Although pickled cucumbers are the most common, pickled green beans are an appetizing alternative when you decide to make pickles. Green beans are among the easiest to grow in any garden making pickled green beans an easy, ready treat. Green beans are known by many names like French beans, snap beans or string beans. You can find green beans almost everywhere and they are sold fresh, canned or frozen.

Green beans are served in a wide variety of ways. They are boiled, steamed, stir-fried or baked. Known for their fleshiness and sweet flavor, green beans are a favorite addition to many dishes. And then, there are pickled green beans which can be a novel way of enjoying this ubiquitous food.

Making pickled green beans is rather simple. You need very few materials and a little time. The process of making pickled green beans does not differ much from that of pickling other fruits like cucumbers. You will need a pot and jars in addition to herbs and spices to add flavor to your pickled green beans.

For a pint jar of pickled green beans, you will need about half a pound of green beans. Wash the beans in plain cold water and cut off one-fourth inch from each end. For the best-tasting pickled green beans, make sure you pick fresh, crisp beans. If you want smaller pickled green beans, just cut them into smaller pieces.

Sanitize the jars by boiling them in the pot. Dip the lids in the pot for a few minutes then put the jars and lids aside. If you’ve used soap in sanitizing the jars and lids, make sure that all the soap is completely rinsed off. Put the beans in the jars together with the herbs and spices like dill, garlic and peppers. Pack everything tight in the jar but leave about one-half inch at the top for expansion.

Put 4 cups of vinegar, 4 cups of water and one-half cup of salt in the pot. Heat the mixture to a boil and pour it into the jars. Make sure the beans are covered completely but leave a little space at the top. Cap the jars and seal them tightly.

Place the jars in the pot with at least 1 inch of boiling and leave them there for about 5 minutes. Remove the jars and let them cool. With a little patience, you can savor your pickled green beans in about 2 or 3 days.