Canning Dried Beans; Headspace, Swelling and Lost Liquid.
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Canning beans can seem a little tricky, especially when you’re following specific methods. How many soaked dried beans should you put in a canning jar? Tips for how much headspace, swelling, liquid loss and other issues.
- If you just want the how to can dried beans instructions and canning recipe- check this article.
If you are wondering about headspace and how much to put in the jar… watch this video.
Canning Presoaked Dried Beans
If you’re interested in learning more about canning different kinds of beans, I’ve linked to my full processes below. I’ve canned pinto, red, black, northern, and lima beans. And a water bath friendly 3 bean salad recipe.
The Method I Recommend
First off, let’s talk about the canning method I use and recommend when canning plain dried beans. There are two popular methods.
- One involves filling jars with dry beans and then adding water before processing.
- The other uses beans that are pre-soaked, then cooked briefly before canning.
While the dry bean method might sound simple, it is not recommended. The testing that has been done was done with pre-soaked and cooked beans and is not valid when placing completely dried beans in a jar.
Let me go over how to do it correctly and then I’ll cover why straight dried beans is not the way to go.
How Much to Fill in Each Jar
Head space is the distance between the food and the lid. The recommended headspace is 1 inch. I give myself a little extra room for the beans but I keep the liquid at one inch.
I suggest.
- Use a slotted spoon and add your beans to about 2 – 3 inch headspace.
- Then fill to the correct headspace (1 inch) with your boiling water.
This keeps you at the correct safe headspace and gives a little more space for the beans to swell. Because they will.
Why I Don’t Recommend the Dry Bean Method
You might have heard from others who measure out dry beans into a jar and then fill it with water and process. While it might seem like a shortcut, this method isn’t recommended.
The beans start out hard and dense, and the texture is quite different. The processing times that are recommended won’t be valid starting from dried beans. There is a chance you’ll end up with under processed and unsafe jars of beans.
My Personal Approach
I follow the recommended methods.
- Soak the beans overnight.
- Rinse and cook them for 30 minutes.
- Once the beans are pre-cooked, pack them into the jars leaving about 2-3 inches headspace.
- Add the cooking liquid to leave 1 inch of headspace.
Additional Tips
- Beans may still absorb liquid during processing, so be prepared for a little bit of liquid loss.
- Always follow the tested directions for canning to ensure safety and quality.
Conclusion
I hope this clears up your questions about how many beans to put in your jars and why the pre-soaked method works best.