Homemade Chicken Soup Starter Pressure Canning Recipe
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Pressure canning this chicken soup starter has quickly become a fan favorite around here and on social media. I’ve shared this recipe several times, as well as used it to feed friends and family, and it’s always a crowd pleaser. Quickly can up a flavorful soup base and then add homemade egg noodles or dumplings, thicken up for a pot pie, and more! I enjoy the versatility of this meal in a jar and I hope you do, too! The best part of this recipe is that it is per quart jar, meaning you can make as big or as small of a batch as you’d like.
We raise our own chickens on the homestead, so this homemade chicken soup recipe is extra special and flavorful. Mixed with fresh vegetables, both grown by us and sourced from local farmers or at a farmers market, what’s not to love?! Canning fresh vegetables into delicious soups are so enjoyable in the winter months and this is one of my favorite soup recipes I’ve ever developed. If you have fresh herbs on hand, absolutely use those instead of dried!
Raw Pack or Hot Pack?
If you’re new to canning, you’ll probably find yourself wondering why there’s options for both raw pack and hot packing meat. The short answer is, you can do both successfully with the same processing time and weight, but books (like the ball blue book) and the NCHFP (nation center for home food preservation) provide instructions for both, which is based on your preference.
Hot Pack Method
The hot pack method involves browning, roasting, or stewing meat until cooked and then packing into jars to 1″ headspace, followed by adding broth or water over the meat to 1″ headspace, also. Hot pack is the preferable method because you shrink the meat before canning by cooking it and then cover it in liquid to preserve the meat in the most thorough way possible. A lot of store bought meats these days are lean and dry which tend to not release much juice or fat during the canning process, meaning the meat may not be covered with liquid after canning using the raw pack method, lending to discoloration. This is simply cosmetic but isn’t very appetizing.
Raw Pack Method
The raw pack method is filling jars with cubes, strips, or chunks of meat to 1″ headspace. You do not add any extra broth and can it as is. This method is quicker to get jars filled up, obviously. When canning meat this way, be sure and heat your canner up a bit slower as your meat probably isn’t as warm/hot as the hot pack method.
IF I use the raw pack method with a soup, such as this one, where I only fill maybe 1/4-1/3 of the with raw meat, I absolutely add broth to 1″ headspace. Â There’s no way it would be a soup otherwise.
My personal preference for canning poultry is to hot pack it. Â This is mainly because we process our own poultry on the homestead, I part the birds out and freeze the breasts and thighs for meals, and then slow cook the remaining carcasses down and pick the meat off the bones. Â
This meat I then use for recipes like this one or canning just plain ole shredded chicken. Â But, also, Â I like the texture of pre-cooked chicken and turkey as opposed to raw packing it after the canning process. Â I have found that when I raw pack it, it gets a pretty odd, grainy texture that’s pretty off putting to my family. Â When I choose to pre-cook and then can, it maintains a much nicer and juicer texture. Â This is a bit of trial and error on your part, because hot packing is considerably more steps than raw packing, which means on the occasion I do still choose to raw pack my jars. Â Making this recipe and doing half raw pack and half hot pack is a great way to figure out what works for you as home-canned soups are pretty forgiving!
If you have turkey breast or thighs on hand and enjoy this recipe, be sure to try my turkey curry soup canning recipe, too! Curry is good in EVERYTHANGGGG!
Equipment You Will Need:
- Pressure Canning
- Canning jars
- Lids & Screw Bands
- Jar Funnel
- Jar Lifter
Ingredients:
- Chicken or Turkey breast & thighs
- Carrots
- Celery
- Onion
- Garlic
- Basil
- Rosemary
- Thyme
- Black Pepper
- Salt
- Chicken Broth
Let’s Get to Canning!
Step 1: Prep Jars
Wash jars, lids, and bands with hot, soapy water. Rinse well and set aside on a clean kitchen towel.
Step 2: Prep Veggies & Meat
For each quart jar you intend on canning:
- Dice 2 celery stalks
- Dice 1/2 an onion
- Peel & Dice 1 large carrot
- Mince 1 clove of garlic
- RAW PACK: Cube 1-2 chicken breasts or 2-4 boneless skinless thighs
- HOT PACK: 1 1/2 cups cooked & shredded or chopped chicken or turkey
Step 3: Pack Jars
Using a canning funnel, layer in chicken and raw veggies to 1″ head space into clean jars.
