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Follow this step-by-step tutorial to learn How to Can Green Beans in a pressure canner safely. One of the easiest canning recipes around, you’ll love having jars of home canned green beans to use all year long. 

jars of green beans with a head of garlic on a white board
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Summer means gorgeous and abundant fresh produce! While fresh green beans are incredible, pressure-canning green beans allow you to enjoy them all year long.

It’s a very easy and straightforward process. Let me hold your hand and walk you through it. 

CANNING SUPPLIES & INGREDIENTS

Check out this in-depth post for a complete list of canning supplies.

You’ll need:

If you have leftover fresh green beans, try your hand at making Cheesy Green Bean Casserole, Refrigerator Dilly Beans, Green Beans in Tomato Sauce, Garlic Butter Green Beans, Air Fryer Green Bean Fries, or Stir-Fried Green Beans.  

How to Can Green Beans

*I’ll walk you through it here with some photos and tips, and you’ll also find a printable recipe card at the bottom of the post with exact measurements, etc. You can also click “jump to recipe” to skip down.

Start with green bean pods that are tender and full but not overly mature. You don’t want to be able to see the beans bulging through the pod; those will produce tough and unappetizing canned green beans.

Rinse the beans in cool water, discarding any diseased or overly mature pods. Next, you’re going to “snap” the beans to remove the ends and strings. You can do this by hand, or using a knife. Pro tip: the knife method is generally faster, but I have noticed that the cut ends will brown in the jars a few months after canning. They’re still safe to eat but keep it in mind if the final appearance is important to you.

You can leave the de-stringed beans whole or cut them into 1-inch pieces. The size usually depends on how you want to use them once they are canned.

Wash and clean your jars. It is no longer necessary to sterilize jars before canning (hurray!) but you should make sure they are preheated enough to not crack when placed in hot water.

You can put them in a clean dishwasher and run them through a quick wash cycle, or place them in a large pan with some water in a low-heat oven (my oven’s lowest temp is 170˚F) until you need them. I’ve even just put hot tap water in them before and left them on the counter.

Wash your lids with hot soapy water and place them in a clean bowl for now.

If you are doing the hot pack method (see below), add the green beans to a pot of boiling water and let them cook for 5 minutes. If you are doing the raw pack method, allow 8 (ish) cups of water to come to a boil in a pot or kettle.

Add 3 quarts of water to your pressure canner and put it on a burner set to high. Make sure there is a canning rack in the bottom of the canner.

If you are using salt, add 1/2 tsp canning salt to pints and 1 tsp to quarts. Fill jars with green beans. You really want to pack them in there. Pro tip: wiggle and gently tap the jar against the counter often as you add them to allow them to settle and make room for more.

Using a canning funnel, carefully and slowly add the clean boiling water, leaving 1 inch of headspace. Headspace is the distance between the top of the food and the top of the jar. 

Using a long utensil (I prefer a plastic chopstick), remove air bubbles from the jar. 

3 photos showing the process of canning green beans

Clean the rim of the jar very well with a hot damp rag. Any food debris left on the rim may impact the seal of the lid in the canner.

Place a clean lid on the jar. Add a ring, and tighten it to fingertip tight.

2 photos showing the process of canning green beans in a pressure canner

Using canning tongs, gently place the jars in the canner. Lock the lid. Soon, steam will start coming through the vent pipe (I call it the steam chimney). Allow the steam to pass through for about 10 minutes. Then put the pressure regulator (I call it the chimney cap) on top. (see the 4 photo grid below for a visual of this process step by step)

4 steps in pressure canning

Pretty soon, the air vent will pop up. That is a sign that you’re starting to build pressure inside the canner (get excited. This is happening!). Processing times will vary based on altitude. See the charts below.

