The Canned Vegetables Thread: How do YOU use them?

[Imzadi]

This is inspired by the Canned Potatoes thread posted by DAISYDUCKRN.

Canned veggies & fruit have gotten a bad rep over the years. But, they don't spoil the way fresh veggies do (and go to waste,) can be gotten in low sodium / lite syrup varieties now, are fully cooked, and often picked & canned on the same day (to supposedly keep the veggies/fruit at their freshest,) often go on sale, and for us Budgeteers who need to start eating at home more :

What ways do you use different canned veggies & fruits?

Name the specific vegetable or fruit. And list whether you used low sodium / lite syrup, rinsed or drained them, or left in the liquids, please.

 

[Hedy]

I'm curuious about this-I'm udderly befuddled by canned beans.

 

[Minniemouse07]

The only canned veggies we have in the house w/ any regularity are creamed corn and tomatoes (paste, whole, crushed, etc).

All the rest of our veggies are either fresh or frozen....taste MUCH better!

 

[aka-mad4themouse]

I also prefer fresh and frozen veggies but I keep cans of corn, beans and tomatoes on my shelves. Some of my recipes call for the canned versions of these veggies. Canned corn, drained and added to homemade cornbread. Cannelini beans in pasta fagioli. Canned tomatoes, puree and paste for homemade tomato sauce and in soups.

I don't have any canned fruits. We just don't care for them and if I need them for a recipe, I'll pick them up when I go shopping.

 

[TinkPinkPoem]

Canned corn- I use it in salads and sometimes spaghetti (depends on the recipe). Most of the times I do not keep the fluids from the can. In salads it bodes very well with lettuce.

Other than that, you can use tomato to make tomato sauce for spaghetti or other recipes.

You can also cook chicken with canned veggies (like corn,chopped peppers etc.) in a pan. It is a really nice, quick and light meal.

I prefer to buy fresh veggies rather than canned. But I am sure there are many more ideas on how to use the latter.

 

[neatokimmo]

I keep canned veggies around for when I forget to buy fresh or frozen. Corn is one, it is good in corn casserole and I add it to tacos. I buy the cheapest, regular sodium.

I am fond of canned tomatoes. I like Red Gold brand the best, we are able to stock up on them 3-4 times a year for 15 cents a can with coupons (they put a blinkie up and run a sale on the same week ). I also put those in tacos and will use them for pasta dishes.

I run canned chickpeas through my food processor with olive oil, garlic and black olives (canned too) to make humus (or is it hummus?). I use Walmart's brand (sometimes I'll cooked dried when I am organized). We also eat canned Bush's pintos when I don't have time to cook, the baby loves them and I like them ok, they go on sale for 40 cents (talk about a cheap dinner!).

She also likes canned mandarin oranges in light syrup. She'll eat those over cookies, so although I don't think they are especially nutritious, they are more like a treat. I buy Kroger and Walmart brands. We also eat Dole pineappple in juice.

I think that is it!

 

[C.Ann]

Canned peas - drained and used in my macaroni salad (along with tuna fish and diced onion).. Also drained and used in my goulash.. As a veggie with meals - no one in my family (even adult members of my extended faimly) will touch frozen peas with a ten foot poll..

Corn (drained) and cream corn in many muffin and bread recipes..

Sweet potatoes - drained and used in muffin recipes..

Beets - drained and used in cake recipe..

Sauerkraut - drained and used in cake and muffin recipes..

Diced tomatoes - juice and all in my "make-something-out-of-nothing" dish..

French-style green beans (with garlic salt) as a veggie with my homemade macaroni and cheese..

Pork and beans - in a bread recipe..

Canned peaches and pears in muffin and bread recipes..

Come to think of it, I don't think there is a canned vegetable or fruit that I don't have a cake, bread, or muffin recipe for.. (Muffins are one of my favorite things to make.. I have a collection of thousands of muffin recipes - as well as quite a few "unusual" cake recipes..)

I always, always keep a lot of canned fruits and vegetables on hand.. Stock up when they're on sale and use them when the price of fresh or frozen have gone through the roof..

Also good to have on hand in case of a disaster of some sort.. As long as you have a hand-held can opener, you're not going to starve to death..

 

[clarabelle]

I use can pears (the lite ones) as a side. My kids like them and I figure it is one way to get in that 5 a day we are supposed to strive for.

Also I make hopping john sometimes. Sautee breakfast sausage with onion and add a can of black eyed peas -serve over rice.

 

[merekc]

I like canned vegetables, and I'm not afraid to say it.

I do prefer fresh when possible, but grew up with canned corn and green beans at most meals, and think I turned out pretty good.

When I first was dating my DH, had dinner with his family and they served canned asparagus. I didn't know it came any way other than fresh. That was my one and only time eating (if you can call one gagged down bite eating) it canned. Love it fresh!

