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By the way - not saying the Broke Boi tek isn't good or anything, but I notice you have a pretty nice tent setup going. If you can spare an extra $100 I would highly recommend just getting one of these. It makes sterilizing jars/agar so much easier, and I have yet to have any contam issues since switching from the broke boi tek.
I'm really enjoying having my PC. I've had decent clarity with chicken stock in the past, although I don't think you can compare to the clarity from the french method of stockmaking. The PC does a great job at extracting flavors too. This is the one I bought, I wanted to get a larger size in the event I want to make a bunch of broth but usually I'm only using it at about half full. Plus, if you ever want to get into canning the option is always there! If you have a little money to throw around it's a great way to keep experimenting with your ramen-stocks while minimizing labor time; let's be honest we love ramen not tending to a pot for 12+ hours. Not to mention you can cook the hundreds of other dishes that requires a PC.
Do you think 23 qt is too much for a starter pot? I saw that there was also a 16 quart pot, but it looks like it's roughly the same circumference, just shorter, so it would have the same heating problem as the 23 qt, if I understand correctly (though obviously less weight).
My first strain was z-strain. I think it makes a good one for beginners because it seems to colonize very quickly. However, just about any cube is going to be pretty easy to work with. PF tek is a good place to start, but don't be intimidated by grain and bulk. It's not much more complicated and you get yields that are orders of magnitude greater in volume. The biggest advantage of PF tek, IMHO, is not having to buy a pressure cooker. If you do buy a pressure cooker, I reccomend this one at first. http://www.amazon.com/Presto-1755-16-Quart-Aluminum-Pressure/dp/B000QJJ9NY It holds 7 quart jars at a time, which is good volume for the cost.
Not sure where you're located, but I have a glass top stove and this Presto model and it works fine.
https://www.amazon.com/Presto-1755-16-Quart-Aluminum-Pressure/dp/B000QJJ9NY
The glass tops do limit what we can use, but at least there's something out there on the market for us.
It’s the best trichoderma growing info around my man
Interesting bit of kit. I do water bath canning either in my biggest stock pot or in my pressure canner with the lid off right on the stove-top. My most recent product was Branston pickle, really a chutney, that I did water bath. Really fast - by the time I had the kitchen clean the jars were ready to come out.
Pressure canning may seem intimidating but it really is simple. If you follow the directions in the USDA guidelines your immediate response will be "what is all the fuss about?" You do have to monitor it. Even for long canning runs (I think my pasta sauce takes an hour) it takes about ten minutes of hovering to get the temp right and then I can read or watch TV nearby. I have a 16 qt Presto much like this
Mine dates back to about 1957. If I recall correctly it was a wedding gift to my parents. It looks just like the Amazon picture. There is a 23 qt one for just a bit more. I'd go bigger.
I have seen the fruit lids new at my local TrueValue hardware store. We used to get them for gifts but now we use round Avery labels run through a color laser printer so cheaper plain lids are our standard.
I'm sure your product tastes as good as it looks. Happy Holidays.
The Presto 16 qt is a good deal. If you get a Presto with a dial gauge, get the three piece weight to replace the mushroom-looking weight that's there. The dial is a pain to use: it has to be calibrated out of the box and every year, and you have to stick by the kitchen to keep an eye on the dial. With the three piece weight, there's no calibrating, and you can just listen for the rocking as you go about other things in the house.
Additionally, you may need to get a canning coil (just an example) for your range. Check your user manual to be sure and to get the right kind if you need one. :)