Canning Dried Soaked Beans
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Canning dry beans is an easy and frugal way to have beans available for quick meals and is a great project to do during the winter months when you don’t have fresh garden vegetables that need to be canned.
Canning Beans
For me, canning is not just done at the end of the gardening season. I love to can, so it is something that I will do anytime during the year. One of my “off-season” canning projects always includes beans. I like to do big-batch canning of beans to have on hand in my food storage. It is possible to can any type of dried bean to have on hand in your pantry.
Here is a step by step tutorial on canning Seasoned Beans. These beans can be used in any recipe that you use beans in. I especially love them for chili, hamburger soup, or beans to use with Mexican-type meals, like burritos or tacos. I have used them right from the jar and made bean burritos with them or I have also put a jar of them through the food processor to make them smooth and used them as a “refried” bean.
This recipe is for a pressure canner, so obviously, you must have a canner in order to make these. I have a Presto brand Pressure Canner. It is a large pressure canner that will either do 7 quarts or 9 pints. You can also double rack the pints, to do up to 18 pints at once. A rack is needed both at the bottom of the pressure canner and in the middle of the layers if you double rack them. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for your model of pressure canner as things might be different for a weighted gauge versus a dial gauge like mine has.
**DISCLAIMER It is very important, when using pressure canners, to follow the directions for your particular canner. Also refer to instructions from the National Center for Home Food Preservation if you are unsure about canning. (Chart listed below)
I used a mixture of Red Beans and Pinto Beans because that’s what I had on hand. You can use whatever mixture of beans, or one particular type, that you choose. Black beans, kidney beans, navy beans, or most types of beans will work fine with this particular recipe. With lima beans, garbanzo beans, and other specialty beans you may want to can plain without the spices.
Soaking Dried Beans
You will need to go through the process of soaking the beans. I measured out 3 1/2 pounds of beans and soaked them overnight. You can find out how to soak dried beans here. Remember to use a big enough bowl when soaking as the beans will expand quite a bit.
Soak the dried beans overnight and drain water and rinse them the next morning.
Gather your ingredients.
Instructions for Canning Beans
I used pint jars for this recipe. It made a total of 15 pints. I gather all my clean, sterilized jars and line them up. In each jar of pints, put this:
1/4 c. tomato sauce
1/2 t. dried onion
1 t. chili powder
1 t. jalapenos
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. cumin
1/4 t. black pepper
1/4 t. garlic powder
1 1/2 c. soaked beans
I used my canned tomato sauce and also the dried jalapenos that I had from my previous gardening season. You can use fresh, diced jalapenos, or omit them, if you want to. Use a canning funnel to get the beans into the jar.
— If you have extra jalapenos, try this delicious Jalapeno Pepper Jelly Recipe!
Once the jars have all the ingredients in them, you will need to fill the rest of the jar with fresh water that has been boiling hot. Fill them almost to the top, leaving 1-inch headspace at the top of the jar, to allow for headspace. Remove any air bubbles with an air bubble remover tool or a butter knife before putting the lids on. You may need to add more boiling water.
Be sure to wipe the rims with a clean towel to ensure a good seal and close jars with new lids and rings. Tighten the rings.
Again, it is important to follow the directions for your canner, adding the appropriate amount of water to the bottom of the canner and processing according to the manufacturer’s directions for your canner. I am using a Presto brand Pressure Canner. DO NOT use a pressure cooker (like the Instant Pot), they are not tested for canning safely.
Make sure you use a canning rack at the bottom of the pressure canner and in the middle of the layers if you double rack them.
Process time and pressure according to your altitude. These beans will need to process for 90 minutes for quarts at 10 pounds of pressure and 75 minutes for pints at my elevation. My recipe here is for pints but you can make quart jar safety as well. (You just can’t stack them in the canner.)
Please check with your local extension office for any changes on times/temps/high altitude. Click over to the USDA website for guidelines and be sure to check your pressure canner’s instruction manual to follow proper procedures.
Remember not to start your time until your canner is up to pressure. Be sure to carefully watch your canner to maintain the pressure throughout the time.
When the beans have processed for the full amount of time, allow the pressure to release naturally in the canner.
Lift the jars out with a jar lifter and set on a cloth or large cutting board. Allow the jars to cool on the counter before removing the rings and storing them in a dry, cool place. Make sure not to stack them or press down on the tops so you don’t accidentally seal the jars.
