Pressure canning is seen as scary by many people who are interested in preserving their food but have never tried pressure canning. This was my first time pressure canning, but the process really isn’t worth the stress. If you follow the directions for your pressure canner, and are willing to take your time, there is really nothing to worry about. Pressure canners are designed with safety precautions anyway, so really there is nothing to fear. I’ve made these baked beans before and made a post, but at the time it was is much smaller quantities. If your don’t have a ham hock, any pork will do fine, or you can easily leave it out. I looked at many recipes for how others pressure can beans, but in the end I just used the reference time, weight, and cooking process recommended by my canner, the Presto 23 Qt pressure canner. I did my beans in two batches though all could have fit at once, and I should have just done one batch, but I wanted to be careful just in case. Just watch your canner the entire time you are canning and follow the instructions. This recipe made 19 pints of beans, with about 1 pt of left over sauce. The sauce may be a bit thin, but it’s definitely not watery and is full of flavor. These beans taste very similar to a Original Bush’s Baked Beans.
What You Will Need
- 4 lbs Northern Beans (8 Cups Dried)
- 1 Ham Hock, De-boned, Fat Trimmed, Cubed
- 4 Cups Brown Sugar
- 4 Tbsp Dried Mustard
- 2 Cups Maple Syrup
- 4 Cups Ketchup
- 2 Cups Worcestershire Sauce
- 2 Tbsp Ground Black Pepper
- 10 Cups Water (use bean water, then supplement with additional tap water as needed)
- Large Stock Pot
- Dutch Oven
- 19 Pint Jars, Cleaned and Hot
- Lids and Rings
- Pressure Canner and Canning Tools
Directions
1. Place the beans into the large stock pot and cover beans with 2-3 times as much water. Hydrate your beans using either the quick soak method, or the overnight soak method. For the quick soak method, bring the beans to a boil, boil for 2-3 minutes, then remove from heat, cover, and let cool for 1 hour. For the overnight method, leave the beans on the counter for 12-18 hours. Once the beans are hydrated, strain off the water, then cover the bean with 2 inches of fresh water. Heat the beans to boiling temperature (100 C or 212 F) then start a timer for 30 minutes. Once done, remove from heat.
2. Place your pressure canner over a medium heat and add the recommended amount of water. In the dutch oven, add the brown sugar and the mustard then stir together. Add the maple syrup, ketchup, worcestershire sauce, black pepper and water. Stir thoroughly and place over medium heat until the sauce begins to bubble. Place the lids in a bowl of hot water.
3. Place 1 heaping cup of par cooked beans into each hot jar. Add the diced ham hock evenly between the jars, then fill with about 1 1/4 cup sauce or until until 1 inch head space is reached. Remove any bubbles, wipe the rims, add the lids and rings to finger tight, then place into pressure canner. Heat pressure canner as instructed by the canner manufacturer to the pressure needed for your elevation. Process pints for 75 minutes and quarts for 95 minutes. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for pressure releasing, place hot jars on a towel lined counter and let sit for 24 hours. The remove the rings, wipe the jars with a wet towel, label and store.
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