# Canning seasoned black beans



## Vickivail98 (Sep 26, 2014)

Hello, I'm in love with the pioneer woman's black beans but have a ban on adding stuff to the freezer! I'm wondering about canning them, I pressure can a lot of stuff but have never done beans at all. Any tips? Also- you must try these! http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/black-beans.html


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## TacticalTrout (Jan 7, 2010)

I usually spend some time canning dried beans during the winter when the heat generated from the stove only helps add to the comfort of the house. I follow the Ball Blue Book guidelines and usually do black beans, pintos and great northerns...I have not tried kidney beans as they seem to require an additional step.

Canned beans are so darn cheap if you catch them on sale, but I like knowing exactly what is in my beans. Not to mention it provides some pressure canning practice.


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## Marilyn (Aug 2, 2006)

Winter is a great time to can beans, vickivail. I think the PW Black Bean recipe will can beautifully. Your best bet would probably be to stop cooking at the point where she suggests that you simmer for 1 1/2 hours. At that point, instead of simmering, I would go ahead and put them in prepared jars and pressure can at 10 lbs for 1 1/2 hours.

I agree that canned beans are relatively inexpensive to purchase. However, once I realized that there are so few actual beans in that can (about a third of the can), and how inexpensively I can purchase dried beans in bulk, then canning my own truly became inexpensive.

Unfortunately, I do not recall the HT member that shared the following Black Bean Soup recipe. (If you recognize this recipe as yours, please speak up!)

BLACK BEAN SOUP TO CAN

Pick over and rinse enough black beans to have 1 cup in each quart jar.
Cover with boiling water and let set overnight.*
Drain in the morning.

To each qt jar add:
2 tsp chopped pickled jalapeno
1 tsp sugar
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 cup red onion, diced
1 tsp cider vinegar
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp chili powder

Cover with boiling water to 1" head space.

Process 90 mins at 10 lb pressure.

*Beans will absorb a great deal of this boiling water, so give them plenty to work on throughout the night.


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## Vickivail98 (Sep 26, 2014)

Thank you for the replies! I've started my beans soaking and will can them up tomorrow.


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## Vickivail98 (Sep 26, 2014)

Just a follow up- they turned out great. So excited to keep more of our staples out of the freezer! If anyone else is trying this I soaked my black beans at 140 degrees with a bit of kefir or lemon juice for 24 hours (just threw it in my crockpot), then added the seasonings in the recipe. I used the chicken broth to top off the jars and then processed 90 minutes for quarts. Perfect!!!


Mommy in Michigan


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## TacticalTrout (Jan 7, 2010)

Vickivail98 said:


> Just a follow up- they turned out great. So excited to keep more of our staples out of the freezer! If anyone else is trying this I soaked my black beans at 140 degrees with a bit of kefir or lemon juice for 24 hours (just threw it in my crockpot), then added the seasonings in the recipe. I used the chicken broth to top off the jars and then processed 90 minutes for quarts. Perfect!!!
> 
> 
> Mommy in Michigan


Curious about your use of kefir. Did you use just the water or did you use grains? Did you see a recipe or guideline regarding its use? I am always so sketchy about deviating from a canning recipe, especially anything requiring pressure canning.


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## Vickivail98 (Sep 26, 2014)

I just add a Tbsp or so of prepared kefir to the soaking water because black beans are especially high in phytic acid and adding lemon or kefir helps. I also am draining off the soaking water so it's not an issue. 


Mommy in Michigan


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## jerseylover (Oct 27, 2014)

I'm assuming you used water kefir not milk?


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## Vickivail98 (Sep 26, 2014)

Nope, raw milk Kefir. 


Mommy in Michigan


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## Vickivail98 (Sep 26, 2014)

Quick update, I've made these 5 times now and the only change I've made is to only soak them in kefired water overnight to avoid slight mushing. So happy with these!!!


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## suitcase_sally (Mar 20, 2006)

TacticalTrout said:


> Canned beans are so darn cheap if you catch them on sale, but I like knowing exactly what is in my beans. Not to mention it provides some pressure canning practice.


Canned beans on sale here are usually 79 cents/can. I buy my dried beans in bulk for 60 cents/lb. I get 9 pints from 2 lbs. That works out to 13 cents/pint (or can). Even if you buy your dried beans at the store for $1.65/lb, it is still about half price to the commercially canned beans, and my pint jars are full.


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## kasilofhome (Feb 10, 2005)

When I can meat NOW I soak the beans ahead cause I never know how much meat a goat will give me so I can always fill the canner.


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## po boy (Jul 12, 2010)

suitcase_sally said:


> Canned beans on sale here are usually 79 cents/can. I buy my dried beans in bulk for 60 cents/lb. I get 9 pints from 2 lbs. That works out to 13 cents/pint (or can). Even if you buy your dried beans at the store for $1.65/lb, it is still about half price to the commercially canned beans, and my pint jars are full.


If you have room in your garden plant some of those black beans. When the plants start turning yellow or brown the beans will start getting ready to be picked. Pick them when the hulls turn purple or yellow. Last year we had some good rain late in the year and they produced again. The deer got most of those.

They are delicious fresh and I can them the same way I do lima beans.


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## suitcase_sally (Mar 20, 2006)

I think I'll try some black beans this year. Usually I do purple hull, Italian Roma snap beans, speckled lima beans (I think these are also called Christmas beans), Kentucky wonder beans, Cranberry, sugar snaps, yellow wax beans and sometimes black eye peas. My garden is very small (45 x 27 for one and 40 x 18 for the other). At our cabin, I do potatoes, squash, tomatoes and peppers (sweet & hot). The garden there is 100 x 100. We have a lot of deer at the cabin property, but the deer don't seem to bother those plants - except they munch on the green squash. Michigan grows a lot of dried beans, so it's kind of hard to justify growing them when I can get them so cheap at the elevator.


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## po boy (Jul 12, 2010)

suitcase_sally said:


> I think I'll try some black beans this year. Usually I do purple hull, Italian Roma snap beans, speckled lima beans (I think these are also called Christmas beans), Kentucky wonder beans, Cranberry, sugar snaps, yellow wax beans and sometimes black eye peas. My garden is very small (45 x 27 for one and 40 x 18 for the other). At our cabin, I do potatoes, squash, tomatoes and peppers (sweet & hot). The garden there is 100 x 100. We have a lot of deer at the cabin property, but the deer don't seem to bother those plants - except they munch on the green squash. Michigan grows a lot of dried beans, so it's kind of hard to justify growing them when I can get them so cheap at the elevator.


Christmas lima is a pole type bean and has a rough textured large pod. The bean can be larger than a quarter. In my experience a speckled lima is a bush type bean and the pod and bean are very small. 

We like the KY Wonder and Roma beans.

Last year I planted Fordhook and Thorgreen Limas. Both are bush and very good


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