Simple Living With Nature

Grow Forage Cook Ferment logo
  • Grow
  • Forage
  • Cook
  • Ferment
  • Herbalism
  • Homestead
  • Start Here
  • Resources
  • Books
    • Healing Herbal Infusions
    • Wildcrafting Weeds
    • Simple Mead Making
    • Healing Kitchen Herbs
    • The Backyard Forest Garden
  • About
    • About Me
    • Contact
  • Foraging Course
  • Subscribe!
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Home » Ferment » Vegetable Ferments » Fermented Dilly Beans

Fermented Dilly Beans

May contain affiliate links or sponsored content. Please see my privacy policy and affiliate disclosure.

Originally published on September 9, 2015. Last updated on March 14, 2022

5.2K shares
  • 882
  • 1
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
Lacto fermented dilly beans in a jar, and a serving of fermented green beans on a plate.

I love all kinds of pickles, always have. I was one of those kids who would eat dill pickles and briny olives straight out of the jar. Dilly beans, however, are somewhat new to me. My Mom has been growing green beans for the past few years in her garden and making dilly beans out of them that we enjoy year round when we go to visit. It’s such a great little happy hour (or any time of the day) snack. The sourness from the vinegar, the flavor from the dill and garlic, and the crunch from the beans. So awesome! All of this got me thinking, though… what about making fermented dilly beans? I did a little research, and of course it can be done!

A plate of lacto fermented dilly beans.

Fermenting Green Beans

The great thing about making fermented dilly beans versus the canned vinegar kind is that you can make them in single jar batches as you harvest the beans.

This is part of why I love fermenting, it’s so easy! No canning required to put up your harvest.

For this recipe, first you need to acquire some green beans. Some of these are from our garden and some are from our CSA veggie box.

green and yellow beans

I used a mix of green and yellow beans, with a few purple thrown in for good luck. The recipe I based this on is from the book Fermented Vegetables by Kirsten and Christopher Shockey.

This is a super awesome book and is highly recommended for anyone wanting to explore veggie ferments further.

fermented dilly bean ingredients

Fermented Dilly Beans Recipe

Here is what you will need to get started with these fermented dilly beans:

  • Fresh green beans to fill a quart jar
  • 4-5 garlic cloves
  • 2 whole flower heads of pickling dill, or 2 sprigs fresh dill and 1 Tbsp dill seeds
  • 1-2 bay leaves
  • 1 tsp. mustard seeds
  • 1 tsp. black peppercorns
  • 1 small hot pepper (optional)

Put all of these ingredients into a quart jar.

top view of green beans in a jar

Putting the beans in lengthwise makes it look beautiful, and it also allows you to stuff in as many beans as possible.

put green beans in a quart jar

Next, mix up a brine of 1 tablespoon Kosher or picking salt (not iodized) to 2 cups water.

Pour that brine over the beans in the jar.

pouring brine over beans in jar

Make sure all the veggies are covered with the brine and weigh them down with a weight. You can use a bag full of water as a weight, or get something like these fermenting weights.

fermenting dilly beans in brine

Cover the jar with a clean cloth secured with a rubber band and put in a dark place in your kitchen.

Take a quick look at it every day or two to make sure it’s ok (I’m sure it will be, but it’s always nice to keep an eye on it!). After a week taste the beans and see if they’re to your liking.

dilly beans done fermenting in a jar

If they’re still too crunchy, let them ferment longer, up to another week. If it’s really cold in your kitchen, it may take even longer than that.

fermented dilly beans top view

Once they are ready, it’s time to eat! They should be delightfully salty and crunchy, the perfect addition to your next appetizer.

dilly beans on a plate

Fermented dilly beans are the perfect (and easy) way to preserve your harvest! Not only are they tasty, but full of gut healthy probiotics.

Keep them in the fridge or a cool cellar for months, and reach for them whenever you need a few dilly beans. We all need them from time to time!

More Fermented Vegetables

Dig a little deeper and find recipes for even more of our favorite fermented vegetables!