–For more information on how to see if your jars have properly sealed and what to do if they haven’t, check out this post on Testing Jar Seals And Reprocessing Jars (Safe Home Canning)
Want to print this recipe for pressure canning chili beans? Grab it below:
Canning Dried Beans - Spice Beans Recipe
Ingredients
- For Each Pint Jar:
- 1/4 cup tomato sauce
- 1/2 teas dried onion
- 1 teas chili powder
- 1 teas jalapenos
- 1/2 teas salt
- 1/2 teas cumin
- 1/4 teas black pepper
- 1/4 teas garlic powder
- 1 1/2 cups soaked beans
Instructions
-
You can use any combination of dried beans for this recipe. First, soak your dried beans overnight.
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Gather all your clean, sterilized jars and line them up. In each jar of pints, put the ingredients above. (You'll need to adjust if you are doing quarts sized jars)
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Once the jars have all the ingredients in them, you will need to fill the rest of the jar with boiling hot water. Fill them almost to the top, leaving 1 inch at the top of the jar, to allow for headspace. Be sure to wipe the rims with a clean towel to ensure a good seal and close jars with new lids and rings. Tighten the rings.
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Follow the directions for your canner, adding the appropriate amount of water to the bottom of the canner and processing according to the manufacturer's directions for your canner.
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Process for the time and pressure according to your altitude. Remember not to start your time until your canner is up to pressure. Carefully watch your canner to maintain the pressure throughout the time.
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When the beans have processed for the full amount of time, allow the pressure to release naturally in the canner. Allow the jars to cool on the counter before removing the rings and storing them. Make sure not to stack them or press down on the tops so you don't accidentally seal the jars.
Recipe Notes
Please check with your local extension office for any changes on times/temps/high altitude. Click over to the USDA website for guidelines and be sure to check your pressure canner’s instruction manual to follow proper procedures.
FAQs About Canning Dried Beans
Can I can dry beans without soaking them?
It’s not recommended to can dried beans without soaking them first because it will be hard to determine how much to put in a jar without having them in their expanded form. Soaking is an extra step but it’s worth knowing your jars will be filled properly.
Can dried beans be water bath canned?
Since dry beans are a low acid food, they need to be pressure canned not water bath canned. I’ve seen methods of “canning dry beans” without using a pressure canner (like a very very long hot water bath or dry canning) but neither of these methods are recognized as safe. It’s been to err on the safe side for your family and to not spoil all of you hard work!
Can pinto beans be canned?
Yes, we have a separate tutorial and video on Canning Pinto beans here. The method is the same but we use a slightly different spice blend for pinto beans.
Until next time, Julie
I recommend a Presto Pressure Canner and the book Putting Food By for all your canning projects!
More Canning Recipes
- How to Start Canning Oranges
- Canning Potatoes
- Canning Cabbage (How to Make Sauerkraut)
- Canning Pinto Beans
- Buying Seeds Online and Preparing for Canning Season
- Cheap Canning Supplies
Make sure you check out all the free Canning and Preserving Recipes we have on Little House Living! We love to can and find other ways to preserve the bounty and have easy-to-make meals.
Have you ever tried canning dry beans? What other foods do you can in the “off-season”?
If you’ve followed this recipe, be sure and give it a rating as well as share with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and through Email using the sharing buttons!
This post on Canning Dry Beans was originally published on Little House Living in January 2012. It has been updated as of January 2023.
Two very important things to remember: Make sure the beans are thoroughly soaked and expanded. And make sure to leave at least that one inch of headspace. Undersoaked beans can and will expand further and could leave you with a broken jar. So said my old canning book.
That is something I try to remember when I can my soups containing dried beans. But then I pressure cook my beans before adding to my soup – about 30 minutes – so I know they are about as done as possible.
Thanks – the photos will be great for newbies 🙂
and these quantities are for each jar I think? yes?
Yes, in Step #2 the recipe says in each jar.
Ps: While I have two of the very huge/large double decker pressure canners, which I also use for pressure cooking bones down after butchering, I recently found a smaller canner and I am delighted with it !
