Dilly Beans

What are Dilly Beans?!?

Yeah, a year and a half ago, I had no clue what “Dilly Beans” were either.  But one weekend when I was visiting my parents, my dad pulled out this Mason jar filled with green beans and said, “Here, you have to try these!”  Now, if you don’t know my dad, I’m sure that you’re just saying to yourself, “If it didn’t look good, why did you try it?”  But those of you who do  know my dad are sitting back, nodding knowingly and saying, “I get it.  Bruce wanted you to try something.”  Because, the crux of the matter is when my dad tells you to try something, you DO NOT SAY NO.  You just give the biggest smile that you can and try the smallest bit of food that you can.  And, amazingly, most of the time, you end up liking it.

And dilly beans are a great example of that. 

The dilly beans that my dad had were made by a former student of his.  I tried them (because I had to) and ended up loving them.  They are the quintessential garnish for a Bloody Mary.  They are a perfect addition to a relish tray.  Heck, they’re awesome to just snack on!  I give jars out the people I work with because they’ll just take them home, crack ‘em open and eat the beans while watching tv!  And to top it off, they are the easiest thing to can ever.  Don’t believe me?  Try them yourself:

• 4 lbs green beans, washed and trimmed
• 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes, per jar
• 1/2 tsp. mustard seeds, per jar
• 1/2 tsp. dill seed, per jar
• 1 whole garlic clove, per jar
• 5 cups vinegar
• 5 cups water
• 1/2 cup salt

Add the red pepper flakes, mustard seed, dill seed and garlic cloves to the jars.  Fill each jar with green beans.  In a sauce pan, boil the vinegar, water and salt.  Once boiling, pour into jars.  Tighten lids.  Process in a hot water bath for 5 minutes. 

You can make as little or as much as you want depending on how many fresh green beans you have.  Just be sure you calculate the salt correctly!

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