Henderson daily dispatch., 1939-09-15
The Market
Basket
Bureau of Home Economics, u. S.
Department of Agriculture
A. Chicken Dinner on the Shelf

"A chicken Dlnnef ON the Snclf
"Chicken dinner"-thOSe are two
words that translate into good food"
in anyones language. And the wo-
man who gets out her steam pressure
Gamer now and puts up some young
hens for later eating, may be conf
dent. that her efforts will be duly
appreciated. furthermore, she's in
vest in a reliable kind of hostess
insurance-the peace of mind that
comes from knowing she has the
markings of a quick dinner on her
storage shelf.
For canning, plump hens-2 years
or little older-are best, preferably
the ones that are not earning their
board as layers. Young birds are not
we'll suited to canning. The long pro-
cessing, necessary to sterilize any
meat, overcooks tender young chick
en-makes it lose flavor and develop
stringy texture.
Essential piece of equipment for
canning poultry at home is a steam
pressure Gamer. Only with one Of
these is it possible to maintain a
temperature above boiling inside a
can or jar-the heat required to
kill bacteria that may cause danger
GUS food poisoning. It's not safe to
can poultry in water baths, steam
Gamers without pressure, or in the
oven, because the temperature in
them never gets above boiling.
Dressing a chicken for canning is
no different than dressing it for cook
ing Immediately. Take out the lungs,
kidneys, and eggs-and cut the bird
into the usual-SiZed serving pieces
Next step is to classify the pieces
of chicken into three piles-the
meaty pieces, the bony pieces, and
the giblets. Meaty pieces, which are
canned whole, are breasts, thighs,
legs and upper wing joints. Bony
pieces for making the canning broth
are backs, wings, necks, and some
times the feet after they are skinned.
Giblets, because of their distinctive
flavor and color, should be canned
separately.
Whether chicken is canned with
or without its skin is a matter of per-
sonal preference And the bones may
be canned or not. It's better to can
bones, however, because then the
chicken has better flavor. Also the
bones help to conduct the heat into
the meat and in that way shorten the
processing time. Trim off excess fat.
To make broth for the canning
liquid, cover the bony pieces with
cold water, lightly sailed. Simmer
until the meat is tender and drain
off the broth. Use this cas- isl or for
a thickened broth around chicken
add tablespoons of granulated gela-
tin to each quart Of broth. Moisten
the gelatin with little cold liquid
then dissolve it in the hot broth.
Meat stripped from the bones of these
pieces cooked for broth may be can
ned as small pieces or used to make
sandwich spread.
Up to this point the treatment Of
chicken is the same whether it is
canned in glass jars or tin cans. The
rest of the canning process is adapt
ed to the kind of container.
For chicken to be packed in glass
jars, the best way to precook the
meaty pieces is to spread them on
a rack in an uncovered pan and
heat them in moderate oven $3.50
degrees F.). Cook the pieces for 20
to 80 minutes-or until the red color
of the raw meat is practically gone
next to the bones. Second best meth
Or is to parboil the chicken from 8
to 10 minutes.
But frying is definitely "out" as
method of precooking chicken.
Canned fried chicken not only is I'M
appetizingly hard and dry, but it
also has a disagreeable flavor after
storage.
Pints are the most suitable size
glass jars. The processing time need
ed to sterilize larger jars Of chicken
is much too long to get product
that makes first-rate eating. Pack
the hot chicken closely into the jars
Leaving about 1-2 inch "head