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Lima Beans

This recipe describes how to can Lima beans in hot brine.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 4 ingredients
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Lima Beans

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the beans

  1. Shell and clean the Lima beans.

  2. Separate the beans into two sizes using a rotary sieve.

  3. Pick out yellow and imperfect beans.

  4. Rinse the beans in cold water.

  5. Blanch the beans in boiling water for 2 minutes.

Can and process

  1. Place the beans in cans and fill with hot brine.

  2. Process small beans in No. 1 cans for 30 minutes at 240°F (115°C).

  3. Process small beans in No. 2 cans for 35 minutes at 240°F (115°C).

  4. Process large beans in No. 2 cans for 40 minutes at 240°F (115°C).

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

Lima beans
Provide the main body and starchy texture of the canned vegetable.
Hot brine
Carries salt into the beans, seasoning them and helping them keep their texture in the can.

The step that matters

Processing time and temperature for each can size. Lima beans are low-acid, so they must be held at 240°F (115°C) for the full time to destroy spoilage microbes. Bean size changes how fast heat reaches the center, so the correct time must match the can and bean size.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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