As many of you read from my Facebook page I finally harvested the leeks in my garden and had five pounds of "what am I going to do with all of this?". This is the main reason I started canning now over a year ago in anticipation of having more crops than I can eat in one or two meals. I turned to my sources of inspiration, my readers, my followers, and my Ball Book and decided to can the start of a potato leek soup. Now when I say "start" it just means that I am Pressure canning the vegetables in a stock with a few herbs so that when I want to serve it I can add my starch, creams, or pastas which can not be canned with the soup.
During the pressure canning process one of the lids did not go on straight so the jar never sealed. I put that one in the refrigerator and will make some soup for dinner or take it for lunch at work. I tasted the cooled version and the leeks tasted fantastic. I used a chicken stock as my liquid and it had just the right amount of salt to enhance the flavor of the leeks. The potatoes were fork tender and not mushy which means I cut them to the perfect size, 1/2" chunks. Here is the basic recipe/process for making this soup.
Potato Leek Soup
6 potatoes - white or red (medium size)
5 pounds leeks, washed and soaked, sliced into 1/4" rings
4-6 cups of chicken or beef stock
6 sterilized pint jars
Soak the leeks in cold water to make sure they are clean. Cut into rings and set aside. Peel and cube potatoes soak in cold water till you are ready to can. This will keep them from turning brown. In hot jars, put at the bottom a layer of the leeks then a layer of the potatoes then top the jar off with a final layer of the leeks. Add boiling hot chicken stock filling the jar to 1" headspace. Using the rubber spatula remove air bubbles and then fill with additional stock to reach the 1" headspace covering the vegetables. Process all the rest of the vegetables in the same way for the rest of the jars. When complete process in pressure canner for 60 minutes at 11 pounds of pressure (processed at sea level see below for adjusted times). If you use quarts instead of pints process for 75 minutes.
Pressure canning notes:
Always make sure that you let your pressure canner vent steam for the full 10 minutes before putting on the weight gauge or pressure regulator. This allows the internal temperature of the canner to rise and produce the pressure needed to reach the 240 degrees needed to kill the bacteria. If you are at higher levels please refer below to the increments of additional pounds of pressure to can these vegetables.
In a Dial Gauge Pressure Canner
* At altitudes of 0 - 2000 feet, process at 11 pounds pressure.
* At altitudes of 2001 - 4000 feet, process at 12 pounds pressure.
* At altitudes of 4001 - 6000 feet, process at 13 pounds pressure.
* At altitudes of 6001 - 8000 feet, process at 14 pounds pressure.
In a Weighted Gauge Pressure Canner
* At altitudes of 0 - 1000 feet, process at 10 pounds pressure.
* At altitudes above 1000 feet, process at 15 pounds pressure.
I also harvested my potato box since the plant was dying. I was bummed that the experiment didn't work as long as I wanted it to but I did get about 3 pounds of new red potatoes that were super creamy. I roasted some of them with a bit of olive oil and rosemary and had a few of the baby size ones left so I canned them along with the potato leek soup in the canner.
16 comments:
I don't have a pressure cooker. I've been thinking of getting one. I freeze a lot of stuff, but it seems like I'm missing out.
I knew within a couple of months that their was a whole bunch of recipes that I know that my family would eat that I needed to pressure can. It has paid for itself in just canning beans alone. They are very easy to use, but too many people have financial issues since they are about $85 or they are intimidated.
I hope that you make the leap! I know you will do fantastic.
This is a great idea! We love our homemade potato soup, but kind of pain to make, an hour of peeling and chopping at least! I like to add carrots, celery and onions to ours, but the leeks might be a nice addition too.
I've been pressure canning for about a year and have been toying with the idea of a "ready to puree" butternut squash soup base. My plan is to cube the butternut and can it in broth but add cinnamon and clove for flavor. I'll follow the Ball Complete guidelines for timing and pounds of pressure. When I want some butternut soup I can open a can heat it through, immersion blend and add milk/cream/butter to taste. Since I love your recipes, and you are one of the few bloggers I have found who pressure cans regularly, I'd love to get your opinion!
