not tried chicken but that is on my list as with stew. For anyone wanting to give canning a try, your local cooperative usually offers the class (that is how I learned). Investment in the receipt books (the how to's) the pressure cooker, can bath, and jars is minimal. For canning many vegetables and fruits, no pressure cooker needed but can bath (big pot).

My wife and I like to cook, but rarely get the time. When we do we'll make a large amount of food and freeze it. The canning/jarring idea seems to provide better long term quality, we always seem to have to throw away some stuff with freezer burn.

I'm the same. Make a large pot and freeze some.

I have a big All American pressure canner. Still haven't used it.

I stopped in Aldi today. Took a couple of pics of their canned meats. I haven't compared prices to other stores but Aldi tends to have some good deals.

Dang! I need to find an ALDI nearby.

I've been buying/stocking the BJ's brand canned chicken and turkey for years. We have used it in a lot of different recipes. Stores for a very long time if kept in the 70* range.

BJs, is that one one of those wholesale clubs? In richmond?

Yeah Brian . Like Costco and Sam's club