Pressure Canning Fish and Seafoods

There is no safe method for canning plain fish and seafood other than pressure canning.

This is an overview only. Specific canning times and procedures have been developed for different types of fish and seafood. Timings can vary even based on whether the fish is fresh, or smoked (smoking increases its density.)

When you go to can fish or seafood, make sure you following the directions for that specific fish or seafood from a reputable source such as Ball, Bernardin, your local Extension Service, the USDA Complete Guide, So Easy to Preserve (SETP), or the National Center for Home Food Preservation.

If you want online sources, don’t trust random bloggers. If you don’t have a recent canning book from one of the above, then trusted, tested and safe guidelines for pressure canning fish and seafood are online on the National Center page for meat, fish and seafood, and, are in the USDA 2015 Complete Guide which is also available free online.

There are special, separate procedures for clams, King and Dungeness crab (not Blue), oysters, shrimp, tuna, smoked fish, fish in pint (half-litre) jars, and fish in quart (litre) jars. (Note that canning Blue Crab is recommended against for quality issues; the recommendation is to freeze instead.)

The Ball Blue Book contains the most sparse information for each of the above (and nothing on smoked fish), but it does contain a procedure for shrimp. ( Ball Blue Book. Edition 37. 2014. Page 102.) The Ball / Bernardin Complete Book (2015) contains the least amount of information, covering only general fish, and clams.

Following are some general points that we extracted from reputable sources and assembled together for your convenience.

List of specific fish and seafood for canning

Item	Sources
Clams (live, not smoked)	Clams. In: USDA Complete 2015. Page 5-9. SETP 2014. Page 99. Blue Book 37th edition. Page 101. (Online here) Ball / Bernardin Complete, 2015. Page 395. Bernardin Guide, 2013. Page 106. Notes: Keep live until ready to can.
Clams (minced)	PNW Seafood 2016. Page 6.
Crab (King and Dungeness)	Crab (King and Dungeness). USDA Complete 2015. Page 5-9. SETP 2014. Page 99. Blue Book 37th edition. Page 101. Bernardin Guide, 2013. Page 106. Notes: In terms of quality, the recommendation is to freeze rather than can. Keep live until ready to can.
Crab (Blue)	NO. Specifically recommended against. The recommendation against seems to be based on quality grounds.
Fresh fish: Blue, mackerel, salmon, shad, steelhead, trout, and other fatty fish EXCEPT tuna. (Half-litre / pint jars)	Fish in Pint Jars. In: USDA Complete 2015. Page 5-10. SETP 2014. Page 100. Blue Book 37th edition. Page 102. (Online here) Ball / Bernardin Complete, 2015. Page 394. Bernardin Guide, 2013. Page 107.
Fresh fish: Blue, mackerel, salmon, steelhead, trout, and other fatty fish EXCEPT tuna. (Litre / quart jars)	Fish in Quart Jars. In: USDA Complete 2015. Page 5-11. SETP 2014. Page 101.
Oysters	Oysters. In: USDA Complete 2015. Page 5-12. SETP 2014. Page 102. Blue Book 37th edition. Page 102. Bernardin Guide, 2013. Page 106. Notes: Keep live until ready to can. NOT smoked.
Salmon	Bernardin Guide, 2013. Page 108. Note: Bernardin Guide dedicates a whole, entire page to canning salmon in great detail. The others include it with general fish.
Shrimp	Blue Book 37th edition. Page 102. PNW Seafood 2016. Page 7.
Smoked Fish (Salmon, rockfish and flatfish (sole, cod, flounder) and other fish. NOT smoked seafood.)	Smoked Fish. In: USDA Complete 2015. Page 5-13. SETP 2014. Page 102. Notes: 16 quart and higher pressure canners only, max 1 pint / half-litre jars. Special pressure canner procedures.
Tuna	Tuna. In: USDA Complete 2015. Page 5-14. SETP 2014. Page 103. Blue Book 37th edition. Page 102. Bernardin Guide, 2013. Page 107.

Note in the table above that “fresh fish” means unsmoked. Uncooked or unsmoked raw fish that has been frozen and then thawed counts as “fresh” as far as the table above is concerned.

Abbreviations

Ball / Bernardin Complete, 2015 = Kingry, Judi and Lauren Devine. Ball / Bernardin Complete Book of Home Preserving. Toronto: Robert Rose. 2015

Bernardin Guide 2013 = Bernardin Guide to Home Preserving. Toronto, Canada: Bernardin Ltd. 2013.