It is a 10.5 quart All American model 910. It can only handle the smaller batches, but that is exactly what I was needing 🙂 It only weighs 15 lbs (I’m getting older) and handles 7 pints or 4 quarts. Now that is not something I would consider with a large family, but it is great for a single person doing leftovers, or chicken broth from one chicken, etc. and 90% of my canning is in pints or half pints, for my single use now. And like I said, I have the two huge ones if needed. This is wonderful to grab and go for small batches 🙂
Marci, wow, your All American size canner sounds great! Where did you pick that up at? That sounds like a great find. I think that size would be handy for pressuring a whole chicken, etc…
Thanks for your comments. It is great to know there are other canners out there. It seems like it is getting to be a lost “art”. I love sharing new recipes, if you have any great ones that you use regulary.
I think I’ll try this. They look Yummy. Thank you for all that you teach us.
I have always thought about canning beans but wasn’t quite sure how they’d turn out. I like to use beans in our meals & this would save so much time & prep work! Thanks so much
I’ve never tried to can beans before. I’m glad you showed me how, and I’m glad you included your recipe for what to put in them. Figuring that out is half the problem when I can anything. Thanks!
Hi Julie, thanks for the step-by-step on canning beans! I recently bought cases of canned beans during the case lot sale at Smith’s… but now…. I’m thinking I may donating them to the church food pantry so that I can can my own! 🙂
Would you have any suggestions for a “sweet” been recipe, my DH loves pork & beans with brown sugar or maple syrup which are also a little spicy?
So i dont have a pressure cooker canner can this be done with an open pot canning system? Ive only canned jam and applesause so this would be very new.
Unfortunately you do need a pressure canner to make this recipe. Cooked beans are a low acid food and will need to be pressurized to be shelf stable.
I did it , but the beans were cooked clean through first. I had never thought of canning beans until I was tired of paying so much for them, and I had 10 lbs given to me. I soaked mine overnight and cooked them the next day and just put them in the jars and canned them in the stove. They came out great!
Hope that helps.
You can can them in a water bath or presser canner the same way.
They may have canned up ok this way but unless you plan on storing them in the fridge or the freezer, this isn’t a safe way to can them to be shelf stable since they are too low acid to keep.
It is not safe to water bath beans. They are a low acid food and will support the growth of botulism. The water bath does not get hot enough to kill the botulism spores. Just in case you didn’t know, food poisoning from botulism is often fatal.
I see that two commenters have already noted that canning beans via boiling water bath (or certainly open kettle) isn’t safe, since it won’t kill botulism spores. I wanted to just clarify – the spores aren’t destroyed until 240 degrees F. We all know that water boils at 212F; that is as hot as a boiling water canner can ever reach. If you’ve used the boiling water bath method for low acid foods (vegetables, beans and meat) and been succesful, this only means that the bacteria we are concerned about was not present on your raw foods, or had not sporulated. It does not actually mean that it is safe.
Yes you can water bath beans. It takes longer, 180 minutes. USDA guidelines are for the US, but home canning is done by people all over the world. Many whom do not have access to pressure canners. The rates of botulism from home canned food in those countries are no higher than in the US. The highest rates of botulism comes from commercially prepared food. All of this info can be found on US government websites.
Dawn there are lots of things done around the world that might be okay. And in the absence of knowledge of the best way and access to the best equipment for it we would all have to take the chances. However, since were in the usa and a presto canner can be had at walmart for under 100.00 and is a once in every 50 yrs sort of investment I will go with the safest method for processing the foods I will feed my children, grand children and extended family.
When we lived in Box Elder, I hated how my jars always came out with that nice hard water stain. I started adding just a bit of white vinegar to my canner and it did away with that problem. I have never tried canning dried beans and I think it would be fun to try. This particular recipe is it a good replacement for store bought chili beans for chili? What else would you use them in?
Thank you so much for posting this! I have been cooking my beans and then freezing them for quick use for years but have always wanted to can them, but never really looked into how to do so. I have to get a new gasket for my pressure canner or I would totally be doing this right now… oh well! I will hopefully get to do this next week 😉 If it’s okay with you, I am going to link to this on my blog.
Hi, do you ever can these in quart jars? I have a large family and one pint is not going to.be practical.
Yes, Kerri, you can make this same recipe and just use quart jars. I actually have both sizes of them in my pantry. Just double the amount on the spices, etc…to add to the quart jar and add approximately 3 1/2 cups, well soaked, beans. Do exactly the same in adding the water to the neck. I pressure them the same amount of time, also.
I love this recipe! I have been canning all types of beans for years but only add salt. This will be a very nice addition. I love having the canned beans on my shelf and keeps me from having to buy canned beans when I just need a pint or quart for a recipe.
