As summer rolls, it’s time to take advantage of awesome June produce, the green beans! You can look forward to a few months of great prices, big harvests, and lots of good deals at the farmer’s markets. But all this bounty could lead to an overabundance. This begs the question…
“What are the Best Ways to Use Green Beans?”
So glad you asked! Here are a few of my favorites on the awesome G.B. (which you know I love ).
And if you’re missing out on getting them in your garden, it’s never too late to start!
Canning Green Beans :
Have you thought about canning green beans? (if you’ve never used a pressure canner before this is an amazing place to start). It is simple and fun! Way back in 2013, I was still learning how to can, and it’s fun to remember how excited I was!
Freezing :
This is super simple and well worth the effort (although some may think I’m going above and beyond! To blanch or not to blanch, that is the question. ha!) I love having frozen beans waiting for me in the middle of the winter. Defrost them, and add them frozen to a soup… You can’t go wrong!
Maybe my favorite way is to eat them! I have so many great recipes that it’s hard to choose a favorite. My favorite one is : Roasted Green Beans (yum!)
Okay, I have to stop because I’m getting hungry! Is it lunchtime yet? There are so many good ones, it’s hard to choose.
Tell me, what’s your favorite option?
Diana near Atlanta says
Another option is to freeze dry them. For those with freeze dryers, blanch the beans, put in ice water, dry them with a towel then put on trays. Easy peasy.
In fact, I have a bucket of them ready today to do just this!
To rehydrate, just add water – hot or cold depending on what you want to do with them. I store them in canning jars but they could be put into the mylar bags depending on how many you have.
I LOVE my freeze dryer! For a single person, I think it’s one of the best ways to preserve food. In about 1/2 hour, I’ll be taking out trays filled with thyme, oregano, spearmint, cilantro, parsley, raspberry and blackberry leaves. First time ever drying my own spices and teas…
Sharon says
Diana:
What freeze dryer do you have, if I may ask? They look intriguing, but prohibitally expensive compared to the other preserving methods. Thank you!
Diana near Atlanta says
Harvest Rite. They have sales every now and then. I bought the small FD. It only has 3 trays, but I find that is plenty for me. I used it a lot during the first year and a half, but now I have so much food stocked, that I’m only using it as needed. There are a couple of great YT channels that go over what to FD and how to store it. (Retired at 40 is one) It’s great when you have a roasted chicken and can freeze dry the bone broth.
I have a couple of turkey breasts in the freezer that I’m going roast. Once done. I can freeze dry a lot of the cooked meat and the bone broth and it’ll be ready for when I want it and it won’t get freezer burned – or ruined if the power goes out.
I’ve been intimidated by canning. Plus it’s messy and there’s the worry of jar failure. FD has few failures, has some restrictions on what can be FD, but isn’t messy and is simple. And you can use your vacuum sealer to seal the jars you use. I just find it a preferable way to preserve my food. And I can do little bits of a lot of different things on one load instead of lots of just one thing.
It’d be worth saving up for, imo.
SueD says
We debated about getting a freeze dryer and I am very glad we did. This will be the first year of using it to preserve things we grow. The OH’s plan is to use both mylar and canning jars.
Mona R McGinnis says
I usually can green beans in pint jars using a water bath. When there aren’t enough to fill the canning pot, I freeze them in water in plastic containers, no blanching necessary. These are usually used in soups & stews. One of my favorite recipes involves canned green beans with diced purple onion, mushrooms, oregano & vinegar/balsamic vinegar dressing.
Lana says
Green bean must be pressure canned! They are a low acid food and cannot be canned in a water bath!
Mona R McGinnis says
Been doing it for 60 yrs.
SB says
plain green beans are also a great,
healthy snack for dogs!
KC says
Pickled green beans! Delicious and snacky and good for pickety bits. We use the family-favorite garlic-dill-pickle brine which is probably originally from the Ball Blue Book (and that way you can water-bath-can green beans without botulism risk, since the salt and vinegar kill it). I cut the beans to the right length to go in wide-mouth pint jars for fanciness (they look State Fair Prize-ish that way, all standing on end) and they make good gifts or treats to bring out for guests, and then there’s one jar of the odds and ends and lumpier beans for just plain snacking. 🙂
Conni says
I vacuum pack fresh green beans with my Food Saver. First I wash them, cut the ends off (or not), salad spin to dry, and put enough to serve the two of us in the FS bag, vacuum seal and freeze. To serve I take the frozen serving, fork-puncture the package, and microwave about 45 seconds. You could also drop the frozen bag into boiling water until the beans are warmed through. They were delicious and tasted almost as if fresh picked!
Linda Practical Parsimony says
Canning green beans with my mother in the fifties and sixties is a strong and warm memory. And, I canned green beans when I had my own home. Green beans is my absolute favorite vegetable.
Judy says
Green beans freeze so well and in the middle of winter they taste so good!
Terry McA says
I haven’t had the chance to can green beans yet (though I do own a water bath canner and a pressure canner). My favorite green bean recipe of all time is cooked with diced bacon or ham and onion, a bit of chicken base, and lots of garlic. This fall, I want to try to can the recipe.