  • Fermented Cherry Tomatoes
  • Sauerkraut
  • Fermented Green Tomatoes
  • Fermented Asparagus with Garlic
  • Fermented Cucumber Pickles
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
4.72 from 7 votes

Fermented Dilly Beans

There are so many ways to preserve the summer harvest, and fermented green beans is one of the easiest. Dilly beans made in vinegar are awesome, but these fermented dilly beans are even tastier, plus the probiotics are great for your gut health!
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Prep Time 15 minutes
Fermenting Time 7 days
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 1 quart
Calories 20kcal
Author Colleen @ Grow Forage Cook Ferment

Equipment

  • Quart Mason Jar
  • Fermenting Weight
  • Tea Towel
  • Rubber Band

Ingredients

US Customary - Metric
  • 1 quart fresh green beans
  • 4-5 cloves garlic
  • 2 whole flower heads of dill or 2 sprigs fresh dill, or 1 Tablespoon dill seeds
  • 1-2 bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
  • 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
  • 1 small hot pepper optional

Brine

  • 1 Tablespoon kosher, pickling, or sea salt
  • 2 cups water

Instructions

  • Pack all of these ingredients into a quart-sized mason jar. (Putting the beans in lengthwise makes it look beautiful, and it also allows you to stuff in as many beans as possible.)
  • Make up a brine of 1 Tbsp. Kosher or picking salt (not iodized) to 2 cups water.
  • Pour that brine over the beans in the jar. (Make sure all the veggies are covered with the brine.)
  • Weigh them down with a weight. You can use a bag full of water as a weight, or get something like the awesome kit from Ferment’n.
  • Cover the jar with a clean cloth secured with a rubber band and put in a dark place in your kitchen. Take a quick look at it every day or two to make sure it’s ok.
  • After a week taste the beans and see if they’re to your liking.

Notes

  • If, after a week, the dilly beans are still too crunchy, let them ferment longer, up to another week. If it’s really cold in your kitchen, it may take even longer than that.

Nutrition

Calories: 20kcal
  • Join My Free Foraging & Herbalism Email Course!

  • This will also subscribe you to the Grow Forage Cook Ferment newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time. Please see my Privacy Policy.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Previous Post: « What is Gleaning and How to Do It
Next Post: Updates and Recent Happenings: Sunflowers and Calendula »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Beverly says

    August 30, 2021 at 3:18 pm

    I may not have followed your recipe to a “T” and ended up having some mold on top. I have removed mold and trimmed off any beans that were sticking out of brine, put mason jar lids on and put 6 pints in refrigerator. I am nervous about eating this batch. Have tried a few nibbles and they taste perfect. Should I toss all these beans to be safe?

    Reply
    • Grow Forage Cook Ferment says

      September 5, 2021 at 12:34 pm

      If the mold you skimmed off was white, it was actually kahm yeast (totally safe and edible), so they’re likely fine.

      Reply
  2. Virginia says

    August 4, 2021 at 8:41 pm

    OMG these are amazing! I had a pound of green beans that I needed to do something with before going away for a week. They fermented on my counter for 8 1/2 days and taste just like sour pickles with a snappier texture. I will definitely make these again. Thank you!!!

    Reply
    • Grow Forage Cook Ferment says

      August 9, 2021 at 10:13 am

      Wonderful, Virginia! I’m so glad they turned out well.

      Reply
  3. Karin Wolfe says

    July 24, 2021 at 6:20 am

    Hi. I am wondering if you don’t put the lid on after using the fermenting weight. If I’m reading the instructions right, we just cover with a cloth and rubber band? No mason jar lids? Please clarify! Can’t wait to taste them. I love dilly beans and have never made my own before. Thank you.

    Reply
    • Grow Forage Cook Ferment says

      July 26, 2021 at 10:30 am

      Hi Karin. That’s correct, in the recipe I say that you can cover it with a cloth and a rubber band and no mason jar lid. Pressure builds up as your vegetable ferments so using a lid would offer no way for the gases to escape. There are a lot of lid kits you can also use. I really like this one: Easy Fermenter Wide Mouth Lid Kit

      Reply
  4. Sierra says

    July 17, 2021 at 6:19 pm

    This is the only ferment that I seem to have an issue with. It turns out when we make it, meaning it doesn’t go bad, but it always tastes chlorine-like. What could we be doing wrong? We generally always use purified spring water from the store.

    Reply
    • Grow Forage Cook Ferment says

      July 19, 2021 at 9:57 am

      Hmmm… Are you sterilizing your fermentation vessel prior to using it? Are you using a fermentation weight on top of your dilly beans to keep them submerged? Before using glass fermentation weights, I used a zip-top bag filled with water and for some reason, I felt like they gave my ferment an off taste.

