Dried Beans

We eat a lot of beans in this house, a lot of beans.  So I can them.  I can them purely for ease and convenience.  Some will argue that they take up less space if you store them dried and they are right, however it's so easy for me to grab a jar of my delicious home canned beans when we need them for breakfast, lunch or dinner.  No soaking them over night and babysitting them on the stove all day. I spend a few hours or so one day every four months canning 5 pounds of beans and that lasts us for about four months or so. 

In this tutorial I am canning dried pinto beans.  I can all my beans this way pinto, garbanzo, kidney...... you got the picture.

DISCLAIMER - This is the way I can dried beans.  This is NOT the recommended way to can them.  It is recommended that you soak them 12-18 hours before canning.  Here is the link to the recommended canning process for dried beans



Supplies:

Pressure canner
Pint or quart jars, lids and rings
Dried beans
Canning salt (optional)


First I prepared my jars and lids.   I always give my jars a quick wash in some warm soapy water. Rinse well and then fill with about 1 or so inches of  hot water and set them in a roasting pan.  I put the roasting pan into the oven and set the heat at 250 degrees.  This will keep the jars warm and sterilize them. They must be in the oven for 30 minutes to be sterilized.  I then placed the lids into a small pan of hot, not boiling, water on top of the stove and leave them until I am ready to use them. 

While the jars are warming up I rinse and clean my beans several times.  I toss out the dirt clods and the shriveled and beaten up looking beans.

I then put a large pot of water on to boil.  My mother-in-law gave me this induction burner a few years ago and boy has it come in handy for canning.  I can set it right on my counter and that frees up room on the stove.  Today I am using two pressure canners so room on the stove is a valuable commodity.  

When my water is boiling it's time to rock and roll.  I put 1/2 cup of beans into each pint jar and 1 cup of beans into each quart jar.  I then add canning salt (optional) and I also add about a teaspoon of canned diced chiles.  It just gives the beans a little extra added flavor. 

Then I fill the jars with boiling water leaving 3/4" headspace and clean the rim of the jar with a paper towel dampened with white vinegar.  I then place the lids on and the rings finger tip tight and then place into my prepared pressure canner.

I process the beans at 10 lbs pressure 75 mins. for pints and 90 mins. for quarts.  10 lbs is the pressure for my elevation.  Make sure to check for your correct pressure.

After processing I turned off the heat and allowed my pressure canner to return to zero as per my pressure canner's instructions.  I then removed the jars and set them on a dish drying mat and listened for the magical ping.

I waited 24 hours and then removed the rings, washed them up, labeled them and put them away.

And that's how I can my beans.  Out of today's 5 pounds of dried beans I got 7 pints and 6 quarts of luscious ready-to-go beans.  Time well spent.

Happy canning everyone.