Sweet and Sour Green Beans with Bacon Recipe - These Old Cookbooks (2024)

FAQs

Why do my canned green beans taste funny? ›

You may have noticed something off in the taste of canned vegetables — a metallic essence that throws the whole flavor profile out of whack. The reason for this metallic taste lies in the canning process. Canned vegetables are packed in saltwater, which can pick up the flavor from the metal around it.

Pour the cans of green beans into a pot liquid and all. Add the beef bouillon, bacon bits, dried minced onion, salt and pepper. Stir everything together, bring to a simmer and let cook for 10-15 minutes. Serve and enjoy!

This is an example of creating your own recipe can be a dangerous practice. While bacon and green beans are both low-acid foods, there are no processing recommendations for canning bacon. Therefore, can the beans by themselves. Then when ready to eat the beans, add the bacon just before serving.

They can be eaten raw, steamed, boiled, stir-fried or baked, made into a delicious green bean soup, or added to stews and casseroles, including Thanksgiving favourite, green bean casserole. Their tender texture also makes them perfect for coating in batter and deep-frying.

Unless the recipe tells you to keep the canned beans in their liquid, you should drain your can and give the beans a good rinse before using. This will improve the flavor and texture of your finished dish. Open your cans of beans using a can opener. There may be sharp edges from opening the can.

A little butter, minced garlic, and lemon-pepper seasoning are all you need to bring the best out of fresh green beans.

White sediment on bottom of jars Starch from food settling out. Mineral precipitates. Bacterial spoilage. Use soft water.

In general, rice, beans and canned foods stay good years after they expire. "Highly acidic foods, things like pineapple some fruits are good between 12-18 months. The non-acidic like green beans those can stay good for 2-5 years," said dietitian Jenny Myer. If a can is bulging or badly damaged, throw it away.

A light sprinkle of red pepper flakes can add extra oomph and a bit of heat to your green beans. Start small and add more, to taste! Add Almonds Some Crunch. My favorite variation is adding some toasted sliced almonds for a little crunch.

Those aromatics in the pot will revolutionize the beans' final flavor. The aromatics I tend to use are onions, carrots, garlic, and celery, and then heartier, woodsy herbs, like rosemary, sage, and thyme, which marry beautifully with the earthy-sweet flavor of beans.

Why you should always rinse canned beans? ›

According to The Bean Institute, you can reduce up to 41 percent of the sodium in canned beans by rinsing them. "It's fine to add the bean liquid to many recipes, but if you want to reduce the amount of sodium, it's best to drain and rinse canned beans," the website states.

Green beans can be snapped and prepared for canning without having to worry about them browning in between canning loads. There's also no rush to get them into the jars. You can prepare the beans the night before and can them the next day.

My latest canning adventures have included everything from canned cheese to canned butter to canned bacon. To can bacon all you need are quart jars, 12-inch-wide masking paper, pressure canner, and bacon. Cut a piece of masking paper 18 inches long and lay your bacon out in a single layer.

In the simplest method of home canning — the water bath method — you fill jars with acidic food, cover them with lids and boil them in a pot of water for a specific amount of time to kill bacteria. You then remove the jars and wait for the satisfying “pop” of the lids sealing as they cool.

Because green beans are low in acidity, they have to be canned in a pressure canner so they're safe to eat up to a year later. But if you're willing to increase the acidity of your green beans by pickling them, you can process them in a water-bath canner.

To each gallon of water, add 1 tablespoon salt and 2 tablespoons vinegar. Bring to a boil. Add beans and boil 20 minutes. Put in sterilized jars and add liquid, and seal at once.

After they are picked I wash them, stem the ends and cut them into small bite size pieces. I usually do this the night before I can, put them in a big bowl of water, and place them in the fridge overnight until I'm ready to can in the morning.