Blue Book 37th edition = Ball Blue Book. Muncie, Indiana: Healthmark LLC / Jarden Home Brands. Edition 37. 2014.

PNW Seafood 2016 = Brandt, Jeanne. Canning seafood. Oregon State University. PNW 194. (Grab a free copy now.)

SETP 2014 = Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. University of Georgia Cooperative Extension. Bulletin 989. Sixth Edition. 2014.

USDA Complete 2015 = United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Complete guide to home canning. Agriculture information bulletin No. 539. 2015. (Grab a free copy now.)

 

Long processing times

Most people new to pressure canning would probably be surprised to see that the processing times for fish and seafood can be more than those for meat.

Meat times are 65 to 75 minutes per half-litre (US pint) jar, depending on bone-in or bone-out.

Times for fish in half-litre (US pint) jars is far longer: 100 minutes for fresh, and 110 minutes for smoked.

For quarts / litre size jars, the processing time is even longer. So Easy to Preserve says:

Process in a Dial Gauge Pressure Canner at 11 pounds pressure OR in a Weighted Gauge Pressure Canner at 10 pounds pressure. Quarts: 160 minutes (2 hours and 40 minutes.)” ^[1]Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. University of Georgia Cooperative Extension. Bulletin 989. Sixth Edition. 2014. Page 102. [Ed: Adjust pressure for your altitude.]

The reason is simply that home canning first and foremost must take safety into account, and, that fish are a high risk food for botulism:

Salmon and other finfish are also reservoirs for Clostridium botulinum, in particular type E botulinum. Salmon and other animals ingest botulinum spores resulting in the spores being present in the intestinal tract of the animals. Fish, especially uneviscerated (ungutted) fish and poorly cleaned fish, are considered from a food processing viewpoint to be higher risk and potentially hazardous foods.” ^[2]BC Centre for Disease Control. Botulism in British Columbia: The RISK of Home-Canned Products. January 2015.

Putting Food By says,

Finned or shell-bearing creatures taken from salt or fresh water are right up among the front-runners in the botulism sweepstakes. Add to this that in general they are the most perishable of all fresh foods and have great density of texture, and you see why fish and shellfish require faultless handling and longer Pressure-processing than do other foods that are canned at home.” ^[3]Hertzberg, Ruth. Putting Food By: Fifth Edition (p. 168). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

Jar sizes

Ball and Bernardin support only fish in jars up to a pint (half-litre) in size.

Quart / litre sized jars for fresh fish (not tuna or smoked) is supported with longer, tested processing times by So Easy to Preserve, the USDA Complete Guide, and many branches of the Cooperative Extension System.

Smaller size jars ( 8 oz, 12 oz / 250 ml, 350 ml) are fine with any recipe that allows for pints / half-litres. Use the full processing times for pints / half-litres.

Note that for smoked fish, though, So Easy to Preserve advises that smaller jars may result in lower quality: “Half-pints could be safely processed for the same length of time as pints, but the quality of the product may be less acceptable.”   ^[4]Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. Page 101 – 103.

 

Salmon jars

One jar in particular is so popular for canning fish in, that it is often referred to as a “salmon” jar.

This jar is ½ pint (250 ml / quarter-litre) in capacity, short and squat, with a wide mouth.

The jar is offered by both Bernardin and Kerr. It mimics the size and shape of tins that salmon and tuna are often sold in.

The jars may be popular for canning fish in part because they are very easy to clean afterward.

 

Longer venting times for quarts / litres

The standard venting time of 10 minutes for your pressure canner before putting the weight on is followed when canning pint / half-litre jars of fish.

