Home Canned Turkey Soup

[These ingredients are approximate; you can also add other vegetables if you want, such as green beans, corn; rice and noodles are not the best for canning purposes, you can add them when reheating the soup].

Make sure your jars and lids are close by and ready to be scalded when the soup is ready to can.

about 25- 30 lbs. turkey (I usually get 2 turkeys free at Thanksgiving when I purchase other food at the market)
2 lbs. carrots, peeled, sliced
2 large onions, chopped
10 lbs. potatoes, peeled, cut into med-small chunks
3 bunches celery, sliced

Put the thawed turkeys into two large pressure canners (I have one and I borrow one). SEE THE CANNER BOOKLET FOR COOKING INSTRUCTIONS--DO NOT FILL MORE THAN 2/3 FULL. Add a few bay leaves if you want, cut up cloves of garlic, chunked onions, and water up to the "fill" line (this will make the best broth!).

Pressure cook the turkeys 60 minutes at 15 pounds pressure. Let the canner cool on it's own.

Remove the meat from the canner and de-bone. Cut into the size pieces you want.

Pour broth through a strainer into another large pot or soup kettle. Clean out the canners.

[At this point, everything can be cooled down and the canning can be done the next day].

As you heat the broth, chop the vegetables. Add any seasonings you want, just be careful as some herbs turn bitter during the canning process. I usually just add pepper (I add salt when I reheat the soup). In the mean time--start heating the water in your canners.

Add the vegetables to the broth and simmer 5 minutes.

Scald jars and lids.

Put meat and vegetables into the jars, fill with broth up to the "fill" line--there is a line on the jar just below the lowest lip, below where the ring will go--just under an inch of headspace.

Wipe the jars thoroughly to remove any turkey fat. Add lids and rings. Put into the pressure canners and follow the canning booklet instructions.

Pressure can the turkey soup for 90 minutes at 10 pounds pressure.

This last batch of turkey soup made 28 quarts of soup, plus 2 gallons more of broth! This recipe can be halved or divided into fourths (use a chicken instead of a turkey!).


[I apologize, I don't remember where online I got this recipe, otherwise I would give the reference. If I remember it, I will put it here].