For each quart, add:
- 1/2 tsp minced garlic
- 1/4 tsp dried basil
- 1/4 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp dried rosemary
- 1/4 tsp dried thyme
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
Per quart jar, bring 2 cups of chicken broth to a boil. I make my own homemade broth so this is as simple as popping a lid and dumping it straight into the jar for me, but by bypassing heating the broth before adding to the jar, I have to be very careful to heat my canner SLOWLY to prevent siphoning. If you raise your own chickens or turkeys, you absolutely need to try your hand at making your own chicken broth. It’s so so so so good and so easy to do, not to mention a great way to use the entire animal and not waste a thing.
Ladle broth over chicken and veggies mixture to 1-inch headspace, remove air bubbles, and add more liquid as needed to maintain headspace.
Step 4: Canning
Wipe rims of jars with a vinegar moistened cloth and clean rims thoroughly. You don’t want any food, fat, or particles between the lid and jar rim that could potentially affect sealing success.
Add clean lids and bands. Secure to manufacturer’s specifications.
Pressure can at your elevations recommended weight for 90 minutes quart jars. For weighted gauge pressure canners, like mine, it is 10 pounds of pressure for those under 1000ft and 15 lbs for those above. Using the correct pressure is important to ensure you food will be shelf stable and processed properly. Low acid foods are not recommended for water bath canning (you know how I feel about this, though).
Once canning time is complete, shut off heat and allow canner to completely depressurize. Once depressurized, remove jars with jar lifter and set aside to cool for 18-24 hours, before removing bands and testing seals. Any jars that don’t seal may be reprocessed if within 24 hours, frozen, or placed in the fridge to be eaten soon. Reprocessing jars will result in highly overprocessed and soft veggies.
Step 5: Storing
After testing seals, wash jars and label with contents and date.
Store on a pantry shelf in a cool, dark place away from direct sunlight.
Consume with 2 years for best nutritional value but jars will last longer than that if needed as long as the seal is intact.
Home canning isn’t hard! Don’t get hung up on the fear mongering with the risk of botulism, but rather, read about it and understand it, and dive in to the world of canning. Being able to grow & raise your own food is a gigantic step in the right direction, but if you’re relying solely on freezers to store it all, that’s a bad plan. Natural disasters and power outages can have you up a creek without a paddle pretty quickly. By learning how to preserve food using time honored methods, you can have food stored on the shelves at room temperature and peace of mind that you aren’t dependent on the grid to be able to eat. Plus, learning how to make your own convenience food will save you money and your health in the long run. Do the work now and reap the benefits later!
Happy Canning!
Equipment
- Pressure Canning
- Canning jars
- Lids & Screw Bands
- jar lifter
Ingredients
Meat: Select One
- 2-4 boneless skinless chicken thighs RAW PACK
- 1-2 skinless chicken breast RAW PACK
- 1 1/2 cups cooked, shredded chicken HOT PACK
Remaining Ingredients Per Quart Jar
- 2 stalks celery diced
- 1 carrot peeled, diced
- 1/2 onion diced
- 1/2 tsp garlic minced
- 1/4 tsp dried basil
- 1/4 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp dried rosemary
- 1/4 tsp dried thyme
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 cups chicken broth
Instructions
- Wash jars, lids, and bands with hot, soapy water. Â Rinse well and set aside on a clean kitchen towel.
- Using a canning funnel, layer in chicken and raw veggies to 1" head space into clean jars.
- Â Bring 2 cups of chicken broth to a boil. Ladle broth over chicken and veggies mixture to 1-inch headspace, remove air bubbles, and add more liquid as needed to maintain headspace.
- Wipe rims of jars with a vinegar moistened cloth and clean rims thoroughly.
- Add clean lids and bands.
- Pressure can at your elevations recommended weight for 90 minutes quart jars.Â
- Once canning time is complete, shut off heat and allow canner to completely depressurize. Â Once depressurized, remove jars with jar lifter and set aside to cool for 18-24 hours, before removing bands and testing seals. Â Any jars that don't seal may be reprocessed if within 24 hours, frozen, or placed in the fridge to be eaten soon. Â Reprocessing jars will result in highly overprocessed and soft veggies.
- After testing seals, wash jars and label with contents and date. Store on a pantry shelf in a cool, dark place away from direct sunlight. Consume with 2 years for best nutritional value but jars will last longer than that if needed as long as the seal is intact.
I’ll be doing this one asap
Sounds great!
Thank you
Yay! I hope you love it!