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Farm Kitchen:  Canning beans help...  |
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nndairy
True Blue Farmgirl
3554 Posts
Heather
Wapakoneta
Ohio
USA
3554 Posts |
 Posted - Sep 23 2014 : 08:20:59 AM
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I would like to try my hand at canning dried beans. Does anyone have any recipes that they've tried or advice? Is it better to pre-cook the beans or not? I would like to have some chili beans, refried beans, and black beans. Thanks for any help you can give me 
Heather
Farmgirl Sister #4701
http://nndairy.blogspot.com/
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Ninibini
True Blue Farmgirl
7577 Posts
Nini
Pennsylvania
USA
7577 Posts |
Posted - Sep 23 2014 : 09:12:00 AM
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Hi Heather!
How fun! I did my kidney beans for the first time this year, and they turned out great. I did NOT pre-cook my beans, though. I sorted them (picking out any bad beans and any pebbles), then rinsed them well. I added 1/2 tsp salt per each clean pint jar, then filled each about 1/2 full - but not more than that - with the beans, then added enough water to leave 1" headspace. I added hot lids and rings, twisting until finger tight and then processed in my pressure canner at 15 lbs. of pressure (the pressure required for my elevation) for 40 minutes. You'll need to check out the correct pressure for your elevation, of course, and if you're using quarts, they need to be processed longer. You'll have to check the specifications for your pressure canner and process accordingly.
Having said that, though, there were many conflicting opinions out there as to how many dried beans to use, and as to whether one should instead use pre-cooked beans. The problem is, if you don't pre-cook your beans, it's hard to judge exactly how many dry to add to your jars. Dry beans REALLY expand when processing, and if you add too many dry beans, you can blow your jar lids clean off during processing and ruin your canning efforts. Many of the sites I visited recommended adding no more than a half-jar full of dry beans for processing, and it worked just fine for me. :)
There are actually some really great canning demos and tips on YouTube. I have learned A LOT from watching ourhalfacrehomestead, katzcradul, bexarprepper and Linda's Pantry, among others. If you do a search on these ladies, I'm sure you'll get some well-rounded input on the best way to go, and their canning and deyhdrating demos are priceless!
Good luck sister! Can't wait to hear how everything turns out for you! Have fun!
Hugs,
Nini
Farmgirl Sister #1974
God gave us two hands... one to help ourselves, and one to help others!
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Ninibini
True Blue Farmgirl
7577 Posts
Nini
Pennsylvania
USA
7577 Posts |
Posted - Sep 23 2014 : 09:14:58 AM
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Oh - and one more thing... bexarprepper does a really neat video on how to make homemade refried beans. She then dehydrates them and reconstitutes them as needed. I haven't been able to do it yet, but you might find it very interesting. The only thing I would say is that when canning any type of highly viscous foods, you run into danger of them exploding under pressure. I did can homemade baked beans, and they worked great except for one jar which blew under pressure. I am not sure whether I am going to do that again or not. ourhalfacrehomestead has a great video on her way to can baked beans that I might try later. She does not cook her baked beans fully to thicken them before processing. That might work out a lot better than what I did! :)
Farmgirl Sister #1974
God gave us two hands... one to help ourselves, and one to help others!
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Ninibini
True Blue Farmgirl
7577 Posts
Nini
Pennsylvania
USA
7577 Posts |
Posted - Sep 23 2014 : 09:56:00 AM
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I'm sorry, Heather... I'm trying to type all of this to you between lessons. Katzcradul does a really neat tutorial on how to dehydrate quick cook beans as well. Again, haven't been able to do it yet, but it's definitely on my to do list for the fall. You might really want to check that out if you're going to be dehydrating! :) Hugs - Nini
Farmgirl Sister #1974
God gave us two hands... one to help ourselves, and one to help others!
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hudsonsinaf
True Blue Farmgirl
3162 Posts
Shannon
Rozet
Wyoming
USA
3162 Posts |
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Farm Kitchen: Canning beans help... |
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Canning beans help...