My first (what I think is obvious) is that you must cook bacon and onions to put in green beans. Season with Cavender's Greek Seasoning or Salt and Pepper.

I know some dieters like to heat up and eat straight the flavored canned tomatos. They say that they are flavorful, filling and low calories/points/etc.

One secret canned veggie recipe I have is fried corn. This is my dad's recipe (he always likes to experiment). It is totally different, but we like it. If you like chewy and different and are not trying to get dinner on the table in five minutes, give it a try. Drain a can of regular corn. Cook it in a skillet (medium) with a little bacon grease and butter. Season it with salt and pepper (or our preference Cavender's Greek Seasoning). It takes awhile, probably 20-30 minutes, stirring it every so often, but they start to shrivel up and get brown. We may be weird, but we like it. Definetly one of the better experiments.

Hedy - What befuddles you about canned beans?

 

[happygirl]

I like canned veggie, I'm really kinda of supurised so many people don't

 

[Imzadi]

I also make my own hummus. It is so easy to make your own. In a food processor, one can of garbanzo beans (chick peas) with a couple spoons of the chick pea liquid. Add some garlic powder (or minced garlic,)Add the juice of one lemon. Add olive oil while it is mixing around until you get the consistency you are looking for. Add in a small splash of sesame oil. (You don't need tahini paste if you have sesame oil around.)It is so much better than what is in the store.

I make my own low garlic version. Store bought are way too garlicky for me. I also add in chili powder, paprika and cumin seed into mine. The taste is fabulous. Be careful to add in a little at a time and then let the hummus sit for about 15 minutes so all the flavor absorbs. Other wise you may end up with it overly seasoned.

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I serve drained and rinsed pear halves or peaches drizzled with chocolate syrup. The chocolate syrup doesn't stick to the pears if they have the lite syrup still on them.

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Although not a veggie or a fruit, I'm tossing it in as a "jar" most of us have in out pantry: peanut butter. I use it to make easy Sesame Noodles. I make mine with the Barilla Plus Pasta as it's higher in protein.

Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray

Sesame Noodles

1 tablespoon peanut butter
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Pinch cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1/3 pound thin spaghetti, cooked to al dente, drained** and cooled
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1 scallion, chopped

** I also added 1 tablespoon of the pasta water to the sauce to help make it "move" and adhere to the spaghetti instead of staying in a thick glob.

Whisk peanut butter, soy, cayenne, oil and sesame oil. Add noodles and toss to coat. Sprinkle noodles with sesame and scallion to garnish.

