Courtesy of Brooke Elliott:

Dilly Beans are a pickled snap bean that's a little bit of heaven on a plate. Here's a recipe:

Dilly Beans

2 lb. snap beans, tipped and tailed.
4 heads dill
4 large cloves garlic
4 small chile peppers
2 1/2 cups vinegar
2 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup canning salt.

Pack beans lengthwise into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. To each pint add 1 garlic clove and one chili.
Combine remaining ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to boil. Pour hot liquid over beans, leaving 1/4 inch headspace.
Remove air bubbles, adjust lids, and process in hot water bath, ten minutes for either pints or quarts.Makes about 4 pints.

I would add half a tablespoon mustard seeds, and a tablespoon of sugar (depending on the amount of vinegar, should balance the vinegar without making the beans sweet). And maybe half a bay leaf per glass.

Fitze, who lives not far from the home of the world famous Spreewald gherkins.

Thank you both. I will be using your recipes this summer. I never though about adding sugar to balance the flavor of the vinegar.

if you want good pickled beans get a 10 gallon crock,cook beans untill done (after breaking) cool beans to where they are just warm put a layer of salt on the bottom of crock then put a layer of beans about 3 inches deep,then another layer of salt keep this up untill you have filled crock to within 8 inches of top. the layers of salt should be about what you can hold in your hand with it closed. after you get crock full fill with warm water. and cover with clean white cloth put plates over cloth put enough to cover beans and seal then put a glass jar filled with water to weight plates down on beans cover all with second white clean cloth and tie string around crock and cloth , the second cover is to keek bugs etc. out. place crock in warm to hot place like cellar loft wher temp gets hot of day and cool at night leave from 10-14 days untill pickled. if water evaporates too much add some warm salt water. after pickled take up and can in mason jars fill with water.(no clorinated water to be used in process they will not pickle)put jars in water bath canner bring to boil for about 10 minutes.take out let cool and store. pickling saltor canning salt has to be used and do not wash crock or cloth with detergents or bleach. to make them better cook some corn on cob cut ie off and layer it in with the beans. any questions you can e-mail beartracks25@hotmail.com subject pickledbeans and corn