Home Canned Green Beans

The primary purpose for my foodie road trip along the shores of Lake Erie was finding cherries for my husband's coveted cherry jam.  That didn't stop me from taking advantage of some of the other great finds.  I was elated to find green beans, one of my favourite vegetables to can.  They are also one of our favourite home canned vegeables to enjoy during the winter months.  I even take several jars of home canned green beans to our vacation home. 

I haven't grown green beans since moving to our new house almost four years ago.  We are away in May which really has put a damper in putting vegetables in the garden.  Green beans go in the ground well before we get home.  While I am growing a fair amount, I have been restricted to patio plants and herbs.  It doesn't help that the backyard has been under construction either.  At any rate, for now I buy my green beans.

I bought an 11 qt basket of tender green beans.  The beans appear to be Blue Lake, one of the best beans for canning.  Blue Lake green beans are long, tender and uniform with a lovely flavour.    Kentucky Wonder beans are also a good green bean for canning.  At the end of the day, I had a yield of sixteen 500 ml jars of beautiful green beans ready for the pantry.   There were enough green beans left over to enjoy green bean foil packets with our grilled steak for dinner and a few for snacking. 

Green beans are pressure canned at 10 lb pressure for 20 minutes at altitudes up to 1,000 feet above sea level.  Green bean foil packets are lightly seasoned with butter and sea salt then sealed and cooked on the grill until al dente, about 10 minutes.