Canned Barbecue Beans
adapted from Creative Canning and Mary Kay Craig
- 1 pound (or slightly more) black beans or a mix of pinto and black beans, rinsed, picked over and soaked 8 hours or overnight
- 2 onions, peeled and small
- 5 small cloves garlic, minced
- 2 1/2 cups barbecue sauce (I used my favorite homemade Kansas City style sauce, but bottled sauce will do the job in a pinch.)
- 2-3 drops liquid smoke per pint jar
- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle powder per pint jar, to taste, or 1/2 of a fresh jalapeno, minced, per pint jar.
After the beans have soaked overnight, drain and rinse them and divide between five clean pint jars. The beans should fill the jars about halfway. Divide the onions and minced garlic evenly between the jars. Add the chipotle powder (or minced jalapenos) and liquid smoke to each jar.
Add 1/2 cup of barbecue sauce to each jar then add clean, fresh water to the jars to within an inch of the top rim. Insert a chopstick to the bottom of the jar two or three times per jar to release any trapped air bubbles. Adjust the liquid if needed to maintain one-inch of clearance from the upper rim. Wipe the rims, add new two-piece lids and process, according to your canner’s manufacturer’s recommendations, at 15 pounds of pressure for 90 minutes.
While processing the beans, they are cooking. How convenient is that?
And now the tricky part. You have to wait at least two weeks for the beans to soak up the liquid in the jar. You could even wait four weeks for the ultimate experience, if you can stand it. You’ll be making another batch as soon as you open up that first jar, though. I guarantee you that!
