This is the easiest canning ever. Once you have them canned and in your cupboard, you will never have to spend an entire day cooking a pot of beans, makiing sure you don't scorch them or that they get done in time for dinner.
This recipe is for just one can, depending on the size of your canner you will adjust accordingly. (I can make 7 quarts at a time in mine). Also, this is a very basic recipe, but it's the way I always make them. You can add other ingredients if you like, but I would rather season differently once they are opened and warming up.
WHAT YOU NEED:
Pressure Canner
Quart Glass Jars with rings and NEW flats
Large Pot for boiling water
Ladle
Butterknife
Canning Funnel
1 "scant" cup dried pinto beans
1 tsp. canning Salt (fine grained without iodine)
1/2 slice bacon (thick sliced, naturally cured if possible)
1. Make sure jars are super clean. You don't need to sterilize them.
2. Put rings and flats in a pot of water and get to simmer. Then turn off water. Let sit.
3. Start water boiling in large pot. (Each quart of beans takes about 2 2/3 cups of water)
4. Measure out pinto beans, rinse.
5. Start correct amount of water to simmering in pressure canner. You put it in until the first mark from the bottom of canner. ( Make sure canner has grate in it to elevate the cans from the bottom.)
6. Put a cup of the beans along with a half slice of bacon and a teaspoon of canning salt into each jar. Ladle boiling water on top until 1 inch from top of jar.
7. Gently stir beans around with butterknife to release trapped air bubbles.
8. Place flat on jar. Place ring on jar. Tighten only "finger tight". (This means to not hold the jar with your other hand, but screw the ring on until turning causes the jar to spin.)
9. Gently lower jars into canner.
10. Place lid on canner and tighten. Watch until you see a strong stream of steam coming from the little chimney that holds the regulator. (About 5 minutes). THEN, put on regulator.
11. Watch as pressure starts to build. When the pressure reaches 12 lb., start your timer for 90 minutes.
12. Here's the only tricky part -You have to maintain that 12 lb. pressure. Check every couple of minutes. If the pressure is going down, increase heat. If the pressure is rising, let out steam by tipping the regulator until it's back to 12 lb. and then lower heat. It can take a half hour or so before you get the correct amount of heat and pressure to maintain.
13. Once the timer goes off. Let beans stay in canner until pressure goes down to normal and the button valve goes down. Remove jars, and listen for the POP sound that tells that the jars have formed a vacuum seal.
14. EAT THOSE BEANS!