Alternately, you can use tahini if you do not have sesame oil. Just cut down on the peanut butter.

~~~~~~~~~

I heat a can of apple pie filling to go with pork chops & Stove Top stuffing. I mix in a little bit of the pie filling into the stuffing to combine flavors.


C.Ann, you should make your own cookbook for canned fruit & muffins! Kind of like the Cake Mix Doctor.

 

[Imzadi]

Hedy - What befuddles you about canned beans?

I'm befuddled by canned beans too. There are too many varieties of them. When do you use them? Are they already cooked? do you have to heat them again? Are you supposed to cook then before eating them or adding to a recipe?

I have a small can of Lima beans in my cupboard that I don't know what to do with?

There are white beans. Then there are black eyed beans which also are white. Do they taste the same?

Then there are butter beans. Do the really taste buttery? Or is that a name like Greenland, which really isn't green?

And then there's navy beans and red beans and black beans. And kidney beans. Does color & shape really matter? I thought we are all past that? To be more PC, shouldn't we stop sorting beans according to colors?

Speaking of black beans, there's the black re-fried beans. Which I know is a Spanish dish. What was wrong with the beans that they had to be RE-fried?

 

[Kae]

I use alot of canned tomatoes, I don't like frozen green beans so it's either fresh or canned. Canned fruit I like pears & I use crushed pineapple in it's own juice for a few recipes. And I like canned corn too.

Kae

 

[C.Ann]

C.Ann, you should make your own cookbook for canned fruit & muffins! Kind of like the Cake Mix Doctor.

-----------------------------

I currently have 4 binders (the largest I could find in Office Max) - thicker than 2 phone books stacked on top of one another - that are filled with nothing but muffin recipes - and still working on more.. (I've been doing this for years now..) I don't know what it is about muffins, but I just LOVE them..

Between my muffin recipes; bread recipes; and cake recipes containing unusal ingredients; I have a great time trying them out on my DD, her DH and my DGD.. I never tell them what the ingredients are until after they haven't eaten it and voiced their opinion as to whether or not they like it..

I mean really - how inclined would you be to eat one of my breads if you knew there was pork and beans in it - muffins that had sauerkraut in them - or a cake with beets as one of the ingredients??

 

[pixiewings71]

What is hopping john? I've never heard of that before.

I use some canned veggies and fruits but like fresh the best. I use canned beets and just heat them and eat them, pickled beets not regular. I use green beans occasionally but much prefer fresh sauteed with some I Can't Believe It's Not Butter and garlic. I use canned tomatoes for tomato sauces and I use canned corn when we are having mexican. I drain half the water and mix it with a can of black beans, add a bit of cumin and white pepper and it's a quick and easy side. Beans, I will take a mixture of canned beans and put them in a pan, add some tomatoes, some corn and whatever fresh veggies I have (onion, bell pepper, mushroom, etc) and ground turkey or beef and make a quick chili.
Those are really the only canned veggies I use.....I really do like fresh better.

 

[clarabelle]

What is hopping john? I've never heard of that before.

Click here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoppin'_John

 

[merekc]

My thoughts on beans (I feel like Jack Handey).

Use canned beans instead of dried because they are easy. Dry beans have to be soaked so you can't decide at the last minute to whip them into a dish. Beans in a can are cooked (I guess) just pop them into the dish you are making.

I personally don't like all beans - lima and butter come to mind. Beans have different textures, consistencies and flavors. There a beans that I'm not particularly fond of that I can eat in a mixed bean soup or other dish. Some groceries have a 12 bean soup bag for around $2 that is good and easy to make, I really like the Cajun flavored one.

Some people will heat up a can of beans and eat them that way. I usually only do this with jalapeno black-eyed peas.

I use red beans, pinto beans or kidney beans in chili. Kidney is my last choice because I personally don't like their texture they are kind of dry IMO. I use great northern beans in white chili. Garbonzo or chickpeas to make hummus or a lot of people toss them in a salad.

I would say find a recipe that needs a specific beans and try different ones to see what you like.

P.S. - Donate your can of lima beans to a food pantry.

 

[bookgirl]

We will eat canned beans as a side dish. We eat canned veggies as a side dish. Canned veggies in soups or casseroles. I like the canned fruit in splenda, canned fruit in winter. Canned tomatoes for recipies.

Really the only thing I draw the line at is canned aspearagus. I might puree it for creamed soup but I will not eat it. Oh and we don't eat no salt veggies, because un salted veggies have got to be the nastiest tasting things in the world. And after they're cooked there is no seasoning them later.

I mystifyed that people would have any reaction to canned veggies. I fix some things fresh when I can get them but sometimes it's easier or more economical to use canned....no biggie. There are reasons to use them but if you don't like them don't eat them.

Mostly we always have canned corn, hominy, greenbeans, peas. I use canned potatoes for sides and in particular dishes. Canned carrots I keep to use in recipies, we don't eat canned carrots as a side dish. We always have a variety of beans for sides (navy, cannaloni, chickpeas/cannaloni for soups or salads, ranch style, refried, etc)

I do keep the little veggie singles in the plastic cups around for quick add ons to lunches or leftovers for one. I also eat the diced peach cups/splenda in my lunch most days.

 

[nannerbadnanner]

I used can veggies to make soup. I used beef stock, stew meat and add canned corn, beans, tomatoes, and green beans. I will generally use frsh onions, carrots and potatoes. The more veggies, the better!

I make chicken chili with canned cannelini or great northern beans and tomatoes. Just mix that with chicken stock, chicken, and chili seasoning.

And of course, I use canned green beans when I make green bean casserole once a year!

 

[TheBigBadWolf]

We don't eat many canned vegetables, and we're particular about the brands we do eat. I only eat Ranch Style brand black eyed peas (but DH won't touch them), we both eat Green Giant Mexicorn and shoepeg corn, and Ranch Style pinto beans w/jalapenos. I use canned black beans in tortilla soup recipes and use canned pork n beans in baked beans recipes. DH eats canned frijoles on his burritos, we both eat Lesueur baby English peas, and we like most types of canned tomatoes, tomato sauce and Rotel tomatoes in recipes. Other than that, we only eat fresh or frozen vegetables.

DH prefers canned fruit, but I can't stand it and I only eat fresh fruit. We have 25 assorted fruit trees and lots of blackberry vines in our orchard. This year I want to freeze and can a lot of the fruit for use next winter, and make jellies and jams to give as gifts next Christmas.

This year we're growing a 20' X 40' vegetable garden. So far we've planted 32 tomato plants (we love salsa and I've been known to can as many as 150+ pints. We eat a lot of salsa and our friends and family beg for it too). We have four squash plants, 5 tomatillo plants, 2 eggplants, and will be planting a row of okra next week. We also have 26 assorted pepper plants, from sweet peppers to extra hot Habaneros, and a few cantaloupe plants. I'd love to grow beans, peas and corn, but we have so many deer in this area, it would be impossible to keep them out of our garden since they love peas, beans and corn too. We got our garden planted late unfortunately so we didn't get to grow any of the cooler season crops like broccoli, onions, lettuce, etc. I sure have missed them.