Today I would like to share with you one very easy and efficient way to replace a common staple in your cupboard, and that is canned beans. With the fear of BPA in our canned goods and the expense of organic canned beans, taking dried beans and canning your own allows you to process a large quantity at one time while allowing you the peace of mind in knowing exactly what is put into those jars. And at very little cost (other than your time). I was surprised to find organic dried beans at $1.50- $2.00/lb depending on the type. For this tutorial, I used organic black beans at $1.69/lb and purchased nearly 8 pounds. The yield was {16} pressure canned pint jars and {14} freezer pint jars. Now that’s a lot of beans! That works out to be less than $0.45 per jar, not including the cost of the jars/bands themselves as I have a massive canning jar hoard that has mounted throughout the years and I didn’t have to go out and buy any. And of course there’s the factor of the amount of time it takes, but let’s face it- nobody is going to pay me for my time! It’s well worth it.
What You Will Need:
- dried beans of your choice
- pressure canner (you cannot use a boiling water canner!)
- canning jars (quarts or pints), lids, bands
- jar lifter, lid lifter, funnel, non-metallic untensil
- large pot(s)
- optional: canning salt (for taste), vinegar (for adding to your canner to prevent cloudy jars)
Step 1:
After sorting through your dried beans and removing any foreign objects (little stones), place your dried beans into a large stock pot. Add water until it is 2″ over the top of your beans. Bring water to a boil and allow to boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and allow them to soak for 1 hour.
Step 2:
Because the beans will expand, you might want to split up the soaked beans between two different pots for the next step. Cover them again with 2″ cold water and bring to a boil. Boil for 30 minutes, stirring frequently so the beans do not burn to the bottom. Turn off heat.
Step 3:
At this point, if you’re choosing to add salt you can do that. Simply measure 1/2 tsp. per pint jar or 1 tsp. per quart jar.
Using a slotted spoon, ladle beans into hot jars leaving 1″ headspace.
Then ladle hot liquid from the pot of beans into the jars to cover the beans, again leaving 1″ headspace. Carefully run a non-metallic utensil down the inside of the jar to release trapped air bubbles. Wipe the rim and threads of the jar clean before securing canning lid and band. Place into prepared pressure canner.
Process accordingly:
After allowing the pressure to completely go down in the canner (see the manual for your specific canner on how to determine this), remove using a jar lifter to cooling racks or an area that has been prepared with a few layers of towels. Allow to sit at room temperature for 24 hours before storing in a cool, dry place.
**Some things to note:**
- If you make more beans than can fit in your canner, you can freeze them too! Simply ladle the beans and cooking liquid into wide mouth jars {or freezer container of choice}, leaving 2″ headspace to allow for expansion during freezing.
- There are other methods of canning dried beans. You can soak them overnight and, upon canning, bring them to a boil for 2 minutes prior to canning (this eliminates the additional 1 hour soak time and 30 minutes boiling time).
- I’ve also read that people simply put dried beans (unsoaked, uncooked) into the jars, cover with water, and pressure can with success.
- You can also cover your beans with water and allow them to simmer for 1- 1 1/2 hours (no soaking, no re-cooking). Then proceed with the canning process.
- Using water that is too soft can result in mushy beans.
Thanks so much for stopping by 🙂
And happy homesteading!
This is awesome! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Glad you liked it, Rae! Thanks so much for visiting 🙂
xErin
We came to the same conclusion…baby steps. I never thought of canning dried beans! We really only use them for a few recipes, always great northern beans, but it’s something I could easily do! Thanks for the idea.
Thank goodness for the internet, right? I ran out of garlic powder the other day so I did a Google search on how to make your own…and yep, can do that too. My next experiment :). Baby steps…baby steps… 😉
Thanks for coming over!
xErin
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