I have been wanting to try this recipe. Finally, today I get to, I’m so excited. This year I canned over 300 qts, and pints. I really do enjoy canning. I follow your blog all the time. Thank you
I made 32 pints of these beans yesterday. Thank you so much for the recipe. So easy to do. I just love your blog. Wonderful ideas and recipes.
These beans havw a wonderful taste. Thank you
Can I just enjoy my beans, green onions, and cornbread? 🙂 Granny raised me on that meal, but she didn’t can them. I’m gonna make bean night much quicker, thank you for the recipe!
I’ve been looking forward to making this since I came across it. I just done 18 pints today. I’m just wondering if they should look “Dry” in the jars? I done it basically the same as you said, other then adding only about 1 cup of soaked beans (Soaked over night, over 10 hours) and filled with water.
The first batch the tomato and spices stayed at the bottom and didn’t mix with the beans and it all just looks dry.
The second batch I put the spices and tomato a the top and gave it a light shake after adding the water and lid and it mixed well, but also looks dry now.
The third batch (only 4 jars) I added much less beans and more water. So far they look okay, but they are still hot.
I’m just wondering if the dry looking jars are okay? When I say dry, I mean I can turn them over and nothing moves in the jar.
Mine came out dry last time. This time I’m soaking for a full 24 hours, and mixing the spices in.
does this make cooking faster?
They are actually already cooked (the pressure canned does that for you) so you can just open and heat to eat!
I will keep this saved for when I am able to start canning!
Thank you so much for the tutorial on this!
This is something that has been on my to-do list for quite some time. Thank you!
can you do this without a presser cooker?
Kelly Hart, no this is done with a pressure canner.
I LOVE doing this! I have some done and it’s on my list to get several different varieties done before we start school in a wekk.
is it safe to buy used presser cookers or canners? if i am just going to be canning things i can just buy a canner right?
Yes it is. Just have them thoroughly checked out before you use them for the first time. Just look up a local extension office to do that for you.
Just make sure the bottom is perfectly flat! It can’t bulge out or in! If it does don’t buy it because somewhere alone the line it has been missed used and is damaged! Must be flat on bottom!!!
Thanks for all your great tips! Im learning everyday how to make more from scratch and eat healthy and save money while doing it!
Pressure cookers are different than pressure canners so be sure you get a canner. Also for those who don’t have a pressure canned but would like the ease of having home cooked beans, you can cook them and freeze them. Then you just have thawing time. We did this with kidney beans for chili. It was so nice to have readycooked beans and they thawed as the chili simmered.
May need to try this
ok i am very new to all this, and my fb is my only reliance on info, i google but sometimes its hard to find the right info. so if i buy a pressure canner used it should have pot, rack(s), lid, valve and gauge? and you say to look it up on my local extension office, what is that?
Yes, and you can look up your nearest extension office here: http://www.csrees.usda.gov/Extension/
thank you so much!!!! you guys are awesome!!!!!
so my local extension office can check out my pressure canner and tell me if it is safe to use?
Yes, they can take a look at it and test the pressure gauge to make sure it’s accurate. They should also be able to tell you if it needs a new seal.
We newbies need a tutorial just like this awesome beans tutorial on canning, in general. Had I not seen it specified in a comment, I wouldn’t even have thought to consider a pressure cooker might be a different thing than a pressure canner! Also, the info that it’s ok to buy used and have it checked by extension office is invaluable. Have you done such a tutorial? I’m relatively new to your site. I love it, finding myself here more and more. Thank you so very much for all this!
Each canning recipe is very different so I don’t have an indepth article on canning but we do have a pretty detailed post on our Canning Potatoes page you might want to check out.
ok thanks again 🙂
Thanks for posting your pictures. Just new to pressure canning and your photos helped give me some courage to try beans…. they are in the pressure canner right now, all done cooking. I’m just waiting for the pressure to be completely released so I can open the lid and see the results!!! I enjoy your site.
I don’t really like beans but I’m willing to give them another try. They’re cheap and healthy so I need to learn to like them. This is is something I really want to try. They look good, even to someone that doesn’t like beans. Thank you for sharing.
Tracy my hubby doesn’t like beans either, at all! I cooked up a jar of these last night with a little brown sugar and topped with melted cheese and he said he LOVED them!
