How long to pressure can beef and red meat
Pressure can beef and red meat for 75 minutes (half-pints and pints) or 90 minutes (quarts) at 11 lb on a dial gauge (0–2,000 ft) or 10 lb on a weighted gauge (0–1,000 ft). The time stays the same at every altitude; the pressure goes up: add 1 lb of dial pressure for each 2,000 ft above 2,000 ft, and use 15 lb on a weighted gauge above 1,000 ft.
Beef and red meat canning times by altitude
| Altitude | Half-pints and pints | Quarts |
|---|---|---|
| 0–2,000 ft | 75 min at 11 lb | 90 min at 11 lb |
| 2,001–4,000 ft | 75 min at 12 lb | 90 min at 12 lb |
| 4,001–6,000 ft | 75 min at 13 lb | 90 min at 13 lb |
| 6,001–8,000 ft | 75 min at 14 lb | 90 min at 14 lb |
| 8,001–10,000 ft | 75 min at 15 lb | 90 min at 15 lb |
By jar size: half-pints and pints · quarts
What the time assumes
- Method: pressure canner
- Acidity: low-acid: must be pressure canned
- Headspace: 1¼ inches
- No tested process: half-gallons. Putby shows no time for this size.
Strips, cubes, chunks or ground meat on their own. Chili, stews and other mixed recipes have their own tested times.
Questions
- How long do you pressure can beef and red meat?
- Pressure can beef and red meat for 75 minutes (half-pints and pints) or 90 minutes (quarts) at 11 lb on a dial gauge (0–2,000 ft) or 10 lb on a weighted gauge (0–1,000 ft). The time stays the same at every altitude; the pressure goes up: add 1 lb of dial pressure for each 2,000 ft above 2,000 ft, and use 15 lb on a weighted gauge above 1,000 ft.
- What pressure do you use for beef and red meat at 5,000 feet?
- At 4,001–6,000 ft use 13 lb on a dial gauge or 15 lb on a weighted gauge. The processing time does not change with altitude.
- Can you water bath can beef and red meat?
- No. This is a low-acid food. A boiling-water canner cannot reach the temperature that destroys botulism spores, so beef and red meat must be pressure canned.
- What headspace should I leave for beef and red meat?
- Leave 1¼ inches of headspace.
Sources
- USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning, Guide 5 (Poultry, Red Meats, Seafood) · NCHFP; weighted gauge: USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning, Guides 4 and 5 (weighted-gauge column) · NCHFP
Times and pressures are restated from the National Center for Home Food Preservation and the USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning, in our own words. They are the same table Putby's app uses; a test in the app fails if the two ever disagree. Altitude schedule: Putby adds minutes to boiling-water processes in five steps up to 10,000 ft; at the higher steps that can be a few minutes longer than a food's own USDA altitude table, never shorter. If your tested recipe gives a longer time, use the recipe's time. Last reviewed 2026-10-16.