190 MISC. PUBLICATION 5 4 0, U. S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 



and Dwarf Horticultural; Bountiful and Stringless Black Valentine 

 are acceptable but inferior, to the two just named. A recommended 

 pole variety is Laz}^ Wife. Stringless Kidney Wax is a recommended 

 wax bean of the bush type. Varieties of snap beans are numerous, 

 and it is probable that other high-yielding, excellent-quality varieties 

 are suitable for dehydration. 



Harvested beans should be handled in well-ventilated packages, 

 such as hampers, with ample circulation of air between them. There 

 should be as little delay as possible between harvest and processing. 

 Beans should be free from surface moisture if they are to be held 

 more than 1 day before processing; they cannot be iced because ice 

 might cause water-soaked areas that resemble freezing injury. 



Quality is important. Snap beans should be picked when the 

 seeds make up 10 to 20 percent of the weight of the entire pod. They 

 should be graded closely for stage of maturity, in order to insure a 

 uniform dehydrated product. After they are graded and sorted, the 

 beans are snipped mechanically and then washed thoroughly. Snap 

 beans should be blanched immediately after they are washed. (See 

 table 21 for information on blanching.) To stop the blanching action, 

 it is advisable to spray the blanched beans with cold water and thus 

 reduce the temperature to 65° to 70° F. This is especially important 

 in case of delay following blanching, which should never exceed 

 1 hour. 



Information on the moisture content of fresh snap beans and also 

 the dried product can be found in table 22. The drying ratio and 

 drying yield are shown in table 23. Tables 24 and 25 contain infor- 

 mation on dehydration. 



Dehydrated snap beans present no unusual problems so far as pack- 

 aging and storage of the finished product are concerned. In rehy- 

 drating snap beans it is recommended that 8 parts by weight of water 

 be added to 1 part of dried product, which should soak for 4 hours. 

 After the period of soaking, the beans should be boiled slowly for 

 30 minutes and then drained through an 8-mesh strainer and weighed. 

 The weight of drained beans should be approximately two to three 

 times the weight of the dried vegetable. The product should be 

 tender, green in color, and similar in flavor to cut fresh beans. 



BEETS 



Beets are a widely grown, hardy, cool-season crop. High tempera- 

 ture during growth adversely affects their color and texture. Since 

 beets of deep uniform color are most suitable for dehydration, the fall 

 crop is probably more suitable than the crop grown in the spring. 

 The fall crop is generally used for canning and beets for this pur- 

 pose are raised in the cool districts of New York. Wisconsin. Oregon, 

 and Michigan. About two-thirds of the national crop is processed. 

 Beets for the early fresh- vegetable market are grown extensively in 

 Texas, and for later market in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The 

 varieties that are solid, or nearly solid, dark-red or reddish-purple 

 color, such as Detroit Dark Red, Morse Detroit, and Ohio Canner, are 

 considered best for both canning and dehydration. When such beets 

 are dried, the color deepens toward purplish black and the lighter zones 



