Effects of Vacuum Hydration on the Incidence of Splits in Canned Kidney Beans (Phaseolus vulgaris)

Dry red kidney beans were canned using two different pretreatments: soaking for 12 hr at 20°C, and vacuum hydration for 5 min followed by soaking for 2 hr at temperatures from 45‐59.1°C. Samples were then packed, processed to commercial sterility, and tested for percentage of split beans after processing. Vacuum hydration pretreatments greatly decreased the incidence and severity of splitting in the canned product and accelerated water uptake while retaining the same moisture content after soaking as the conventional soak treatment. Vacuum‐hydrated beans gained less moisture during retorting than conventionally treated samples.