CANNING: Cajun Red Beans and Sausage
- Canned Cajun Red Beans Ingredient List:
- Modifications from Original Recipe:
- Equipment Needed for Canning Cajun Red Beans:
- Step-by-Step Guide to Canning Cajun Red Beans and Sausage
- Storing your Cajun Canned Beans
- Related Recipes:
Looking for a meal prep canning recipe that is anything but bland? Try this one! Cajun red beans and sausage, pressure canned for a ready-to-eat pantry meal with a kick. It’s based on a tested Ball canning recipe, but we’ve kicked the flavor up a notch (or eleven), and improved the preparation instructions.
You’ll need a pressure canner, but I’ll walk you through it step-by-step.When you’re done, you’ve got a week’s worth of dinners fully cooked and on the shelf.
Throw some rice in your rice cooker (or use your favorite stove-top or baked rice pilaf recipe) and heat up a jar of these meaty canned Louisiana-style red beans with smoky pork, bacon, and andouille sausage. You’ll have a hearty, warming homemade dinner on the table in well under thirty minutes.
It’s a convenient meal-in-a-jar, ready to pair with a hot pot of rice to make a satisfying southern soul food supper. If you’ve got a few jars of this canned red beans and sausage recipe stashed in the pantry, then you’ve got a hot, hearty dinner ready faster than you can order in or get take out… take that, Popeye’s. These will transport your mouth to Louisiana in almost no time at all, y’all.
Serving Ideas:
Canned Cajun Red Beans Ingredient List:
Dried red beans:
If you can’t get small red beans, you can substitute red kidney beans. The beans MUST be soaked, either overnight in cold water, or a quick soak in boiling water (see recipe steps for more information). No worries- you’ll have plenty of time to do at least a quick soak while you prepare the rest of the recipe.
Stock:
You can use chicken, turkey, or pork stock, or even beef stock. A good-quality homemade stock is best, but you can use store-bought stock or even bouillon and water.
Pork:
This recipe has layers of meaty flavor, with smoked Andouille sausage, diced bacon, and smoked pork hocks. The pork hocks are simmered in stock until they’re tender and easy to dice, and make a richly flavored broth. The bacon is sauteed enough to render the fat. The andouille sausage is sliced and browned in the bacon fat.
Onion:
You’ll need four cups of diced onion. Yellow onion is best, but you could substitute white or red onions if you’d like. The onion is browned in the skillet after cooking the bacon and sliced sausage, to build up deeper layers of flavor and deglaze the pan.
Seasonings:
These red beans are generously seasoned with dried thyme, ground coriander, Cajun seasoning, garlic powder, black pepper, and either Old Bay, celery seed, or celery salt. If you like, add a tablespoon of sweet or smoked paprika for a richer color. Each jar gets a dried bay leaf before canning which will infuse into the beans. You can reduce the Cajun seasoning for less spicy beans (I use the “More Spice” Tony C’s for a spicier kick with less salt).
Modifications from Original Recipe:
This pressure-canning pantry meal recipe is adapted from a tested recipe by Ball. I have changed and increased the dry seasonings to be more zesty and flavorful. You can reduce these if it’s too spicy for you, but we find these amounts to be perfect. I modified and clarified the pre-canning preparation steps (to get more smokey flavor from the ham hocks, and make it safer and easier to dice them).
I reduced the amount of sausage and increased the beans slightly from the original recipe amounts. If you’re using a good quality andouille sausage, it’s plenty flavorful and a thrifty modification. I also scaled up the total recipe volume somewhat from the original to make a full canner load, while still following safe-canning practices. If I’m going to babysit a pressure canner for 75-90 minutes, I want to get a full week of pantry dinners out of it, so I’ve scaled this for seven quart jars (or fourteen to fifteen pints).
Equipment Needed for Canning Cajun Red Beans:
If you are new to pressure-canning, check out our canning guide to get familiar with some of the equipment you may need to use:
CANNING: Equipment Guide- What Do I Need to Start Canning at Home?
Pressure Canner:
You absolutely must use a pressure canner to can this recipe safely. Do not try to water-bath can low-acid foods! You also can’t safely can this in an Instant Pot- they do not reliably build up enough pressure to safely can foods, especially low-acid foods like meat and veggies that require consistent pressure and long processing times. Botulism isn’t worth the risk… always pressure can low-acid foods like meats and vegetables.
I love my All-American pressure canner, but any pressure canner that is large enough to hold at least four quart jars and that has a pressure weight and/or a tested pressure gauge will work. You’ll need a larger canner that can hold seven quart jars (or at least 14 pints) to process this whole batch, although you can also can whatever will fit in your pressure canner, and cook the rest immediately (or freeze it to use within a few months). Beans will need to simmer on low heat or in a crock pot for at least an hour after soaking, and preferably longer, if they aren’t pressure-canned. You can also make a half batch, but if you end up with less than 4 full quart jars, you can process a jar of water along with them to make a full canner load.
Large Stock Pots & Strainer:
You’ll need a large pot or bowl to soak your beans, a strainer to drain them, and a larger, heavy pot that can hold the soaked beans, sausage, bacon, cooked ham hock, and most of the stock. You’ll need another medium to large size pot that can hold two ham hocks and enough liquid to cover them (ideally at least two quarts).
