Our green beans are in season and plentiful now. However, they do best in warm weather, so in a few months with cooler temperatures,  they won’t be as abundant. Pickling and canning several jars now, while they are in peak season, is a great way to ensure that you can enjoy them later when they are no longer available fresh.

Preparation Time:  30 minutes

Cooking Time:  15 minutes

Yields:  5 1 pint jars

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs green beans
• 1 quart (qt) apple cider vinegar (may also use either white or rice vinegar)
• 1 qt distilled water
• 5 tsp kosher salt
• 2 1/2 tsp organic raw cane sugar
• 5 cloves of garlic, halved
• 5 tsp pickling spices
• 10 sprigs fresh dill
• 5 1 pint canning jars with lids and caps

Preparation:

• Wash and trim ends of beans to fit the jars with 1/2 inch of space from the tops of the beans to the top of the jar; set aside.
• Halve the garlic cloves.
• Wash and pat dry fresh sprigs of dill, remove and discard thickest part of the stems, cut the remaining sprig of dill in half, set aside.
• To determine how much water to put into large canning, stock or soup pot, and to pre-sanitize the jars and lids:
  • Place the jars in the canning pot, fill the pot with enough water to have at least 1 inch above the top of the jars.
  • Bring to a boil for 1 minute.
  • Using canning tongs, carefully remove the jars and empty the hot water in the jars into the sink; set aside the sterilized jars.
    • The reason you pour out the hot water in each jar into the sink is that when you return each filled and capped jar back into the canning pot the water level will rise significantly above the level it was when the empty jars were in it.
  • Cover the pot and reduce the heat to medium-high heat.

Cooking:

• Put the water, vinegar, salt, sugar, and pickling spices in a medium sauce pot.
• Bring to a boil and stir to ensure all the salt and sugar has dissolved.
• Remove the saucepot from heat.
• Pack each jar snugly with the green beans.
• Place 2 halves of garlic and 1-2 sprigs of fresh dill over the green beans.
• Using a ladle, pour enough of the pickling liquid into each jar, filling to 1/4 inch below the top of the jar.  (Give each jar a couple of taps to ensure any trapped air is allowed to escape.)
  • You may need to add a little more of the mixture if the level goes below 1/4 inch from the top.
• Wipe the rim of each jar.  (This will ensure there aren’t any particles on the rim that would potentially cause a poor seal.)
• Using tongs, sterilize the lid and cap for each jar, place the lid and cap over each jar and hand tighten.
• Raise the temperature of the canning pot to high and return to a boil.
• Using canning tongs, carefully place each jar in the boiling water, cover, and boil for 15 minutes.
• Using canning tongs, carefully remove each jar and place it on a rack to cool.
• Note:  You should hear a little “pop” once the jars have cooled and a vacuum is created inside the jar.  If you look at a canning lid you will notice a small, circular bump in the center of each lid.  If the canning process is successful and you have a good seal, once the pasteurized jars have cooled and created a vacuum inside the jar, that circular bump of the lid will be “sucked” into the jar, so to speak, creating that “popping” sound.  If you don’t hear that sound and the circular bump isn’t flat then you did not get a good seal.  Not a loss but you must refrigerate that jar because of the poor seal.

Enjoy!

Recipe and photos by Ray Toves