What if you just want plain canned beans? I could just put salt and fill it with water, right? Everything else should still be the same? (as far as processing it)
Would you consider these similar to Ranch Style Beans?
I just ordered a pressure canner yesterday. There are 8 of us and I want to make big batches of soups and meals and can them. I did applesauce and apples in the fall. Thanks for the bean idea. I have a lot of bags of beans from WIC from our adopted foster children. I always forget to soak them. I hope it comes tomorrow or Monday. I froze a lot of tomatoes this year, next year I am back to canning them as they take up too much room in the freezer. Have you ever canned winter squash? I froze it but also want to can that too. My kids love it. I buy it by the bushel when it is cheap in the fall.
I haven’t canned winter squash because it stores so well but I would think you could do it just like summer squash in chunks. That would actually be handy because then it would already be cooked!
I hope you got one with the weights and not the gauge. You have to watch the gauge to keep it at the right pressure but with the weights it does it for you. I use my pressure cookeralmost everyday. You can cook dried beans in 45 minutes at 15lbs. pressure. If you soak for just 2 hours you can cook them in 10-15 minutes. I guess I would never can them because it is so fast just to pressure cook them.
I bought dried navy beans(about 10 lbs.) a couple years back, in hopes of trying my own baked beans. I thought they had an unlimited shelf life, but have found they are harder to cook long enough to soften. I thought maybe I could try canning them in hopes of being able to use them. Do they deteriorate to the point that I should just throw them out? Any suggestions?
Funny that you posted this again today! I used a quart of these exact beans in my chili today. I love having them on hand and the spices are perfect. Thanks!
I’d love to be able to can things like this but had never even heard of a pressure canner until recently reading sites like this. Pressure canners are not something used or even sold here in NZ. To get one I’d have to get it shipped from the US. Any recommendation on what brand? what size is best? I’ve found a Presto one, are they any good? TIA.
I have a Presto 23 quart and I just love it! Never had any trouble with it. My mom also has the exact same one and she loves it too!
I got an All American canner. The plus side to them is they have a metal-to-metal seal, so there is no gasket that needs replacing as the years go by.
Buy the brand All American. Its a little more money upfront but will save you tons of time and money down the road. There are no gaskets you have to replace and keep on hand. When you see the construction of these units you will understand their superior quality, I have two of the All American 925 canners. Love them,
I have made these chili beans, and they are wonderful!
Question – do you have a recipe for baked beans? I am finding lots of recipes where you have to soak the beans, then bake the beans in sauce, then can them. I’d rather something more like this – soak beans, pour on your sauce, and can, and done.
Camille are you looking for something like this? Canned Pork and Beans
do you use this chili bean recipe for beans you are going to make into refried Mexican beans or do you leave out the spices when canning beans for refried beans and burritos. If you could let me know soon because I am soaking 30lb of pinto beans tonight and want to can them up tomorrow.
Thanks for your help
I leave out the chili spices and just add garlic powder, onion power, and salt for the refried beans.
I just canned my first batch of beans last night, and many of the beans ruptured. I am canning at high-altitude (6500 feet), so must increase both time and pressure to can safely. Do you think that’s why the beans broke?
My beans always break open, it’s normal 🙂
This may seem a silly question, but can you (and/or would it be better to) mix all the ingredients up together in a bowl and then add the mixture to the jars and put the beans on top? It just seems like it would all be mixed up better. Thoughts? I love the sound of this recipe and can’t wait to try out my new 41 1/2 quart All-American canner!!
All the ingredients mix up quite well after they go through the canner.
I like that idea too. Then you only have to measure the ingredients once, especially if you do the math and go by cups or tablespoons, and not have to mess with measuring into each canning jar!
can you just use plain beans, would you add some salt and cover with water????
I’m not quite sure what you mean by plain beans? This method works with any variety of dried beans.
If you mean “plain” as in not adding all the spices and tomatoes, yup, you sure can. I canned up black beans last year and only added water, salt and cumin for flavoring. Put whatever you want in there DRIED spice wise, or nothing at all. If you’re on a low sodium diet, just omit the salt altogether. It’ just for flavor since the pressure canning does the preserving. Some others have posted about the beans being “dry” in the can, that’s totally normal and fine. You don’t need liquid in the canning jar for it to be safe. The recipe I used had you cook the beans for about an hour after soaking over night, and the beans are a little too mushy. Great for soup or refried beans, but not for use as whole beans. I will definitely do this no pre-cook method next time. If you have the jars, this is waaaaay cheaper than buying them at the store, even at Aldi or the store brand. If you have to buy more jars, it’s a wash the first round, but then the next batch will only cost you lids and beans. For $3 worth of beans, I made 14 pints of canned beans, and the jars are full which means it’s pretty much the same as 2 cans of store bought. Before the weather warms up too much, I need to get out my canner and do several batches. I’ve got the canning bug again.
tks Phil, very helpful.
