The other night I was thinking about the homesteading skills I learned from my grandmothers. They were very different women, each with their own skill set. Neither of these women were homesteaders really but they had vintage skills to share with me…sadly, at the time, I wasn’t very interested in learning them. But it got me thinking about homesteading skills; how important it is that we learn them and begin to teach them to others (especially the younger generation).
These vintage skills were naturally passed on for generations. That is until many of us moved into cities and found that we enjoyed convenience over quality. However in the last few years I have seen a revival of homesteading – from small backyard homesteaders to those leaving city life behind and moving onto acres in the country. But what homesteading skills do we really need? Where can we learn them and who needs to be taught?
Homesteading Skills We Need to Learn and Teach
Well I’m glad you asked! I formulated a little list of what I think are the most important homesteading skills that we need to learn. Now I’m not saying these are the only homesteading skills you need, nor am I saying you are not a homesteader if you do not know how to do some of these. But I do believe we all should be doing our best to acquire and then pass down these skills; and I’ll share why as well as some resources.
The biggest piece of advice I can give you, before we head into the list, is to take on one or two skills at a time. If you try to learn and execute them all at once, you are going to do them poorly and probably burn out.
…
Canning meat can make any beginning canner nervous; it can make veteran canners jumpy. But canning meat, with the right precautions can be a great way to build your pantry for a fraction of the cost. Remember NEVER water bath can meats, you need a good pressure canner. Other things to consider: trim off any excess fat, gristle or bruised areas on the meat. When canning meats you can either preserve it in a broth, or you can pack it up raw which will provide its own juice. See 
