Recently, I’ve received several questions about pressure canning fish. Is it difficult? What recipe do I use? How does it turn out? Instead of writing each reader individually, I decided to share the know-how and recipe here on the blog!
How to Pressure Can Fish
But before we get started, there are a few details you should know about pressure canning fish. The process isn’t complicated, I promise! But there are several things you should know and be aware of for safe home canning.
1. Choose Quality Fish
One of the rules for tasty (and safe) home canning is this: begin with quality food! It isn’t true of just fruits and vegetables. Make sure your fish is freshly caught or has been properly refrigerated/frozen if you are attempting to pressure can it.
2. Types of Fish Are Safe to Pressure Can
You can safely pressure can both pink and white fleshed fish. In this tutorial, I preserve a large catch of bony pike minnow.
Yes, that is one of the beautiful things about pressure canning fish! The bones will disintegrate, making many a ‘junk fish’ edible.
3. Be Aware of the Texture You’ll Get
Pressure canned fish will be softer in texture than when fried or baked. As a general rule, the larger the fish, the firmer it will be.
If the meat is canned with bones in, they also add a texture all their own! They’ll disintegrate in your mouth, but do add their own unique element.
4. How to Prepare Fish
If your fish has scales, be sure to remove them! Also trim off the tail and large fins. Because fish may be pressure canned with bone in, the only time you need to flay a fish is when it’s too large to fit in your canning jar! Recommended sizes are half pints (250 ml) and pints (500 ml).
5. Necessary Equipment
You MUST use a pressure canner (not a pressure cooker) to safely preserve fish. Under no circumstances should you attempt to process your fish via waterbath methods!
6. Add herbs and Spices
Be sure to add salt to your fish or the results will be quite bland.
Half pints (250 mls) need 1/4 tsp salt per jar
And pints (500 mls)? They should have 1/2 tsp salt per jar.
Other seasonings (such as paprika, curry, garlic or onion powder) can also be added to each jar in small amounts.
7. Fill Your Jars
Cut your fish into lengths that will allow for 1 inch of headspace in the jar. Add salt and spices to each jar, then begin filling with your cuts of fish.
Once the job is complete, dampen a paper towel in vinegar and use it to wipe the rim of each jar. This will remove any fish slime or oils!
There’s no need to add extra liquid. The fish will create it’s own juices.
Add lids and metal bands. Tighten to fingertip tightness and fill your pressure canner!
8. Process Your Fish
I use a weighted gauge pressure canner. If you need directions for a dial gauge, go to the National Center of Home Food Preservation. You’ll find what you need there!
With a weighted gauge canner, those of us living under 1,000ft in elevation need to process fish at 10lbs of pressure. If your altitude is higher, you’ll need 15 lbs of pressure for safe preserving.
Regardless of altitude, your fish must be processed for 100 minutes. Yes…for one hour and 40 minutes.
After you’ve processed the fish and your pressure canner has cooled, remove the jars and set them on a baking rack or towel to cool. Don’t place them on a cold surface or they may crack!
9. How to Use Your Canned Fish
You can treat home canned fish as you would tuna. We add it to sandwiches, salads, wraps and tacos. It’s a great item to take on family camping trips for quick and easy protein!
That’s all there is to it!
Hi, my name is Autumn and I'm all about whole food cooking, gardening, preserving and nourishing the home in a traditional manner.
I grew upon Canned fish. My mother learned from a friend how to can rough fish – Carp and Buffalo. We would skin the carp and buffalo, filet them off the spine but leave the rib bones in. The pressure cooking process makes the bones very soft and they are an EXCELLENT source of calcium! We skinned the carp and buffalo to get rid of the ‘fishy’ taste. We also cut the filets into strips about 1″ to 1.5″ wide, and to the proper length for the jar. Mom would use quart jars cause there was 6 in our family and a quart jar was sufficient to make enough patties for us.
It also makes using the canned fish, FAST because when you use canned fish with the skin on, then you have to waste time picking the skin off the fish before you make patties out of it. We used the canned carp and buffalo as a direct substitute for Salmon, and the carp has a MUCH less fishy taste than salmon did. I think my mother added a spoon of white vinegar to each jar as well, but don’t hold me to it. I’ve not canned in fish myself, but I want to try Asian Carp to see how it taste. I’d like to do some common carp and some Asian Carp and compare the taste.
“I’ve not canned ANY fish myself,” is what my last sentence was to say, instead of “I’ve not canned in fish myself, …” Sorry!