Saute Pan:
I use a large cast-iron skillet, but any large saute pan or dutch oven will do. You’ll need this to saute the bacon, sausage, and onions, in batches.
Canning Equipment:
Clean mason jars (quart or pint jars), new canning lids, ladle, canning funnel and jar lifter tongs.
Step-by-Step Guide to Canning Cajun Red Beans and Sausage
Soak Beans
- You must rinse and re-hydrate the dry beans before canning. You can either soak them overnight in the fridge or another cool place in a big pot of cold water (covering them by at least 2-4″ to leave room for them to expand), then draining and rinsing, or you can do a quick soak.
- While the beans are quick-soaking (or the next morning, if you’re doing the long-soak method), you can cook your ham hocks and prep the other ingredients).
- To quick soak, rinse and place the beans in a large pot (at least 12 quarts) and fill with water to cover by at least 2″. Bring to a boil over high heat (cover for faster boil, but watch for boil-overs!). Keep at a low boil for 15 minutes, then turn off heat and let the beans soak for one hour before draining.
Cook Ham Hocks & Make Broth
-
Place the ham hocks in a pot and cover them with the chicken (or other meat) broth and the dry seasoning mix.
-
Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer over medium low heat until they are fork tender (this will take two to four hours without a pressure cooker).
- You can also cook them in an Instant Pot or pressure cooker if you have one, for 5-10 minutes at high pressure with a natural release to save time with this step.
-
Remove the ham hocks to a plate to cool enough to handle, then separate out the bits of smoked meat and soft skin from the bone and gristle.
-
Keep the broth hot. You can discard the bone and bits of tendon, or add them to your freezer stock collection, if you want to make a smoked bone stock. I usually add them back to the pot of hot broth in a strainer pot (so that small pieces of bone don’t end up in the broth. You can also wrap them in cheesecloth or put them in a wire strainer).
-
Dice the hock meat and skin and reserve to add to your beans.
Step Three: Saute Meats and Onion
-
While the ham hocks are cooking, peel and dice your onions, dice the bacon and slice the andouille sausages.
-
Heat a large cast-iron or other heavy saute pan over medium-high heat. Cook the diced bacon first, stirring frequently until most of the fat has rendered and the bacon is soft.
-
Drain and rinse the beans, and transfer them to a large stockpot. Using a slotted spoon or spatula, transfer the cooked bacon, and the diced ham hock to the pot.
-
Add the sliced andouille sausages to the pan with the bacon fat, and continue to stir and flip them until they’re lightly browned all over. Remove these from the pan with a slotted spatula or spoon. Add the sausage to the pot with the beans.
-
Add the onions to the saute pan with the bacon fat. Stir frequently, scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze all the fond and flavor from the sausage and bacon. Saute the onions over medium heat until they’re a light golden brown.
-
If you haven’t done so already, drain and rinse the soaked beans and return them to the big pot. Add the cooked bacon, sausage, chopped ham hock bits, and the browned onion & seasonings to the pot, along with about a third to half of the hot stock.
-
Reheat the beans and meat mixture and bring it up to a boil, stirring frequently and topping up with additional stock if the pan is dry or in danger or scorching. Keep the pot of remaining seasoned stock at a low simmer.
Step Four: Prep Canner and Fill Jars
-
Wash and preheat your jars, and get your lids and rings ready. Fill your pressure canner with the recommended amount of water (check your canner manual, but at least several inches for this long processing time) and preheat it.
-
Using a jar funnel, fill your quart or pint jars no more than 3/4 full with the bean and meat mixture. Don’t overfill the jars, as they’ll soak up liquid and expand during processing. Overfilling the jars will not give you enough liquid to properly cook the beans or to reach a safe processing temperature in the center of the jars.
-
Top the jars up with the remaining hot seasoned stock, dividing evenly among the jars and leaving a 1″ headspace (after debubbling). If you need additional liquid, you can use boiling water or more stock. It’s better to have too much liquid with the proper headspace in the jars than not enough, and all jars must be filled to one inch below the rim.
- Wipe the jar rims and top with new canning lids (or properly prepared reusable lids). Tighten the rings finger-tight (or according to manufacturer directions).
Step Five: Process the Jars
-
Place the hot jars in the preheated canner and seal the lid. Heat on medium heat. Vent the canner for 10 minutes once it starts steaming, then add the weight and bring the canner up to pressure over medium low heat.
-
Process at 10 lbs of pressure (weighted canner) or 11 lbs (dial gauge). Adjust as needed for your altitude over 1000 sf. Process for a full 75 minutes for pints, or 90 minutes for quarts or mixed batches of pints and quarts.
-
Turn off the heat after the processing time is up. Let the canner rest undisturbed until the pressure returns to zero- do not remove the weight early to vent the steam faster. As soon as the pressure releases, remove the jars and place them on a towel or cooling rack. Cover with a towel if there are cold drafts.
-
Leave undisturbed overnight or for at least 8-12 hours when the jars are fully cooled.