When you are doing quarts of fish, this venting time is extended. Alaska Extension Service says:

Heat the canner on high for 20 minutes. If steam comes through the open vent in a steady stream at the end of 20 minutes, allow it to escape for an additional 10 minutes. If steam does not come through the open vent in a steady stream at the end of 20 minutes, keep heating the canner until it does. Then allow the steam to escape for an additional 10 minutes to vent the canner. This step removes air from inside the canner so the temperature is the same throughout the canner. The total time it takes to heat and vent the canner should never be less than 30 minutes. The total time may be more than 30 minutes if you have tightly packed jars, cold fish or larger sized canners.”  ^[5] Long, Kristy. Canning Fish in Quart Jars. University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service. FNH-00126 . Revised January 2012. Page 2. https://www.uaf.edu/files/ces/publications-db/catalog/hec/FNH-00128.pdf

So Easy to Preserve goes into a bit more detail:

The directions for operating the pressure canner during processing of quart (litre) jars are different from those for processing pint jars, so please read the following carefully. It is critical to product safety that the processing directions are followed exactly. When you are ready to process your jars of fish, add 3 quarts (litres) of water to the pressure canner. Put the rack in the bottom of canner and place closed jars on the rack. Fasten the canner cover securely, but do not close the lid vent. Heat the canner on high for 20 minutes. If steam comes through the open vent in a steady stream at the end of 20 minutes, allow it to escape for an additional 10 minutes. If steam does not come through the open vent in a steady stream at the end of 20 minutes, keep heating the canner until it does. Then allow the steam to escape for an additional 10 minutes to vent the canner. This step removes air from inside the canner so the temperature is the same throughout the canner. The total time it takes to heat and vent the canner should never be less than 30 minutes. The total time may be more than 30 minutes if you have tightly packed jars, cold fish, or larger sized canners.

(Then) For safety’s sake, you must have a complete, uninterrupted 160 minutes (2 hours and 40 minutes) at a minimum pressure required for your altitude. Write down the time at the beginning of the process and the time when the process will be finished.” ^[6]Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. Page 101 – 102.

To be clear, this longer venting is for quart / litre size jars only. For pints / half-litres, use the standard 10 minute vent.

 

Caution from All American about pressure canner sizes

The maker of All American pressure canners recommends against using its two smallest pressure canners (10.5 quart and 15.5 quart) for home canning smoked fish:

“The 10.5 Qt Model 910 and 15.5 Qt Model 915 are NOT suitable for canning smoked fish.” ^[7]All American web site. http://www.allamerican-chefsdesign.com/Product-Detail.asp?iBrand=1&hProductType=10 and http://www.allamerican-chefsdesign.com/Product-Detail.asp?hProduct=33

“Smoked Fish: ….Use a 16 quart or larger pressure canner for this procedure; do not use smaller pressure canners. Safe processing times haven’t been determined.” ^[8]All American Manual. 2014.  Page 35.

Use clean drinking water from a tap

Canning directions for fish and seafood always advise you to use fresh, potable water — rather than lake, stream or sea water:

In preparing fish or shellfish for processing or freezing, do not wash in sea water or use sea water for precooking, etc.”  ^[9] Hertzberg, Ruth; Greene, Janet; Vaughan, Beatrice (2010-05-25). Putting Food By: Fifth Edition (p. 29). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

The reason why is that sea or lake water may have bacteria in it that you would be introducing into your jars:

Water used in cleaning seafood and preparing them for packing must be of drinking quality—whether it’s the running water for washing them (which is always done under a tap, or with a spray or hose), or the water in a brine or antidiscoloration solution, or the canning liquid that goes in the jar. Reason: it’s easy to introduce dangerous bacteria, including C. botulinum itself, into the flesh by using polluted or contaminated water at any stage. Do not rinse fish in stream or lake water. Do not precook shellfish in seawater. If your household drinking water contains a lot of minerals, use bottled water at least for the canning liquid (iron, especially, reacts with the sulfur in the meat of shellfish and causes the product to darken).”  ^[10] Hertzberg, Ruth; Greene, Janet; Vaughan, Beatrice (2010-05-25). Putting Food By: Fifth Edition (p. 171). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

 

Preventing discoloration

Lemon juice or citric acid can be used to help keep seafood from going too dark during canning (to be clear, it’s for appearance only, and does not help with preservation):

Citric acid (and lemon juice) can be used for canning: the picked meat of crabs, lobsters, shrimp, and clams is given a brief dunk in a fairly tart solution of citric acid or lemon juice as a way to offset the darkening action of minerals naturally present in such foods (otherwise the meats would be likely to discolor during processing and storage). The dip lasts about 1 minute, and the meat is pressed gently to remove excess solution. White (distilled) vinegar may be used too, but it might contribute a slight flavor of its own.”  ^[11] Hertzberg, Ruth; Greene, Janet; Vaughan, Beatrice (2010-05-25). Putting Food By: Fifth Edition (pp. 38-39). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

When you are pressure canning fish, some people suggest to also add some lemon juice to the canning water, up to 8 tablespoons — to counteract the fishy smell that may otherwise linger in your pressure canner for days!