      Reply
  5. PARZIVAL says

    June 9, 2020 at 1:47 pm

    Q. Can you use frozen beans (or any vegetable) in the fermenting process?

    Reply
  6. Lori says

    June 7, 2020 at 11:01 am

    I have whey from making yogurt. How would I use that in this recipe? Thanks!

    Reply
  7. Marcie says

    August 15, 2018 at 9:18 am

    Hi,
    Can you make there’s without the mustard seeds?

    Reply
    • Cora Bowe says

      July 11, 2021 at 5:54 am

      In my experience fermenting all kinds of veggies, the spices/herbs are totally adaptable to your personal preference with no affect other than flavor on the ferment. What you can’t change is the salt water brine, that’s the important part, but add and subtract herbs at will! 😊

      Reply
  8. Rita says

    May 23, 2018 at 11:02 am

    Please emphasize to the readers that the veggies done with lacto-fermentation will not have a shelf life the same as something which is canned. Suggested shelf life for lacto-fermented foods is 60 days in cool area at the most, with all which I have read…

    Reply
  9. Jean says

    August 17, 2017 at 8:43 am

    Have you ever made kraut out of turnips instead of cabbage? A friend said it was very good. I thought I might give it a try.

    Reply
  10. Wanda Olson says

    August 14, 2017 at 5:20 am

    Made these yesterday with green and purple beans… looks so pretty ????

    Reply
  11. Billy says

    June 7, 2017 at 2:05 pm

    I love this idea! I havn’t fermented much on my own but sauerkraut and a couple other things, so i’ve been inkling for something new to try! This looks like the perfect candidate. I am really curious to see how the flavor of the beans change once the end product is done. I am so excited to try this at home! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  12. Toby says

    September 25, 2016 at 8:37 pm

    Hi, I made these beans 4 days ago and just taste tested today and they are horrendously salty. Basically inedible. Will the salt dissipate as they continue to ferment? This is my first time making Fermented food and I have never tried dilly beans before so I really don’t have anything to compare too…

    Reply
    • Grow Forage Cook Ferment says

      October 4, 2016 at 11:57 am

      Hi Toby, it’s normal for them to be a bit salty to taste, but the salt is very important to the fermenting process. Give it more time, and once they are finished fermenting, refrigerate and taste them again. If they are still too salty, you can try removing some of the brine and replacing with fresh water. Hope that helps!

      Reply
  13. Leatrice Gulbransen says

    July 7, 2016 at 9:44 am

    Hi ! Newby here. Do you have a recipe for dilly beans in a vinegar brine ? Last time I tried it, the brine wasn’t right. I lost my recipe. Thanks so much !

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Hello there! I’m Colleen.

I want to inspire you to live seasonally, become more self sufficient, and protect your health. I share information on foraging and wildcrafting, fermenting and preserving, cooking whole foods from scratch, permaculture gardening, and making herbal products. And that’s just the beginning! Learn more.

CBD

Browse my homemade CBD recipes & how-tos

My Books

Winter Favorites

12 Ways to Preserve Citrus: Drying, Canning, Fermenting and more!

What to Forage in Winter: 30+ Edible and Medicinal Plants and Fungi

Homemade Infused Gin: Foraged Botanical Winter Spirits

30+ Conifer Needle Recipes: Drinks, Desserts, Syrups, Balms & More!

Popular Posts

How to Make Soap For Beginners + Calendula Soap Recipe

5 Easy to Identify Edible Mushrooms

10 Reasons to Grow Mint (Without Fear)

How to Make and Use Dandelion Salve

What to Forage in Spring: 20 Edible and Medicinal Plants and Fungi

how to make mead

How to Make a Gallon of Mead: A Simple Mead Recipe

How to Make Hard Cider: Homebrew it!

Fermented Honey Garlic

Mountain Rose Herbs
×

Join list.

More info

Footer

Explore

  • Grow
  • Forage
  • Cook
  • Ferment
  • Herbalism
  • Homestead

Learn To Forage

The gather + root online foraging course will help you to safely identify, harvest, and use common edible and medicinal plants with confidence.

Enroll Now

As Featured On

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • Privacy Policy
  • Affiliate Disclosure
  • Amazon Affiliate

Copyright © 2023 Grow Forage Cook Ferment & Cocos Creations LLC.

5.2K shares
  • 882
  • 1