Canning Beans: cooking times?

11 years ago

Hi! I'm hoping to pressure can my first batch of beans this week. I plan to use the NCHFP recipe. My question is about cooking times. The recipe lists the same pressure canning time for all kinds of beans. But different beans have different cooking times. How is it that the same cooking time will work for tiny, pretty fresh adzukis AND big, older chickpeas? Or soybeans which take forever on the stove top? Thoughts?

Has anyone had pressure canned beans that aren't really done? I suppose that's not a tragedy because they'd just need some more time on the stove once opened, but I'd rather avoid that.

On the flip side, are beans sometime complete mush after being pressure canned? Do people avoid adding, e.g., lentils to their veg soup for fear of disintegration?

General tips on pressure canning beans successfully?

Comments (7)

digdirt2
11 years ago
Has anyone had pressure canned beans that aren't really done?

Of course. Most aren't ready to eat after canning so you can't avoid that and you wouldn't want to anyway. Don't confuse canning with cooking - 2 different processes.

So you aren't cooking them. The cooking to desired texture is done after the canned jars are opened.

Dave
Linda_Lou
11 years ago
The idea of canning isn't to cook the foods, it is to kill the bacteria, molds, yeasts, etc. in the foods to preserve them so they will be shelf stable.

Some beans are really soft after pressure canning, some more firm. Just goes with the territory.
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JessicaInOhio
Original Author
11 years ago
Oh. Crud. So why not just store them dry?
digdirt2
11 years ago
Simple. Time saving and convenience. You have eliminated all the soaking/rehydrating time and at least some of the cooking time by canning them.

If you need beans for supper tonight it isn't possible if all you have are dried beans as there isn't enough time. It is possible if they were canned.

By canning some and storing some dry you have the best of both worlds.

Dave

Plus by canning them you can all sorts of flavorings to them and have it already incorporated into the beans. Can't do that with dried beans without cooking them for hours and hours.

Dave
JessicaInOhio
Original Author
11 years ago
Ok. So by canning I've shortened my cooking time. That makes sense. But I wonder if the old crockpot might be a better tool for us around my house. I would have to remember inthe morning... But I wouldn't have to bother with the pressure canner. I guess I'll run a few batches of beans and see which I end up using more.
JessicaInOhio
Original Author
11 years ago
Ok. So by canning I've shortened my cooking time. That makes sense. But I wonder if the old crockpot might be a better tool for us around my house. I would have to remember inthe morning... But I wouldn't have to bother with the pressure canner. I guess I'll run a few batches of beans and see which I end up using more.
James McNulty
11 years ago
You could also use a pressure cooker.
You can go from a stored dried bean to one that is cooked in 10 to 30 minutes. I have a chart from Miss Vickie for both beans and rice.
Those "hard as rocks" garbanzo beans will take 45 minutes and be a creamy as butter. I always can garbanzo beans as they are soft enough when opened to use but if I run out, I use the pressure cooker. I could do the same cooking over a day in the slow cooker, but I'd rather do the pressure cooker processing - so much faster.
And don't bother with lentils, with them cooking from dry in 15 or 20 minutes, you just want to cook them from dry.