Amazing canned green beans

[canadamike]

I am growing through a lot of my preserves/canned veggies these days.

I mostly can using a pressure cooker, for safety AND also convenience, it is much less tedious to do so. I can everything, meat, sauces and whatever else you can think of.

Last year (2 summers ago) I canned loads of beans, both yellow and green. I have done so for quite many years.

I'd like to share something here: RED SWAN BEANS are by far the best canning beans I ever tasted, really superior to the store bought stuff, and by a WIDE margin.

Let's face it, when canning veggies, most folks aim at the standard commercial quality of products, since that is what ordinary folks are used to, so people will not feel it is ''DIFFERENT HENCE WORSE'', such is life in today's world.

I can my peas and beans and corn in the ''almost dry'' fashion, meaning there is very few water in the mason jar, just a little for moisture. My beans jars are very light, mostly filled with beans and air, really.

Well, almost 2 years later, my RED SWAN canned beans are incredibly flavorful, much crunchier than commercial stuff, really meaty and good looking. To the point where lil'old me, not a bean fanatic (explanation at the bottom of the page ;D), is eating them like there is no tomorrow.

One thing: I love beans flavored with pimento and onion. If you are the same, USE DRIED PIMENTO AND ONIONS. The dried veggies suck up some moisture and end up with some consistency while fresh ones become mushy. Any flavoring in canned veggies should be dried, not fresh. For some reason, boiled ( everything canned is boiled) fresh herbs loose potency, while dried ones seem to fare better with the short boiling/canning time.

[bunkie]

thanks for the info michel! i also can our peas, beans, meat, sauce, etc... with a pressure canner. the Red Swan Beans that you gave me last spring produced loads of beans and i canned them. and you're very right! they are delicious and one of the better tasting varieties to can!

i'm not sure i understand the way you can the beans and such, with little water? i cold pack mine, i.e. fill the jar with fresh green beans (example) and fill the jar with boiling water. that is the Ball Blue Book instructions. do you mean to say that we just need to put a few tablespoons of water in the jar with the veggies, not fill the jar with water? i keep trying to get the veggies more crunchy and have had little luck. i thought cold packing them would do it, and it sort of has, but not to my taste.

i've canned carrots, too, and they get soft. perhaps this 'less water' idea would work on them.

i thought that if the veggies weren't covered in water they would discolor? tell me more! ;D

[mjc]

I've never found a way to deal with carrots that doesn't leave something to be desired, other than either leaving them in the ground and digging them, weather permitting, as needed or putting them in some sort of storage (trench, root cellar, etc)...canning them...too soft; drying...takes them forever to rehydrate and they may still be a bit 'hard' (best to powder them once dried, but you can only use so much carrot powder before you go nuts); freezing...just not all that great and the space/return is not good either.

Beans, I usually can...now it sounds like I need to find some of these Red Swans...I usually do Blue Lakes, because, that's what my family likes.

[canadamike]

To me Bunkie, carrots are the worse canners. But I should try the ''almost'' waterless way.

You are right, there is only half an inch of water in my mason jars when I can.It ends up being more once the veggies give their water away...

Many crops are dry canned. I suspect almost anything could be.

You can can green peas in this almost dry fashion too, I have done it to great satisfaction.

[Penny]

Thanks for the info Michel, i am not big on canning, but i do freeze alot of things here, but now i am tempted to start canning too.

[canadamike]

I do both, but freezing veggies has its limits: the available freezer space This is why I can a lot. CANNING UNDER PRESSURE IS MUCH EASIER AND ALSO SAFER.

And there is not limitations on what you can. I cook my spaghetti sauce outside on a burner, in a huge commercial pot, everything is fresh from the garden. I usually get lots of people stopping by, the smell is all over the street then I can like crazy.

In todays busy life, these prepared meals are a great help towards self sufficiency

[Penny]

Another great idea too, and i can just imagine the smell!

[peapod]

Now I am hungry. I canned this past summer not for the first time canning, but canning the specific kind of bean. Dragon Tongue. Oh man are they good canners. Michel I will have to find these wonderful beans you are talking of... Hmmm one must wonder.

Not only that what are you speaking of when you dry can in the pressure cooker. I mostly pressure cook my canned stuff too. Is it the little amount of water that you use after adding the produce to the jar?

Now I have a question. What is your favorite food other than your beans, that you process at home.

Carrots that I can are good. I can the really hard and not sweet carrots usually a purple variety that seems to help. Mjc... I hear you.. there are only so many jars of carrots one can eat. EEEEWWW!

[robin282]

Here is a search string that offers many places to purchase Red Swan Bean seeds:
www.google.com/search?q=red+swan+bean+seeds&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

[canadamike]

I love canning creamed and kernel corn too, and various pickles. I also can lots of sauces, spaghetti and salsa especially.

Salsa is a great winner. My son eats tons of it, usually a full jar at a time, and it is basically canned tomatoes with onions, garlic, peppers ( like stewed tomatoes) but with cumin and cilantro. The difference is that I save 2-3 dollars per jar compared to the grocery price, while I save 99 cents with stewed tomatoes.

I like that ;D

Now that it looks I have somebody in my life who will support my gardening endeavours, I also plan to can a lot of green peas. I recommend a small determinate variety for that purpose, PETIT PROVENCAL comes to mind,so all the peas are about at the same small stage in one shot. But I will also grow indeterminate ROI DES CONSERVES (Canner King) for its huge harvest of delicious peas of various sizes and extended harvest. They are great freezers too.


When chicken is in sales, I can a lot of it too, it is delicious. I tried turkey but it is not as good a canner as chicken. I undercook it a bit and it finishes in the pressure canner.

This winter, I will try to can some ham I will make from pork shoulders. I'll make small cottage rolls when pork is 99 cents a pound and can them in wide mouths mason jars.

Squash is a good canner too, but it keeps so well by itself. I always end up canning some for somebody having a baby though, kind of my ''learn to eat organic'' strategy

I always can some small potatoes too, they are great for breakfast when in a rush.

[bunkie]

i can all that you've mentioned too michel. including fruit, like plums, peaches, etc... and lots of jams. i also have canned beef. i want to try salmon and tuna now, or when they are on sale...and ham! never thought of that.

i'm really anxious to try this dry method of canning. you don't get any discoloration michel from the produce above the water line in the jar?

michel, sorry for all the questions, but are you canning the summer squash or the winter? i tried the winter squash and it tasted terrible, like burned. are you useing the dry method on these?

[canadamike]

I have no discoloration with red swan. I put one inch of water in the bottom, and it seems the moisture inside is sufficient to keep them green. I have seen some very minimal discoloration on the top qurter inch or so corn I also can that way, but nothing disgusting. Mind you, these veggies are canned that way by the industry.

The squash are winter ones, usually butternut, I can them cubed in water.

I haven't canned fruits for years but some apple and plum sauce, could not get good peaches for years here, and pears are so expensive. I started an orchard of these fruits to have my own to can...

[hiven]

Michel, back to the "Red Swan beans" do you pick them at extra green stage for canning or any size will do ? spill out more infos please... I am tempted to grow them this year (for canning).
Thanks!

[Dan]

based on your recommendation, I am going to try and pick up some seeds this winter yet and grow them this year for canning. we love beans and canning them would be nice.

[Jim]

I plan on blanching a freezing lots of veggies this year for winter soups...And I used almost all the tomato sauce I canned. Still have pickles and peppers.