 

Salmon

The most extensive, specific advice for salmon comes from Bernardin, perhaps owing to part of its audience being the Pacific North-West. This advice is found on a full, dedicated page (108) of the 2013 Bernardin Guide. Owing to the highly fatty nature of the fish, the advice includes points such as:

• use a cutting board that can be cleaned easily (such as an acrylic one);
• use paper towel rather than cloth for clean-up;
• don’t add any oil;
• leave skin on and place salmon in jars skin side next to glass.

They also advise to leave the bones in:

Salmon is rich in omega 3 fatty acids and calcium. The calcium is found mainly in the bones which soften during the pressure canning process. To reap the full nutritional benefits of salmon, include the salmon juices and bones in recipes prepared from home canned salmon. The bones easily flake into mixtures and become indistinguishable from the fish.” ^[12]Bernardin Guide to Home Preserving. Toronto, Canada: Bernardin Ltd. 2013. Page 108.

Note however that Bernardin doesn’t have the info for salmon in quart / litre jars. For that size, you have to turn to So Easy to Preserve, or the USDA Complete Guide (2015 edition, page 5-11. Free online.)

 

Smoked fish

So Easy to Preserve says,

Smoking of fish should be done by tested methods. Lightly smoked fish is recommended for canning because the smoked flavor will become stronger and the flesh dried after processing. However, because it has not yet been cooked, do not taste lightly smoked fish before canning.” ^[13] Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. University of Georgia Cooperative Extension. Bulletin 989. Sixth Edition. 2014. Page 102.

Bernardin also advises to smoke fish lightly before canning:

For long-term storage, smoked salmon must be frozen or canned. Fully smoked fish that is dry enough to eat tend to be too dry and strong-flavoured after home canning. Do not reduce processing time to lessen these quality changes. The smoking technique must be modified when smoked salmon is to be home canned.” ^[14]Bernardin Guide. 2013. Page 108.

More water is required in the canner when canning smoked fish:

Processing Change for Smoked Fish: The directions for filling the pressure canner for processing smoked fish are different from those for other pressure canning, so please read the following carefully. It is critical to product safety that the processing directions are followed exactly. When you are ready to process your jars of smoked fish, measure 4 quarts (16 cups) [Ed: 4 litres] of cool tap water and pour into the pressure canner. (Note: The water level probably will reach the screw bands of pint jars.) Do not decrease the amount of water or heat the water before processing begins. Place prepared, closed jars on the rack in the bottom of the canner, and proceed as with usual pressure canning instructions.  Process in a Dial Gauge Pressure Canner at 11 pounds pressure OR in a Weighted Gauge Pressure Canner at 10 pounds pressure. Pints 110 minutes (1 hour and 50 minutes.) ^[15]Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. Page 103.

So Easy to Preserve emphasizes that processes for smoked fish were developed for fish, as opposed to smoked seafoods:

Safe processing times for other smoked seafoods have not been determined. Those products should be frozen.” ^[16]Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. Page 102.

Two other things:

• the largest size of jar supported is pint / half-litre. “Do not use jars larger than one pint.” ^[17]Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. Page 103.
• And, both SETP and USDA note, “Use a 16 to 22 quart pressure canner for this procedure; do not use smaller pressure saucepans. Safe processing times have not been determined for smaller pressure saucepans.” ^[18]Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. Page 103.

As you see, there’s a few things you must keep in mind with smoked fish, so make sure you have your up-to-date canning guide from a reputable source open in front of you as you go!

 

Home canning frozen fish

Fish may be frozen before canning. However, it must be thoroughly thawed with no ice crystals in it before canning.

So Easy to Preserve says, “If the fish is frozen, thaw it in the refrigerator before canning. Rinse the fish in cold water.” ^[19] Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. Page 100.

Bernardin says, “… it must be thawed in the refrigerator before you begin. Do not pack frozen fish into jars.” ^[20]Bernardin Guide. 2013. Page 108.

Note that all reputable sources agree that the fish must be thawed in the refrigerator. This means “no” to the usual “sink of hot water” trick we all are tempted to engage in from time to time in the kitchen.

