Don’t you just love the fall season? Every year in Michigan I marvel at the change is seasons yet my favorite will always be fall, or autumn.

As the leaves change into gorgeous colors and the air takes on a ‘chill’ making everything outdoors appear ‘crisp’ in October, I am inspired to being nesting and continue canning to ensure I am ready for winter. This time of year also means we get a bit more rain forcing us indoors to stay warm and to get cozy. What a better way to enjoy these new seasonal temps than by creating and eating amazing fall comfort foods like pot roast, chili and stews.

READ MORE: Savory Beef & Vegetables Meal in a Jar Recipe and Substitutions

However, fall also means school plays, concerts and sporting events leaving many of us parents in a juggling act to keep our families fed and healthy. While a slow cooker is a useful tool in the kitchen, especially when creating fall-inspired meals, often it is the prep-work many of us do not have the time to invest in a weekday morning. Or many of us are feeding a household of one and need a better way to enjoying making these yummy dishes to consume in smaller portions throughout a longer period of time. Canning and preserving provides you this ability!

Having ready-made Meals in A Jar sitting on your pantry shelf will take all the hassle out of weekday meal prep and help you create perfect portions so you may enjoy all of the cozy, comforts of the gorgeous fall season.

Fall Pot Roast Canning Recipe

Makes approx. 7 quarts or 14 pints

This fall-inspired recipe is easy to make and perfect for those of you new to pressure canning. The genius of this recipe is what I can “raw layer packing” which saves you time because there is no sauteing or precooking. The pressure canner does all the work of roasting and tenderizing the meat during processing.

Ingredients

  • 4 cups Beef Stock
  • 1 cup red wine (may substitute with beef stock or water)
  • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 teaspoons dried thyme (if using fresh, include two 3-inch sprigs per jar)
  • 2 teaspoons garlic cloves, minced (you can always add more if you love garlic like I do)
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 7 bay leaves (break in half if canning in pint jars)
  • 7 pounds boneless beef chuck, trimmed and cut into 2-inch chunks
  • 2 cups peeled and chopped parsnips (cut into 1-inch pieces)
  • 4 cups peeled and chopped russet potatoes (cut into 1-inch pieces)
  • 2 cups chopped celery (cut into 1/2-inch pieces)
  • 4 cups peeled and chopped carrots (cut into 1/2-inch pieces)
  • 2 cups diced tomatoes
  • 1 cup diced red onion

Instructions

  1. Use widemouthed jars for this recipes as it will give you more space to arrange each food layer and will be easier to remove the pot roast from the jar when ready to heat and serve.
  2. Place the beef stock, wine, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, garlic and pepper in a pan and bring to a boil on medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered for 5 minutes. Remove from heat while raw packing the jars.
  3. Be sure the jars are room temperature, not hot, prior to raw packing the cold food items. Place the jars on a cutting board and add one bay leaf per quart jar. (Use a half leaf per pint jar and add your sprigs of thyme to each jar if using fresh herbs.)
  4. For each quart jar, add the following in layers evenly distributing among each jar. Being sure you are tamping down each layer down before adding the next using your air bubble remover tool or a wooden spoon:
    1. 1-1/2 cups beef chunks
    2. 1/4 cup parsnips
    3. 1/2 cup potatoes
    4. 1/4 cup celery
    5. 1/2 cup carrots
    6. 1/4 cup tomatoes, and
    7. 2 tablespoons of red onion
  5. For each pint jar, add the following in layers, tamping each layer down before adding the next:
    1. 3/4 cup beef chunks
    2. 2 tablespoons parsnips
    3. 1/4 cup potatoes
    4. 2 tablespoons celery
    5. 1/4 cup carrots
    6. 2 tablespoons tomatoes, and
    7. 1 tablespoon red onion
  6. Ladle warm stock mixture into the jars to cover the layers, leaving 1-inch of headspace. Remove any air bubbles and add additional stock mixture if necessary to maintain the 1-inch headspace.
  7. Wipe the jar rim with a washcloth dipped in vinegar. Place a lid and ring on each jar and hand tighten.
  8. Process jars in a pressure canner, 90 minutes for quarts and 75 minutes for pints according to your elevation.

Share pictures of your masterpiece with us on social media and remember to hashtag me #TheCanningDiva

For more Meals in A Jar recipes, consider purchasing my cookbook, The Complete Guide to Pressure Canning. Even if you are a seasoned canner, my book contains a plethora of new and exciting ways to preserve meats, vegetables, beans and much more!

Thank you for following me on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Be sure to tune into my podcast, Canning with The Diva!,.

Happy Canning!

xo,
Diane, The Canning Diva
www.canningdiva.com

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