Pressure Canning Green Beans in a Dial-Gauge Pressure Canner

Canner Pressure (PSI) at Altitudes of
Style of Pack Jar Size Processing Time 0-2,000 ft 2,001-4,000 ft 4,001-6,000 ft 6,001-8,000 ft
Hot Pints 20 min 11 lbs 12 lbs 13 lbs 14 lbs
Quarts 25 min 11 lbs 12 lbs 13 lbs 14 lbs
*Source: National Center For Home Food Preservation

Processing Time for Green Beans in a Weighted-Gauge Pressure Canner

Canner Pressure (PSI) at Altitudes of:
Style of Pack Jar Size Processing Time 0-1,000 ft Above 1,001 ft
Hot Pints 20 min 10 lb 15 lb
Quarts 25 min 10 lb 15 lb
*Source: National Center For Home Food Preservation

When the dial gauge reaches the appropriate PSI, reduce the burner temp to medium, and start your timer. The pressure must stay at the PSA or (a little bit) above for the duration of the cooking time.  You’ll likely need to adjust the temp on the burner a few times depending on your stove.

When the time is up, remove the canner from the burner and allow it to sit until you hear a distinctive “click” of the air vent dropping. Remove the pressure regulator and carefully remove the lid of the canner (Pro tip: I always use oven mitts when I take the lid off because the steam is super hot).

Let the jars sit for 5 minutes in the canner with the lid off and then lift them out with canning tongsPro tip: allowing the jars to sit in the canner with the lid off can help reduce the siphoning of liquid in your jars.

Place hot jars on a towel where they can sit undisturbed for 12 hours.

After a few hours, to check for sealing, gently press down in the middle of the lid. If the lid has no give, it’s sealed. If you can press the lid in and it pops a bit, your jars are not sealed.

How Many Green Beans Do You Need?

An average of 14 pounds is needed per canner load of 7 quarts; an average of 9 pounds is needed per canner load of 9 pints. A bushel weighs 30 pounds and yields 12 to 20 quarts – an average of 2 pounds per quart. (source)

If you don’t have a large batch of beans to can at once, you can process just a few jars if needed. It eventually does add up over the season! You can also learn how to blanch and freeze green beans as an additional way to safely preserve them.

Can You Can Green Beans in a Water Bath?

No, you cannot safely can green beans in a water bath canner. 

Green beans, and all low-acid vegetables (like when canning sweet potatoes, canning beets, canning peas, canning potatoes, canning corn, or canning carrots), must be preserved using a pressure canner.

The good news is that pressure-canning green beans is very straightforward and easy to do.

Do You Cook Green Beans Before Canning?

You can if you prefer beans with a softer texture. See notes below under “hot pack” instructions if that is your preferred packing method. But it is not mandatory to pre-cook them, and to save time, choose the cold packing method.

HOW LONG Will Home CANNED Green Beans LAST?

If stored in a dark cool place, home-canned green beans will last for 12 months.

RAW PACK FOR CANNING Green Beans

Raw packing (also known as cold pack or cold packing) simply means placing the beans in the jars without precooking them, filling the jars with clean boiling water, and then pressure canning them.

Raw packing is much faster than a hot pack process, but there are some drawbacks. No matter how well you pack the jars, the density of the veggies will change during their time in the canner.

This often leads to something called “fruit float” in which the produce will float to the top of the jar, leaving water on the bottom. You’ll find this when you’re canning pears, canning whole tomatoes, and canning peaches as well. There is nothing wrong with it as long as your jars are still sealed.

HOT PACK FOR CANNING Green Beans

Hot packing involves cooking the green beans in boiling water for 5 minutes before packing them into jars for canning. 

The benefits of hot packing are that you typically can fit more per jar, and the near elimination of fruit float. The drawback is I find it makes the beans too mushy for my taste.

Pro Tips/Recipe Notes

  • The beans will change from a gorgeous bright green to a dull green once canned. This is normal and they’re still safe to eat.
  • Siphoning is when liquid seeps out from under the lids and reduces the overall amount of liquid in the jar. If just a bit of siphoning has happened and your jars sealed, your item is still safe to eat but use your best judgment. I tend to quickly use any jar that has experienced siphoning simply because it can discolor the food at the top not covered in the liquid.
  • Pressure canners can often leave white lines on lids, rings, and jars (you’ll see it on my jars in the photo at the top of the post). It’s totally normal and safe. To prevent this, add 1/3 cup of white vinegar to the canner before processing. I just forgot to do it in this instance. 🙂
a jar of green beans being put into a pressure canner
5 from 3 ratings

How to Can Green Beans

Prep: 30 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Pressurizing/Depressurizing: 30 minutes
Total: 1 hour 25 minutes
jars of green beans with a head of garlic on a white board
One of the easiest canning recipes around, you’ll love having jars of home canned green beans to use all year long. 

