♪♪ Narrator:
WITH SO MUCH ON THEIR PLATES, BUSY PEOPLE RELY ON SHORTCUTS
TO HELP PREPARE MEALS. NOWADAYS,
YOU CAN STOCK YOUR PANTRY WITH CANS OF PRECOOKED MEAT SO THERE'S ALWAYS SOMETHING
ON HAND TO USE IN SANDWICHES, STEWS, STIR-FRIES,
AND OTHER TASTY DISHES. THIS CANNED MEAT IS
METICULOUSLY HAND-PRODUCED BY A CRAFT CANNERY
AND MADE IN SMALL BATCHES. ♪♪ IT CONTAINS NO ARTIFICIAL
INGREDIENTS OR PRESERVATIVES, JUST MEAT AND SEA SALT. WHEN A SHIPMENT OF MEAT
ARRIVES AT THE CANNERY, THE QUALITY CONTROL MANAGER
RECORDS ITS LOT CODE FOR TRACKING PURPOSES. AS A FOOD-SAFETY PRECAUTION, HE CONFIRMS THE TEMPERATURE
OF THE MEAT, WHICH MUST COME IN BETWEEN
ZERO TO 39° FAHRENHEIT. A SKILLED BUTCHER
THEN INSPECTS THE MEAT AND TRIMS OFF THE EXCESS FAT. ♪♪ IF IT'S A LARGE PIECE, THE BUTCHER SLICES IT
INTO SMALLER PIECES SO THAT IT CAN PASS THROUGH
THE DICING MACHINE. ♪♪ THE DICER CUTS THE MEAT
INTO ONE-INCH CUBES. ♪♪ AT THE FILLING STATION, ALUMINUM CANS CIRCULATE
AROUND A ROTATING TABLE. AS ONE WORKER SHOVELS CUBED MEAT
ONTO THE CENTER OF THE TABLE, OTHERS MANUALLY FILL CANS WHILE SIMULTANEOUSLY PERFORMING
A QUALITY INSPECTION. WORKERS WILL DISCARD ANY CUBES THAT ARE DISCOLORED
OR TOO FATTY. NEXT, TECHNICIANS PLACE
A SINGLE CUBE OF SEA SALT IN EACH CAN FILLED WITH MEAT. ♪♪ THIS IS THE ONLY
ADDED INGREDIENT. ♪♪ AT THE NEXT STATION, WORKERS
WEIGH EACH CAN INDIVIDUALLY AND EITHER ADD OR REMOVE MEAT
TO REACH THE REQUIRED WEIGHT. ♪♪ THE FILLED CANS NOW TRAVEL
ON A CONVEYER BELT TO THE COOK ROOM. THERE, THEY ENTER
THE PRE-HEATER, WHICH BLASTS THEM WITH STEAM
FOR 20 SECONDS. THIS EXPELS AIR THAT'S TRAPPED
BETWEEN THE CUBES OF MEAT. ♪♪ NEXT, THE CANS MOVE
INTO THE CLOSING MACHINE. THE MACHINE COMPRESSES THE MEAT TO PROVIDE SUFFICIENT CLEARANCE
AT THE TOP OF THE CAN. THIS HEAD SPACE
CREATES A VACUUM ON THE CAN TO DRAW OUT THE REMAINING AIR. ♪♪ THEN, A DEVICE ATTACHES THE LID BY A PROCESS KNOWN
AS DOUBLE SEAMING. THE PROCESS ROLLS THE EDGES
OF THE LID AND CAN TOGETHER, FORMING A RIM THAT PROVIDES
AN AIRTIGHT SEAL. ♪♪ IT'S TIME TO GET COOKING. A WORKER LOWERS THE CANS INTO A COMMERCIAL-SIZED
PRESSURE COOKER. ♪♪ COOKING UNDER STEAM PRESSURE PRODUCES THE TENDERIZING
EFFECTS OF SLOW COOKING IN A FRACTION OF THE TIME. ♪♪ THE MEAT COOKS
IN ITS OWN JUICES. THE COOKING TEMPERATURE VARIES, DEPENDING ON THE TYPE OF MEAT
AND THE CAN SIZE. ♪♪ WHEN THE MEAT IS READY,
THE TECHNICIAN REMOVES THE CANS AND SETS THEM ASIDE
FOR ABOUT AN HOUR TO COOL AND DRY. ♪♪ THE CANS ARE THEN MOVED
TO THE PACKAGING AREA. ♪♪ AS A WORKER LOADS
THE LABELING MACHINE, HE INSPECTS EACH CAN
FOR DENTS OR DAMAGED SEALS. ♪♪ ONE BY ONE, THE CANS ROLL
OVER A GLUE APPLICATOR, THEN A STACK OF LABELS, WRAPPING THEMSELVES
IN THE TOP SEAL. AT THE SAME TIME, THE MACHINE
COUNTS THE NUMBER OF CANS. ♪♪ AFTER ROLLING OFF
THE LABELING MACHINE, THE CANS PASS
THROUGH AN INK-JET PRINTER WHICH APPLIES
THE BEST-USED-BY DATE. ♪♪ THAT DATE IS NEXT
TO THE LOT CODE, WHICH THE CLOSING MACHINE
PRINTED WHILE ATTACHING THE LID. THIS CAN OF MEAT
HAS A FIVE-YEAR SHELF LIFE, DUE TO TWO CRUCIAL FACTORS: IT IS COOKED PROPERLY
AND THE CAN'S SEAL IS AIRTIGHT. ♪♪
My first reaction was to laugh at the idea of a "craft cannery" but then I was pleasantly surprised at their process.
Claire from BA kitchen is making canned meet next.
Very surprised that's all the salt they used/needed. Always thought these canned meats needed a bunch of preservatives, but I guess not.
That was surprisingly clean with no mystery meat or nasty chemicals.