[jayd4wg]

My MIL got me a waterbath canner for xmas and a box of pint jars.

I made a HUGE batch of lentils and ham with the leftover xmas ham. Thought...i'll just can it!

SO i boiled tha jars and rings, after cleaning EVERYTHING with soapy water, and rinsing well...then filled the jars 3/4 full with the wonderful bean soup..kept them covered the whole time with boiling water and processed them for 120 mins just to be SURE...

Today I looked at them in the cabinet...the lits are still popped down, and secure...but the beans and ham have setled and the liquid at the top that was originally clearish is now dark green...

Think it's bad...or just the color of the lentils coming out...I'm afraid to open one. I think i'll let them go a couple months to see if they are actually growing mold...

I'm scurred...

 

[DIYASUB]

Maybe you'll get some other input on this but, unless I'm mistaken your bean soup should be canned using a pressure canner.
Waterbath canners are great for canning foods with a high acid content, like tomato juice/sauce, but beans and ham got no acid and might be an environment that would promote the growth of bacteria.
It might be a good idea to get yourself a copy of "The Ball Blue Book". It goes into pretty great detail about which methods are best used to preserve different foods.

By the way, it aint a little mold you gotta worry about, it's that microscopic botulism bacteria thats a real problem.

 

[jayd4wg]

I'm all about the pressure canner...justthought I'd give this a whirl. A pressure canner is on order. Just not sure when i'm gonna be able to get it.

 

[Scott M.]

I just checked my copy of The Blue Book, and beans or bean soup definitely should have run through the pressure canner. Sorry bud, your intentions were good, but I don't think the results will be edible.

 

[Loggy]

I just checked my copy of The Blue Book, and beans or bean soup definitely should have run through the pressure canner. Sorry bud, your intentions were good, but I don't think the results will be edible.

Sounds that way to me. i wouldnt take a chance.

 

[jayd4wg]

can't wait to smell one of these jars when I open them...my bet is they are gonna be FUNKY...

I might post on the trapping forum... "COON BAIT FOR SALE"

 

[susquegander]

set em out before they pop!!!!

 

[DIYASUB]

I just checked my copy of The Blue Book, and beans or bean soup definitely should have run through the pressure canner. Sorry bud, your intentions were good, but I don't think the results will be edible.

Sounds that way to me. i wouldnt take a chance.

What's really scary is that you dont even realize that you're taking a chance. Botulism is one of those critters that is tasteless, colorless, and odorless. Definitely nothing to mess with.

 

[jayd4wg]

papaw always said to cook EVERYTHING that came out of a can. he never pressure canned. he canned EVERYTHING. He said if it smells funny, it is. if it looks funny, it is. if it smells good and looks good, cook it again anyway. boil for 10 mins before eating and they NEVER got sick on anything he canned. I do remember the day he opened a can of cooked oyster soup though. no amount of boiling would have made that smell good. IIRC, he got a good case of the skidders from that one.

 

[bobby2bears]

Pretty good advice so far. A good rule of thumb is if it has any meat in it....pressure can it. Even spaghetti sauce should be pressure canned if you make it with meat, basic meatless marinara sauce can be canned in a waterbath canner. Ham and Bean soup or any soup that contains meat should be pressure canned.