I am curious how long the shelf life would be on these. I’m not sure why canning recipes don’t really address the shelf life issue – am I just being silly?
I think it’s really hard to say. My grandma ate canned foods that were 10 years old with no issues but I never have foods around that long so for us it’s just maybe 3 years at the longest! We always use these beans up within a few months so I haven’t been able to test them 🙂
I’m trying this! The pictures are a huge help, thanks! I have a larger family and will be using quart jars. How many beans should I add to a quart? Thanks!
You would still only fill the jar up 3/4 of the way before pressurizing.
So once you have pressure canned the beans and you pull them out of the pantry to cook a meal, are you just heating them back up or do you have to cook them for a certain amount of time.
Just heating them up 🙂
Hello! I just tried your recipe for the first time. After cooling the liquid on the beans is very thick, almost like a gel. Is this normal? Love the recipe! I’m hoping they’re fine so I can dig in!
Yep, that’s how they will be 🙂 Enjoy!
Where did you find the double decker thing? I just bought a Presto today and was quite excited to see how many you could put in at one time but it didn’t come with a second round thingy. And when you do the second layer you’re not submerging the bottom layer right? Just the 4 inches of water, still the same? Great pictures, you’re making me brave. I fear the canner. I want green beans and these beans but I have the fear..
I got this rack (for my Presto Canner) on Amazon: Presto Canning Rack. It’s for the 23 quart canner. Yes, you can do the double layer for pressure canning only.
What does the small t mean? teaspoon or tablespoon
Lowercase t = teaspoon.
Can I just say that I LOVE your blog! I just came across it by accident and can’t stop reading all your posts. I do have a question for canning beans. Is the canning time the same no matter what type of beans you are canning? I want to can black beans, pinto, lima, all kinds…
Yes, the time would be the same for all beans and you don’t have to add in the tomato sauce for other kinds of beans (or any kinds of beans) if it doesn’t fit what you plan on using them for. Have fun canning! 🙂
Do I have to add the tomato sauce or can I just leave it out for this recipe?? Thanks 😉
You can leave it out.
Sorry. I just saw that you DO NOT have to add the tomato sauce. Also I bought a pressure canner for Christmas and just bought 20lbs. of dried pinto beans for under $15.00 at the store. Going to hopefully try canning this weekend. Love your blog and have your book as well!!! Superb!!!!
Have fun Lindsey!
Also …Do you have to have any liquid at all in the jars or can they just be dry?? I tried to look at other’s comments on here but I could not get a definitive answer on this. Thanks!! 😉
You will need liquid in the jar to keep the bean soft and moist, otherwise they will become hard little pebbles. 🙂
Hi Merissa, I have always pressure cooked my beans after soaking and then froze them, but I have a pressure canner and I love this Mexican flavor combination you have added to the canned beans. Question: would 90 minutes work for smaller beans, or would they be overcooked? What about chick peas? When I pressure cook my beans I use a wide variety of beans, cook separately and then mix together after cooking before freezing …would I have to choose beans of similar cooking times?
All dried beans are the same according to USDA. 75 minutes for pints and 90 minutes for quarts 🙂
Julie, I love your canned bean recipe. Besides water bath canning, I’m a novice at pressure canning. I jumped right in and bought a Mirro 23 quart and all the trimmings. I christened it today and made 6 12 oz jars of Cream of Tomato Soup using Ulta Jel for thickening. The pre-canning soup sample was delicious but I haven’t been brave enough to open a can. My question is: can I add pre-cooked ham pieces to your bean recipe? Thanks!
Cheryl, you might want to check out my mom’s canned Pork and Beans recipe. 🙂
I did this. But I used mixed beans. I’m not sure what all them are and not sure of the weight. I had 13 pints. I didn’t have enough bean mixture to fill all my pints. I had already put all the spices in all the jars, so I decided to take out and fill the jars even. About half full of bean mixture in each jar. So i had 8 jars this way. Filled the remaining 5 with just rinsed pinto beans,1/2 cup or less. To my surprise all jars came out completely full after processing.
