I just love green beans almost any way you can imagine, but one of my all-time favorites is Mom & Dad's Dilly Bean recipe! I'm not a canner though & I wanted to make some for My Dear Friend, Linda for a gift so I went online & found a recipe with no canning required & then adapted the two recipes into one. Here it is...
10 to 12 oz. fresh green beans, washed & ends cut off
2 cloves garlic, cut in half to help flavors blend
1 cup cider vinegar (rice vinegar can be sub'd, but I used about 1/2 cup of each)
1/2 cup white wine (I used Riesling)
1 to 2 tsp. white sugar, optional
1 1/2 to 2 tsp. fine sea salt , to taste
1 bay leaf
1/2 to 1 tsp. ground cayenne pepper, to taste
1/8 to 1/4 tsp. whole black peppercorns
1 to 2 small to medium dried whole red chili pepper(s), according to taste
*1 dill head or several sprigs of fresh dill weed (I couldn't get a dill head in winter even in Florida)
Combine the vinegar, white wine, sugar & salt in a saucepan & bring to a boil. Stir a few times to dissolve the sugar & salt. Boil for 1 to 3 minutes, & then remove from heat.
Be sure the beans are trimmed & then fit them neatly lengthwise into a turned, clean canning or other tight-lidded quart jar. If they don't all fit, place the remainder into a second jar (pint). Remove the green beans & set them aside.
*If you decide to make two jars, you will definitely need to double the vinegar-wine mixture as well as the additional ingredients listed after that.
Place the garlic, peppercorns, & cayenne pepper into the jar(s), then place the beans neatly back into the jar. Pour the vinegar & wine mixture over the beans, leaving about 1/4 of an inch of head room. Slip in the red chile peppers & bay leaf next to the beans, & then add the dill sprigs by tucking them into the beans.
Cool the jar(s) on the counter, label them including the current date, & place the lid(s) on & tighten them. Then immediately place them in the refrigerator.
The dilly beans should be ready to eat in two days to two weeks, depending on the desired heat you like! They should keep in the fridge for up to six months, but not at my house. They will be gone long before then!
NOTE: If you wish, when the beans are gone you can remove the wilted dill sprigs & reuse the brine--adding a bit more dill, if you wish.
ENJOY!!
Kathy
Thank you so much, Linda, for posting my Dilly Beans! I really appreciate it! I hope you all enjoy the recipe. It's dear to my heart as all Mom & Dad's recipes are. The memories we have of food seem to be more intense I think because they heighten our senses & sweeten with time. <3
ReplyDeleteKathy, this sounds so good. I don't can either, but this seems easy to do. Green beans are my very favorite. Always looking for different ways to make them. I will save this one and try. Thanks for sharing, and for making them for Linda.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Myra! They are so easy & you can make them mild or quite spicy depending on your taste. I can't eat things as hot as I used to when I was younger so for my jar I just used 1/4 tsp of cayenne & skipped the dried peppers. <3
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