How to Can Great Northern Beans

Instructions

• Add the Great Northern beans to a heavy bottom pot and pour in just enough cold water to cover them.
• Bring the pot to a boil over medium-high heat with the lid on.
• Turn off the heat and allow the Great Northern beans to soak covered for an hour.
• Strain the soaked beans through a colander and dump them back into the heavy bottom pot.
• Pour enough cold water to cover the beans in the pot, and bring them to a boil over medium-high heat.
• Reduce the heat to a simmer and allow the beans to cook covered for 30 minutes.
• Sprinkle the salt (1 tsp. per quart jar) into a sterile jar before adding the hot beans and the cooking liquid. Fill the jar until there is approximately 1 inch of empty space below the rim.
• Seal the jar of Great Northern beans with a sterile lid and ring and lower it into a pressure canner that has 2 to 3 inches of water.
• Seal the pressure canner according to the manufacturer's instructions and bring it up to pressure over high heat: over 13 lbs. of pressure for elevations up to 6,000 feet, 14 lbs. of pressure for elevations up to 8,000 feet.
• Maintain the desired pressure for 90 minutes before turning off the heat to allow the pressure canner to cool.
• Release steam from the pressure canner according to the manufacturer's directions after it has cooled for at least 90 minutes.
• Add a 3-inch strip of masking tape to the lid or front of the cooled jar, and write the date the beans were canned in permanent ink on the tape.
• Store the canned Great Northern beans in a cool, dark and dry area like a pantry or cupboard for as long as three years.

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