Hi,
Can I can pickled fish and not have to refrigerate it?
Hi Steve!
I don’t have any experience with canning pickled fish and can’t seem to find anything about it among tested and approved canning recipes. But I do know that pressure canning meat makes it shelf stable. No refrigeration needed! Hope that helps.
Hi. Would i be able to batter & fry canned fish? Mane revert to patties to fry? I’d like to can halibut and flounder as well.
Thank you for your help
Hi Debbie! I’ve never personally made fish patties myself from canned fish, but I have had them in my sister-in-law’s home. She would mix onion greens and lots of spices into her fish patties and fry them up in a cast iron skillet. Tasty!
Hi Autumn
I read that fish bones will only soften if the pressure canner is capable of reaching 20psi. Is this correct? Most of the canner models I see available seem to only get to 15psi. I want to can some larger fish and want to create that soft bone effect. Will a 15psi canner allow me to achieve this?
Hi Daniel!
I’ve never heard this before and seeing as non-commercial pressure canners are NOT supposed to be run at more than 15 PSI, I think you’ll be fine! If the fish you are processing is very large, you can cut out the backbone (if you’re worried). Otherwise, you’ll be just fine! Good luck!
Just wondering if it is possible to can in quarts? I have been blessed with a ton of whitefish from a friend and I also have a large family. Quarts would make more sense for me, plus I have more quart jars than pints.
Hi Lisa!
Yes, fish can be canned in quart jars. However, the procedure is a bit different (because of how big the jars are). To learn how to safely process fish in quart jars, you need to follow the process found on the Nation Center of Home Food Preservation website. Go here (https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can5_meat.html) and choose the “fish (quart jars)” option. Download the PDF, read it carefully and then fire up your canner!
Good luck!
Autumn
Thanks so much.
I want to can fish, however I’ve read where my pressure canner isn’t large enough (?) per website: “Please Note: The All American Pressure Canner 910 10 Quart is not recommended for canning SMOKED fish as the size of this canner does not allow for adequate heating and cooling times.” So maybe I can do raw but not smoked?
From what I’ve understood, smoked fish is unusual and does need to be carefully processed. I “think” you should be safe to can raw fish in your 910 All American pressure canner. If you live over 1,001 ft in elevation, fish must be processed at 15 PSI. As long as your canner is capable of doing this, I think you’re safe.
is it possible to can cooked razor clams? Thanks
I’ve never done it personally, but if you have a pressure canner, you can! Directions can be found on the NCHFP website here: https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_05/clams.html
and if they have been cooked, do I need to use a pressure canner or a pressure cooker is good enough?
In order to safely preserve meats you must process the goods in a pressure canner.
Thanks for your replies :), it is great that someone like you share your experience and knowledge.
I guess it is worth investing in a pressure canner and it is the safest way to do it, I have been good, so may be Santa …
At the same time the high temperatures of 118°C necessary to kill the types of bacteria which may be present in fish can only be reached under pressure, and a pressure cooker should be good to reach this temperature but I won’t try it myself.
At the moment, we will do our best to end up with the 3 Kg of razor clams with the help of our dog.
Sounds like a great Christmas idea! The reason you need a pressure canner is because you need temps in excess of 240F. Because all oxygen is removed from the jar during the canning process, there’s opportunity for botulism (it needs an anaerobic environment) to develop. The excess of 240F ensures that spores are killed off and that botulism can’t develop in your jars.
But if you precook your clams, you could safely freeze them! Good luck!
Surely you mean 140c? 140f isn’t hot enough.
Yes, you’re right! That was a typo. It should read “an excess of 240F! Thanks for catching that…I’ll edit it right now! 🙂
I just found this page on canning fish. I want to can some thawed tilapia. I can’t find anything on how to can that kind of fish. Do you know if it cans the same as your recipe?
I’ve never tried canning tilapia before, but I would think the process would be the same. Just make sure you remove the scales or else flay the fish!
Can this same method be used for salmon? shrimp? perch? tuna? cod?
Hi Tera! You can’t process all types of seafood alike. You can find the safe processing times for shrimp, tuna and the like at the National Center of Home Food Preservation. Here’s the link: https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can5_meat.html
Is this the same method you used for trout?
I have a whole bunch of trout from this year I can’t wait to try pressure canning!! 🤗
Thanks Autumn😊
Yes, I use the exact same technique for trout.