Ingredients 

  • 9 lbs green beans
  • 8 cups water {for jars}
  • 3 quarts water {for canner}
  • 4.5 tsp canning salt {optional}

Instructions 

  • Wash and clean your jars. Make sure they are preheated enough to not crack when placed in hot water.
  • Wash your lids with hot soapy water and place them in a clean bowl.
  • Snap or cut beans to remove any strings, and cut into 1-inch pieces. Note: once the string has been removed, you may also leave them whole if you prefer.
    9 lbs green beans
  • (HOT PACK & COLD PACK INSTRUCTIONS) If you are hot packing, add the beans to a pot of boiling water and let them cook for 5 minutes. If you are not hot packing, allow 8 (ish) cups of water to come to a boil in a pot or kettle.
    8 cups water
  • Add 3 quarts of water to the pressure canner and put it on a burner set to high. Make sure there is a canning rack in the bottom of the canner.
    3 quarts water
  • Add the beans to the jars. If adding salt, do that now. Tap the jar a few times to pack them in there as well as possible.
    4.5 tsp canning salt
  • Using a canning funnel, carefully and slowly add the clean boiling water from the kettle/pot, leaving 1-inch of headspace. Headspace is the distance between the top of the food and the top of the jar. 
  • Using a long utensil (I prefer a plastic chopstick), remove air bubbles from the jar.
  • Clean the rim of the jar very well with a hot damp rag. Any food debris left on the rim may impact the seal of the lid in the canner.
  • Place a clean lid on the jar. Add a ring, and tighten to fingertip tight.
  • Using canning tongs, gently place the jars in the canner.
  • Lock the lid. Soon, steam will start coming through the vent pipe. Allow the steam to pass through for about 10 minutes. Then put the pressure regulator on top.
  • Pretty soon, the air vent will pop up.
  • In a dial-gauge pressure canner, process pints and quarts based on the elevation guide below (see processing chart in post for altitude adjustments):
    *0-2,000f ft {PSI: 11 lbs of pressure} = Pints 20 min, Quarts 25 min
    *2,001-4,000k ft {PSI: 12 lbs of pressure} = Pints 20 min, Quarts 25 min
    *4,001-6,000k ft {PSI: 13 lbs of pressure} = Pints 20 min, Quarts 25 min
    *6,001-8,000k {PSI: 14 lbs of pressure} = Pints 20 min, Quarts 25 min
  • When the dial gauge reaches the appropriate PSI, reduce the burner temp to medium, and start your timer. The pressure must stay at the PSI or (a little bit) above for the duration of the cooking time. You’ll likely need to adjust the temp on the burner a few times depending on your stove.
  • When the time is up, remove the canner from the burner and allow it to sit until you hear a distinctive “click” of the air vent dropping. Remove the pressure regulator and carefully remove the lid of the canner (Pro tip: I always use oven mitts when I take the lid off because the steam is super hot).
  • Let the jars sit for 5 minutes in the canner and then lift them out with canning tongs. Pro tip: allowing the jars to sit in the canner with the lid off can help reduce the siphoning of liquid in your jars.
  • Remove with canning tongs and place on a towel where they can sit undisturbed for 12 hours.
  • After a few hours, to check for sealing, gently press down in the middle of the lid. If the lid has no give, it’s sealed. If you can press the lid in and it pops a bit, your jars are not sealed.

Notes

Quarts: Salt (optional) 1 tsp
Pints: Salt (optional) 1/2 tsp
 
Store in a cool dark place for 12 months.

Nutrition

Serving: 1pintCalories: 141kcalCarbohydrates: 32gProtein: 8gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 38mgPotassium: 957mgFiber: 12gSugar: 15gVitamin A: 3130IUVitamin C: 55mgCalcium: 174mgIron: 5mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Canning
Cuisine: American
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Helping you serve up budget-friendly sustainable recipes with a side of balanced living.
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2 Comments

    1. Hi Jan, I don’t see why not.

      That being said, it would reduce the surface area of the green bean, but you can’t reduce the processing time due to safety. My best guess is that doing so would likely result in a mushier final product.