Recently COSTCO dropped their canned black beans and offered a large bag of dried black beans. The problem is I've lost the convince of opening a 1 lb can and saving half in the fridge. So today, I'm canning 1/2 pint and 1/4 pint jars of black beans. It is a process: soak overnight and discard flatulence soak water beans will increase volume about 15-20% pre-cook open stove (may be optional) use stock like Pho, beef, others to preseason expands beans for canning beans in jars with 'season to taste' mark on lids the batch technique loose lids on cans in pressure cooker cook at pressure mode long enough (20-30 minutes) CAUTION! LIVE STEAM!! cold water cool until pressure relieved remove jars and make sure lids are sealed REPEAT UNTIL BEANS AND CANNING JARS ARE DONE We had a cold front go through last night and canning both warms the house and fills it with wonderful smells. All of my leftover steak, ham, some carrots, smoked fish will be canned to make a variety of black bean jars. Stored in the pantry, I should be good to go for at least a month. Bob Wilson
You're doing it the right way. Our canning tended to be of veggies and happen at the hot end of the growing season. Phew! It improved when we learned the community-supported farm we belonged to had canning days at the farm. You'd bring your own jars and paraphernalia, but be able to heat up the canner on a multi-k-btu open burner out in an open shelter, not a sweltering kitchen. Went a lot faster and was a lot more comfortable, and sociable.
Baking soda during the soak? I have a pressure canner and a bazillion jars but I'm not 'seasoned' enough yet to have enough free time to can stuff. Maybe this year.... Maybe in retirement.... Maybe those who follow me will sell the stuff in an estate sale. +1! I tinkered with the idea of getting a tiller and putting some of my county property under till but it seems that every other house in the county has chickens and gardens. Every summer we have people in my church begging people to take their fresh veggies. Every year about this time I promise myself to can some of this bounty. Since I'm Covid years old I have done the Mormon Food Storage theory-to-practice and so I will be OK on beans and rice for a few more years. If we get tired of eating beans and rice? There's always rice and beans.
We usually do one big pot of chilli, starting with an overnight soak of 2~3 cups dry, dark-red kidney beans. Recipe involves: 2 pounds lean ground beef 4 cups chopped onions 6 (min) cloves garlic, crushed and minced aforementioned presoaked-and-rinsed beans two 28oz cans diced tomatos 19oz can niblets corn 2 tablespoons chilli powder 1 tablespoon oregano 1 tablespoon cumin 1 tablespoon salt 1 teaspoon pepper 2 cups water, and a possible third as it goes This "just" fits in a large dutch-oven style pot, simmer all day. Lasts a week or two in the fridge, serve on brown rice with garnish of shredded cabbage, chopped green onions and cilantro, plus avocado when available. Alternate with other dinners, for our sanity.
Years ago we bought a 2 burner propane cooker. That lets us can in the garage or outside, if there is no wind. Hot jars need to be in a wind free location as they cool to properly seal.
I heard the first seven pop closed. Nothing special this batch so thinking about opening the precooked and a just soaked for a quality inspection. Cutting out the precooking can save a lot of time for my next batch. No salt diet so no baking soda. My quality test will guide my next batch. But I did use some Pho stock in the boil and canning. Bob Wilson
Pre-Cooked vs Uncooked No visible difference in size Uncooked beans to right Both continued to draw in the liquid that initially was ~1/2 in (~ 1 cm) above the beans The 1/2 pint servings are about the same size as a side of beans Two make a meal by themselves Taste test: Texture identical Taste of Pho broth Not in the cooked bean but the broth Nothing in the uncooked as tap water used to cover Lessons Learned No need to pre-cook the beans or season before canning. The higher heat of the pressure cooker solves completes cooking the beans. This easily saves an hour. Just cold soak over night, drain the soak water, jar with water layer on top, and pressure cook. Seasionings remained in the broth, not infused in the bean. Seasoning the overnight, cold soak probably saturates the beans so subsequent cooking has no effect on the bean itself. The seasoning remains in the broth. However, if additional "leftovers" like beef, pork, or fish are desired, they could be safely canned and their taste picked up later by the broth. My future protocol: Soak beans overnight and discard wash water (flatulence avoidance) Can beans extra liquid, 1 inch (~2 cm), if you like more broth versus just beans Use any leftovers that you like to season or flavor the broth For me, it makes sense to can beans as before and not increase the broth. If you want a bean soup, combine the beans with the soup stock and left overs. I liked the Pho stock taste but it was unnecessary for pressure canning the beans. Bob Wilson