The mixture of beans I got from bulk bin.
I did soak the mixed beans for 15 hours.
Yes, the beans will expand quite a bit even if they are soaked prior to canning.
Make sure to adjust the pounds of pressure for your altitude.
I found some old dry beans that got lost in the closet and decided to cook them. I soaked overnight and cooked a few. They were still pretty crunchy. I soaked the rest another night and they turned out just right. So the 2 nights helped them expand as they should and if not I would have soaked some more. Yes, beans last a long time in storage but longer to prepare. I have bought some beans that needed longer to soak before too so guess you need to use your own judgement when making them as not all beans are the same.
I have sucessfully canned dry beans for 3 years now and it makes life so much easier…gives fast food a whole new meaning. I have canned navy beans and great northern, adding a little ham for seasoning, made pork -n-beans, lima beans, red beans…can add chili seasoning to the red beans to make chili beans. Since retiring i have branched out to the beans and i now can meat, make beefstew adding the thickening after opening, chicken soup, which we eat as soup or i add noodles after opening or i can make cassaroles with it….abd it goes on and on!!!
I have used your recipe and directions for canning pinto beans for several years and it is the best. The beans turn out very tasty (can’t tolerate the taste of canned refried beans from the store anymore.) When I want to use, I put a little olive oil in a stainless steel fry pan, Add a jar of beans – be sure to get all the spices from the bottom. Mash with a potato masher while heating. Add a pinch of vinegar. DELISH refried beans. And yes, they must be pressure canned. Good thing to do on a cold winter day. As it warms up the kitchen! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
I’m so glad you enjoy this recipe!
Ok. I just spent an hour looking for the amount of beans you used to soak. There were several people who said they soaked the beans, but not one person asked how many beans you started with. Some said they had 20 pounds and some 10. To get the amount of beans in your recipe how many pounds did you start with as I need
Just finished canning 134 pints of beans—kidney, pinto, and black — for 3 families.
Only had one jar that didn’t seal, missed a slight knick in the rim. I have been canning for 60 years and enjoy the home meals from my products.
Awesome job!!
I would like to know if I can do these in half pints. I’m the only one that eats dry beans at my house now and I love them. what would be the processing time on them.
You should be able to but I would still process them for the same amount of time as pints.
Can these be made without the salt?
Yes
I have used this recipe to can pinto beans for 3-4 years and I love it. I cannot tolerate a can of store bought refried beans again. I dump a jar of my spicey beans in a stainless fry pan, add a little olive oil and mash adding a little water at a time till preferred consistency of refried beans. I also add a dash of vinegar. yummers!
QUESTION: canned up a batch of pints yesterday and the water in the jars boiled out of the jars. The jars sealed very soon after taking out of the canner. And, yes I did presoak etc. Any expert advice???
All of the water boiled out of the jars? Do they have a white creamy like substance in them? MIght just be the starch/fiber soaking up the water. They won’t really have much liquid left in them after canning since they soak it up.
This recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups of soaked beans, but your other bean recipe calls for 1 cup of soaked beans. Should it be 1 cup or 1 1/2 cups? We have a large family & I need to maximize food per jar, but don’t want to overfill the jars :).
Sorry for the confusion, one of the recipes is my mom’s and the other one is mine. I should more clearly mark mine to say a heaping cup, it’s probably more like 1 1/4 cups. However, I prefer to have my jars a little less full to make extra sure they don’t over-expand when canning which is why I add less. I’ll redo that other post sooner to make the clarification.
Thank you for this recipe. This will be made very soon, I can hardly wait to add to my Quick Vegetable Soup recipe.
I do enjoy your posts and the Friday Blog.
This is just soooooo interesting. I am convinced that this is possible for me to try. Thanks for ALL your tips. I’m going to do this on the weekend. Thanks Julia !!
Your daughter Merissa is a great gal and teacher of ALL THINGS Frugal. U should be so proud of her.
Thanks again,
Merissa’s Canadian follower,
Darlene 🇨🇦
I just put a heaping cup of dry pinto beans in a jar fill with water and leaving about an inch of headspace and teaspoon of non iodized salt and seam to come out good ? What are your thoughts.
Yes, you can preserve beans by canning without adding any spices or seasonings.