 

Jar temperature for cold fish

So Easy to Preserve (SETP) says, “Refrigerate all fish until you are ready to pack in jars.” They then call for packing the fish into hot jars.

Ball as well calls for hot jars: “Pack fish… into a hot jar.” ^[21]Ball Blue Book. Muncie, Indiana: Healthmark LLC / Jarden Home Brands. Edition 37. 2014. Page 102.

This is where Bernardin differs. They say that if the fish is cold, they want it going into unheated jars.

If fish has been refrigerated, do not heat jars prior to filling. Pack fish into prepared jars….. When canning chilled fish, add room temperature water to pressure canner to level specified by manufacturer.” ^[22]Bernardin Guide. 2013. Page 107.

It’s not clear whether Bernardin is after a longer warm-up time or trying to avoid thermal shock to the jars, or both.

 

Bones

So Easy to Preserve says,

Remove head, tail, fins, and scales. It is not necessary to remove the skin. You can leave the bones in most fish because the bones become very soft and are a good source of calcium. For halibut, remove the head, tail, fins, skin, and the bones.” ^[23] Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. Page 100.

 

Skin

Leaving the fish skin on is optional (except for halibut: remove.)

Ball and Bernardin want fish skin facing the glass of the jars.

Ball says, “Pack fish, skin side next to glass….” ^[24]Ball Blue Book. Edition 37. 2014. Page 102.

Bernardin says, “Pack fish into prepared jars, skin side next to glass….” ^[25]Bernardin Guide. 2013. Page 107.

Neither says why.

So Easy to Preserve is more helpful. It not only gives you a choice, but also says what the result of each choice is:

If the skin has been left on the fish, pack the fish skin out, for a nicer appearance or skin in, for easier jar cleaning.” ^[26] Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. Page 100.

 

Don’t reprocess

It’s advised by some, if only for quality reasons, to not to try to reprocess jars that don’t seal the first time:

Do NOT reprocess jars of seafood found to have poor seals during the 24 hours of grace between canning and storage. And even if the contents are decanted into fresh containers and done over from scratch, the result is likely to be unsatisfactory.”  ^[27] Hertzberg, Ruth; Greene, Janet; Vaughan, Beatrice (2010-05-25). Putting Food By: Fifth Edition (p. 172). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

 

Comparing the resources

The above points should have made it clear that the procedures for canning fish and seafood are so specialized depending on exactly what type of fish or seafood that you are canning that you do really need a reputable source to guide you along. Here’s how those reputable sources compare.

The USDA Complete Guide (2015) and So Easy To Preserve (2014) give the same amount of information on fish and seafood, pretty much verbatim. We noticed only a sentence difference in the Oysters procedure. (SETP adds “Add ¼ teaspoon salt to half-pint jars.”) They both cover clams, crab, oysters, tuna, smoked fish, fish in pint (half-litre) jars, and fish (other than tuna) in quart (litre) jars. Neither covers shrimp.

The Ball Blue Book (37th edition, 2014) covers clams, crab, oysters, shrimp, tuna, and fish in pint (half-litre) jars. It is the only reputable resource to cover shrimp. However, the guidance in general for the others is sparse (it’s missing a lot of the helpful tips and rationale that the USDA and SETP have), and it’s also missing support for smoked fish, and fish in quart (litre) jars.

The Bernardin Guide (2013) covers clams, crab, oysters, tuna, and fish in pint (half-litre) jars. The guidance in general is sparse (it’s missing a lot of the helpful tips and rationale that the USDA and SETP have), and it’s also missing support for smoked fish, and fish in quart (litre) jars.  However, it’s the best for salmon: it offers a full page dedicated to salmon with loads of helpful procedural hints. Note as well that Bernardin is the one that stands out for its concern about thermal shock with chilled fish. They say, “When canning chilled fish, do not heat jars. Add room temperature water to canner.”

The Ball / Bernardin Complete is the least helpful of all, surprisingly. It only covers general fish (not tuna) in pint / half-litre jars, and clams.

Reminder: none of the above support Blue Crab. By crab, they mean King and Dungeness.

