Beans Question

[YYY]

Hi Everybody

 

I have a question about beans

 

Last night I covered some beans with water to sit overnight. I had planned to can those beans today. Well today was an absolutely ridiculous day. From the time I woke up this morning, one unplanned thing after another came up and had to be taken care of. Right now, tomorrow is starting to look like it will become a repeat of today.

 

I never did get to those beans. My question is, how long can beans sit in water before they become uncannable? (is that a word?) A few minutes ago, I changed the water they were sitting in. Is that enough? Is it OK to still can them? I might not be able to get to them until day after tomorrow – that will be 3 days of sitting in water. Do I need to dump them and start over?

 

I normally let them sit overnight in water, then rinse them again, put them in jars, add seasonings and boiling water

 

Thanks

 

YYY

[Violet]

They should be dumped. You may even find them starting to sprout after a few days.

 

Also, you should not be canning the beans if they are raw. They must be fully rehydrated and cooked some before pressure canning. They are a hot pack food only, not raw packed.

Otherwise your beans are considered underprocessed and can lead to botulism. Using the raw beans like that, during the canning, most of the time is spent just getting the beans hot and starting to cook. You want the bacteria destroyed, so a hot pack is the only safe method. I also don't know what kind of seasonings you mean. Only salt or some dried herbs/spices should be added.

[CrabGrassAcres]

I never precook the beans unless they are really old. Then I pressure cook before canning.

Don't dump them. Rinse well and put them in the freezer till you are ready to use them.

[YYY]

Hi Violet and CrabGrassAcres,

 

Thank you for responding

 

I did end up dumping the beans. I had planned to freeze them like CrabGrassAcres suggested, but they smelled different – not bad – just different. I will keep that freezing idea in mind for next time.

 

Thanks again

 

YYY