Margaret, that is the perfect recipe. You have inspired me. Here is the recipe and processing times for butternut!
Procedure: Wash, remove seeds, cut into 1-inch- wide slices, and peel. Cut flesh into 1-inch cubes. Boil 2 minutes in water. Caution: Do not mash or puree. Fill jars with cubes and cooking liquid, leaving 1-inch headspace. Process in Pressure canner for 55 minutes for pints, 90 minutes for quarts at 10 lbs pressure for weighted gauge canners and 11 lbs for dial gauge. (I will do this recipe with your name as inspiration! Would love to get a picture of your soup and recipe to give you credit on the website. Only if you have time.)
Ok- now I am really excited about it too! Butternut is not exactly in season here, but I am sure I can find some and do a dry run. Then I'll be ready to hit the ground running when the winter squash patch starts to deliver! I'd be delighted to send you pictures. As soon as our heat wave breaks here in Connecticut (97 with heat index of 112) I'll break out the All American. Thanks for your input and encouragement!
I love the recipe, but your canning time seems way too short. All the books I have say to pressure can anything with meat broth for 75 minutes in pints, and 90 minutes in quarts.
The recipe does not have meat in it and a vegetable base soup timing I am using is correct. If the liquid is a beef stock it doesn't require you to pressure can it like a meat product. Does that answer your question or concern?
i'm semi-new to the glorious world of canning :) i was googling around to find a recipe for canned potato leek soup and happened upon yours! now, i LOVE to make mine starting with rendering down some bacon and then using the fat to cook the leeks, etc...in and then adding the bacon crumbles near the end (after pureeing some of the soup).
how could i work this into your "raw pack" recipe and how would adding the bacon change the processing time?
thanks for your help!! am in the process of digging thru your blog...:D
It will definitely change the processing time since you are adding meat. I am not sure how to put this together in one jar since I think if you saute the leeks they will be mushy once you pressure can them for the amount of time you would need to do them to add the meat.
hi, I am vegetarian and typically use McKays Chicken seasoning to make "chicken broth" when I am cooking. Can I make a canned soup base like this with that rather than real chicken broth?
Thanks
rachel
Rachel,
What's in McKay's Chicken Seasoning. Usually they add thickeners to "seasoning" and that would make the jars not safe. Check the seasoning package before you use it or just put in boiling water instead. You can also get veggie stock or make a stock instead.
Is there any reason aside from flavor that I couldn't substitute boiling water for the stock?
I've got a recipe for sweet potato soup that I'm trying to see if i could can.
It has coconut milk in it, and was wondering if that acts the same as dairy in the canning world? That is. is it a bad idea to use it?
The soup is essentially purees sweet potatoes, broth, ginger, lime juice and the coconut milk.
Would pureeing the sweet potatoes and adding the coconut milk be okay?
Anyone have any experience with this?
Thanks
Brown Family - No there is no reason that you couldn't use water
Salvatore - No on the coconut milk and it's a bad idea. Coconut milk is not a natural product from coconuts. Coconut water is and that would be acceptable in it's pure form. Also No pureed squash or potatoes are safe in canning. They must be done in cubes to be safe.
I'm sure lots of people want to do this but I am advising you that the heat will not penetrate through the puree and kill the bacteria during pressure canning. You can do what you want, I can only advise you! Thanks for the comment
I definitely appreciate the advice - but have a follow up.
I think I could use the coconut water, that would be -
BUT, about the puree - I understand what you mean about the heat not penetrating into the thick puree of squash or potatoe - BUT, this soup is nothing like that thickness. It's only slightly thicker than consistency of canned tomato puree. There's a whole lot of water and broth, so it's nowhere near as thick as as canned pumpkin or sweet potato from a can.
Do you think I could jar one batch and then test the temperature as soon as it came out? Meaning, what if I took a jar out and as soon as it was done, unsealed it, and put my thermometer in the center? If I had a reading of 242 degrees, that would mean they were sufficiently cooked to avoid contamination.
I really appreciate your thoughts!
Thanks
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