 

Jar sizes and smoked fish history

Up until 2009, the USDA only had pint jar guidelines for processing fish. Based on work done by researchers Long and Crap at the University of Alaska, guidelines for using quart jars as well were added to the 2009 USDA guide.  ^[28] Andress, Elizabeth. “History, Science and Current Practice in Home Food Preservation.” Webinar. 27 February 2013. Accessed January 2015 at https://nchfp.uga.edu/multimedia/video/nchfp.wmv

Guidelines for processing smoked fish were added to the USDA guide based on work done by researchers Woodburn, Raab, and Hilderbrand at Oregon State.  ^[29] Andress, Elizabeth. “History, Science and Current Practice in Home Food Preservation.” Webinar. 27 February 2013. Accessed January 2015 at https://nchfp.uga.edu/multimedia/video/nchfp.wmv

 

Pickling or salting fish

Would you like to pickle or salt your fish? Consult Linda Ziedrich’s “The Joy of Pickling.” (Note: her recipes call for refrigeration of the finished product.)

She has recipes for Pickled Salmon, Gravlax, Pickled Herring, Pickled Oysters, Marinated Mussels, Pickled Shrimp, Fish in Escabeche Sauce, and Pickled Tuna. (Ziedrich, Linda.  Pages 431 to 440.)

The Ball All New (2016, page 359) also has a recipe for Gravlax, which they call “Cold Cured Salmon.” It is also for refrigerated storage.

Grab a free copy of this resource: Rasco, Barbara. Pickling Fish and Other Aquatic Foods for Home Use. Oregon State University. PNW 183. 2009. (For refrigerated storage.)

 

Fish in antipasto mixtures

Some home-canning recipes are floating around which are water-bathed, pickled mixtures of vegetables and fish — typically tuna or salmon. They are referred to as “antipasto” mixes or relishes. (“Antipasto” means “before the meal.”)

These recipes are not tested to be safe and are not from any reputable sources. In fact, Bernardin actively warns against them as being unsafe. They suggest instead that you add the fish of your choice at the time of serving:

Because antipasto is available commercially, many people believe they can preserve their own recipe at home. Most traditional antipasto recipes cannot be home canned safely and successfully. Low acid ingredients—olives, fish, vegetables—in antipasto recipes, even those that come from commercially canned products, require high heat processing for long time periods. The resulting home canned products are unacceptable in both texture and taste.This recipe has been specially formulated to allow for a well-balanced flavour, and varied texture low acid vegetables to be processed safely in a boiling water canner. Do NOT alter ingredients or measures. To create a traditional antipasto—preserve salmon separately in a pressure canner. When ready to serve antipasto, mix a jar of Vegetarian Antipasto with a jar of salmon and add your personal finishing touches -mushrooms, olive oil and/or olives— fresh antipasto each time it’s served!” ^[30]Bernardin. Vegetable antipasto. Accessed May 2017 at https://www.bernardin.ca/recipes/vegetable-antipasto.htm?Lang=EN-US .

 

Fish and seafood stocks

There are no tested procedures for home canning fish or seafood stocks from any of the pressure canning sources customarily accepted as reputable: Ball, Bernardin, National Center for Home Food Preservation, USDA, various Cooperative Extension Services.

Some people report having tried to can a broth or stock (for instance clam stock) using the same processing time as for jars of the actual item (in this instance, say clams), but have found that the resulting product is ruined from over-processing and comes out a burnt brown colour. ^[31]Shellfish Stock thread. Garden Web Home Canning Forum. February 2010. Accessed December 2017 at https://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/1931909/shellfish-stock

The following we mention for the sake of thoroughness but this is not a recommendation. The book, Putting Food By, does have procedures for two seafood stocks, as many people are aware and will point out. We’re uncertain, as we say in this review of Putting Food By, of the “status” of the book. At least three Extension Services use it as a reference; most do not. And Healthy Canning is not in a place to endorse it one way or the other; in all humility, we’re sure the authors have forgotten more than we’ll ever know.

That being said, here are the two seafood stock procedures they give. If you are bound and determined to try, it’s probably best to at least grab an inexpensive Kindle version of the book so that you are following all the preparation steps exactly as they want you to. [To be clear: this is not an endorsement of these recipes; we are in no position to endorse – our recommendation is to freeze it.]

Shrimp Stock OR Clam broth: 250 ml (½ pint / 8 oz) jars only, no larger.  2 cm (½″) headspace, process at 10 lbs. for 20 min. Hot pack only. Adjust pressure for altitude. (Hertzberg, Ruth. Putting Food By: Fifth Edition (p. 185). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.)