Storing your Cajun Canned Beans
Cajun Red Beans and Sausage (Canning Recipe)
Ingredients
- 2 ½ lbs dried red kidney beans
- 2 quarts chicken, turkey, pork, or beef stock (can use water with bouillon)
- 2 smoked ham hocks
- ½ lb thick cut bacon, diced into 1" pieces
- 1 lb andouille sausage, sliced (original recipe calls for 2 lbs of sausage and 2 lbs of beans, but you can use less if you want a less meaty or thriftier version)
- 4 cups onions, diced (about 4 medium onions)
- 7 ea bay leaves (one for each jar) (add to jars before processing)
Dry Seasoning Mix
- 2 tbsp dried thyme
- 1 tbsp Cajun seasoning (Tony C's or homemade mix)
- 1 tbsp Old Bay seasoning substitute 2 tsp celery salt
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp ground coriander
- 1 tbsp paprika or smoked paprika (optional)
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
Soak the Dried Beans (REQUIRED):
- You must rinse and rehydrate the dry beans before canning. You can either soak them overnight in the fridge or another cool place in a big pot of cold water (covering them by at least 2-4" to leave room for them to expand), then draining and rinsing, or you can do a quick soak. To quick soak, rinse and place the beans in a large pot (at least 12 quarts) and fill with water to cover by at least 2". Bring to a boil over high heat (cover for faster boil, but watch for boil-overs!). Keep at a low boil for 15 minutes, then turn off heat and let the beans soak for one hour before draining.
- While the beans are quick-soaking (or the next morning, if you're doing the long-soak method), you can cook your ham hocks and prep the other ingredients as follows:
Ham Hocks and Broth:
- Place the ham hocks in a pot and cover them with the chicken (or other meat) broth and the dry seasoning mix.
- Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer over medium low heat until they are fork tender (this will take two to four hours without a pressure cooker). You can also cook them in an Instant Pot or pressure cooker if you have one, for a few minutes at high heat to save time with this step.
- Keep the broth hot. Remove the ham hocks to a plate to cool enough to handle, then separate out the bits of smoked meat and soft skin from the bone and gristle. You can discard the bone and bits of tendon (or add them to your freezer stock collection, if you want to make a smoked stock).
- Dice the meat and skin and reserve to add to your beans.
Cajun Red Beans and Sausage Prep:
- While the ham hocks are cooking, peel and dice your onions, dice the bacon and slice the andouille sausages.
- Heat a large cast-iron or other heavy saute pan over medium-high heat. Cook the diced bacon first, stirring frequently until most of the fat has rendered and the bacon is soft.
- Drain and rinse the beans, and transfer them to a large stockpot. Using a slotted spoon or spatula, transfer the cooked bacon, and the diced ham hock to the pot.
- Add the sliced andouille sausages to the pan with the bacon fat, and continue to stir and flip them until they're lightly browned all over. Remove these from the pan with a slotted spatula or spoon. Add the sausage to the pot with the beans.
- Add the onions to the saute pan with the bacon fat. Stir frequently, scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze all the fond and flavor from the sausage and bacon. Saute the onions over medium heat until they're a light golden brown.
- If you haven't done so already, drain and rinse the soaked beans and return them to the big pot. Add the cooked bacon, sausage, chopped ham hock bits, and the browned onion & seasonings to the pot, along with about a third to half of the hot stock.
- Reheat the beans and meat mixture, stirring frequently and topping up with additional stock if the pan is dry or in danger or scorching. Keep the pot of seasoned stock at a low simmer.
Pressure-Canning Instructions:
- Wash and preheat your jars, and get your lids and rings ready. Fill your pressure canner with the recommended amount of water (check your canner manual, but at least several inches for this long processing time) and preheat it.
- Using a jar funnel, fill your quart or pint jars no more than 3/4 full with the bean and meat mixture. Don't overfill the jars, as they'll soak up liquid and expand during processing. Overfilling the jars will not give you enough liquid to properly cook the beans or to reach a safe processing temperature in the center of the jars.
- Top the jars up with the remaining hot stock, dividing evenly among the jars and leaving a 1" headspace (after debubbling). If you need additional liquid, you can use boiling water or more stock. It's better to have too much liquid with the proper headspace in the jars than not enough.
- Wipe the jar rims and top with new canning lids (or properly prepared reusable lids). Tighten the rings finger-tight.
- Place the hot jars in the preheated canner and seal the lid. Heat on medium heat. Vent the canner for 10 minutes once it starts steaming, then add the weight and bring the canner up to pressure over medium low heat.
- Process at 10 lbs of pressure (weighted canner) or 11 lbs (dial gauge). Adjust as needed for your altitude over 1000 sf. Process for a full 75 minutes for pints, or 90 minutes for quarts or mixed batches of pints and quarts.
- Turn off the heat after the processing time is up. Let the canner rest undisturbed until the pressure returns to zero- do not remove the weight early to vent the steam faster. As soon as the pressure releases, remove the jars and place them on a towel or cooling rack. Cover with a towel if there are cold drafts.
- Leave undisturbed overnight or for at least 8 hours. Check for seals, remove rings, and wash the jars with soapy water. Label jars and store in a cool, dark place.