Putting Food By does not have anything else in it for fish stock or any other seafood stock; that’s it.

Remember: fish and seafood stocks are very delicate. Canning processes could affect the quality. In the end, it does seem likely that freezing them may be the best choice to ensure that the stocks don’t get “cooked” so long during processing that they become “overly fishy”.

Home canning lobster

We’ve done a search of all the university extension home-canning knowledge bases, as well as all the literature from reputable home canning sources and have been unable to find any recommendations for home canning lobster.

Bernardin says,

“Can I can Lobster? : Unfortunately, lobster is not one of the foods for which home canning in mason jars is recommended. The recommended home preservation method for lobster is freezing.

We have searched the U.S. and Canada, talking to a broad range of food authorities. There is no record of any university or food processing authority development of a method and/or time for safe processing of lobster in mason jars, at this time.

Why don’t you recommend canning lobster? : First, lobster is a very delicate meat of relatively high fat content. But, more importantly, it is also a low acid food that requires processing (heating filled jars) in a pressure canner. Unlike boiling water canners, pressure canners heat food at elevated temperatures – 240°F (116°C) – to destroy spores of clostridium botulinum. When not inactivated, these spores can grow and lead to a deadly form of food poisoning called botulism. The heat and time required to destroy the spores and safely heat process lobster in a pressure canner would undoubtedly turn the lobster meat to mush making it most unappetizing.

Now, we are aware that some people in coastal areas “put up” lobster in jars utilizing a variety of handed-down methods, most of which appear to involve a boiling water canner. Moreover, our research has led us to believe that most of the processing times being used in this “handed-down method” are woefully inadequate. Quite frankly, these people are playing a very dangerous game of chance with their family’s health. Unlike many microorganisms, spores of clostridium botulinum can lurk undetected in inadequately or poorly preserved foods. These spores are not detectable to the eye, touch or nose. In fact, they are very difficult to detect in a sophisticated lab.

We realize this is not the answer you wanted, but we trust that it will convince you to freeze lobster in the future.”^[32] Bernardin. Frequently asked questions. Accessed May 2020 at https://www.bernardin.ca/en/how-to-can/faq.htm

Directions for freezing lobster are given in So Easy to Preserve:

“For best quality, lobster should be frozen uncooked. Freeze the lobster whole, or clean it and freeze just shell portions that contain the edible meat. (Some lobsters have large front claws that contain edible meat, while others have edible meat mainly in the tail section.) Freeze lobster in the shell to help keep the meat from drying out. Simply wrap the whole lobster or lobster portions in moisture-vapor resistant wrapping and freeze. Lobster can be cooked and then frozen, but the quality will not be as good.” ^[33]Andress, Elizabeth L. and Judy A. Harrison. So Easy to Preserve. University of Georgia Cooperative Extension. Bulletin 989. Sixth Edition. 2014. Page 297.

 

Resources / Further Reading

Video: Canning Fish in Jars by Sonja Koukel. University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service. August 2010.

Brandt, Jeanne. Canning seafood. Oregon State University. PNW 194. 2016. Page 7.

Dinstel, Roxie Rodgers. Home Canning Smoked Fish and Home Smoking Fish for Canning. University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service. FNH-00223. Revised July 2012.

Long, Kristy. Canning Fish in Quart Jars. University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service. FNH-00126 . Revised April 2012.

Rasco, Barbara et al. Canning Smoked Fish at Home. Oregon State University. PNW 450. 2014. Page 7.

Van Delden, Kari. Add Variety to Home-Canned Fish. University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service. FNH-00224 . Revised April 2012.  (this publication provides a good table of various herbs and spices to add to canned fish)

Van Delden, Kari. Canning the Catch. University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service. FNH-00128 . Revised January 2014.

 

Related Resources

Rasco, Barbara. Home Freezing of Seafood. Oregon State University. PNW 586. 2006.

Rasco, Barbara. Pickling Fish and Other Aquatic Foods for Home Use. Oregon State University. PNW 183. 2009. (For refrigerated storage.)

Rasco, Barbara et al. Smoking Fish at Home Safely. Oregon State University. PNW 238. 2009.

Rasco, Barbara, Carolyn A. Raab, and Sandra M. McCurdy. Canning Smoked Fish at Home. PNW 450 Revised February 2014 .