Beans, beans; they're good for your heart! The more ya eat, the more ya.................
....well, you know!
When you have a food budget of 40-50 bucks a week per person, it means you're pretty much going to be eating a whole-foods, veg*n diet. and that means beans for protein.
Let me join the chorus of people who try to dispel the protein deficiency myth when it comes to veg*n eating: There is no such thing as long as you eat a varied diet. And by "varied diet" I don't mean the same 4 veggies you've always eaten. You gonna need to branch out! I'll write about veggies in my next installment.
Anyhoo, beans do have a minor glitch: They are deficient in one of the essential amino acids, but as luck would have it, grains and nuts have this amino in abundance! This is the reason behind the beans and rice of Louisiana, Puerto Rican, and Cuban cuisines and the refried beans and corn tortillas of Mexico not to mention the treat from Italy, Pasta e fagioli!
But I'm here to talk about cooking beans.
If you're eating on the cheap, the best option is dried. For those of you whose bean experience has been strictly canned or frozen green beans and canned kidney beans for your chili, there's no need to be afraid of dried beans. Just make sure you soak them before you put them on to cook. Here's a basic bean prep that covers most beans (I'll discuss chickpeas in my hummus post, later on).
1. Place a pound of dried beans into a pot and fill the pot with water, at least 8 cups. Let them soak overnight/8 hours (in the fridge during warm weather). At the end of the soak, split a bean and if you see a white speck in the middle (this is just the part that's still not rehydrated), that means you need to soak longer; give it another couple hours.
2. Pour off the water (unless you LIKE the "musical" aspect of beans!) and rinse, then add in fresh water to about an inch or two above the beans, usually another 6-8 cups. For soup, you'll want to add 8-10 cups.
3. Bring to a boil and then turn down the heat to a simmer and cook them with your choice of non-salt, non-acidic seasonings till the necessary softness, again depending on what you're using them for. Once they're as soft as you like, THEN you can add salt and acidic stuff. (NOTE: There is a debate whether salt affects the tenderness of cooked beans. Some people have a hissy about salt being put in before the beans are done; others say it doesn't matter. The only bean I've added salt to at the beginning of cooking is the large lima bean and they come out fine. Maybe one of these days I'll do some experimenting)
4. If you want to have no-fuss beans, put them in a crock pot after soaking. Just drain and rinse, and chuck them in the crock with the seasonings and 6-8 cups of water, and turn it on low and cook till soft.
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you're cooking dried kidney beans (red or white) in a crock pot, make sure you pour off the soaking water and then boil them for at least 10 minutes at a rolling boil on the stove before you transfer them to the crock. Let's let the author of this blog explain: "Red kidney beans contain high levels of a toxin that occurs naturally in beans, Phytohaemagglutinin (also known as Kidney Bean Lectin.) If raw or undercooked red kidney beans are eaten…well, bad things happen. Let’s just say you’ll be getting to know the pattern of tiles in your bathroom very well. For all the gory details, check here." And believe you me, they're pretty gory! I can tell you from first hand experience, it is NOT a fun way to spend the evening after dinner!
If you use canned kidneys, you'll be fine without boiling; the processing takes care of the lectin.
As I said, the above method will do for most beans you're likely to be cooking. The amount of time needed varies with the bean, but usually around 45 minutes. If you're in a hurry, do lentils or split peas; they don't need to be soaked and cook in 35-40 minutes.
Once your beans are cooked, they can be used for just about anything: soup, salad, side dish. My favorite bean for side dish (or even main dish) is the huge lima beans I mentioned earlier. When you cook them in the crockpot, they break down and create a gravy-like broth that is heaven. Cooked with a bay leaf and hickory smoked salt (or salt and a DASH of liquid smoke) and you'll swear they were cooked with a ham hock. They're even thicker the next day! A beloved aunt, now deceased, had these on the table for every dinner, no matter what. Every time I cook and eat these, fond memories come flooding back. Thanks, Auntie J.!
Salad beans need to be a bit firmer than soup beans and so will need to be cooked for less time. Just drain the beans (save the cooking water to make veggie broth!!) and use according to the recipe.
To freeze beans, just drain (again saving the cooking water for broth) and then place in freezer bags in 1 3/4 cup batches (the usual equivalent of a can of beans, but without all the sodium and other additives). I use freezer bags rather then those square freezer tubs because flat bags are much easier to store in the freezer and also thaw much quicker.
Well, that's it for now. I'll start with recipes in my next post. See you then!
Let me join the chorus of people who try to dispel the protein deficiency myth when it comes to veg*n eating: There is no such thing as long as you eat a varied diet. And by "varied diet" I don't mean the same 4 veggies you've always eaten. You gonna need to branch out! I'll write about veggies in my next installment.
Anyhoo, beans do have a minor glitch: They are deficient in one of the essential amino acids, but as luck would have it, grains and nuts have this amino in abundance! This is the reason behind the beans and rice of Louisiana, Puerto Rican, and Cuban cuisines and the refried beans and corn tortillas of Mexico not to mention the treat from Italy, Pasta e fagioli!
But I'm here to talk about cooking beans.
If you're eating on the cheap, the best option is dried. For those of you whose bean experience has been strictly canned or frozen green beans and canned kidney beans for your chili, there's no need to be afraid of dried beans. Just make sure you soak them before you put them on to cook. Here's a basic bean prep that covers most beans (I'll discuss chickpeas in my hummus post, later on).
1. Place a pound of dried beans into a pot and fill the pot with water, at least 8 cups. Let them soak overnight/8 hours (in the fridge during warm weather). At the end of the soak, split a bean and if you see a white speck in the middle (this is just the part that's still not rehydrated), that means you need to soak longer; give it another couple hours.
2. Pour off the water (unless you LIKE the "musical" aspect of beans!) and rinse, then add in fresh water to about an inch or two above the beans, usually another 6-8 cups. For soup, you'll want to add 8-10 cups.
3. Bring to a boil and then turn down the heat to a simmer and cook them with your choice of non-salt, non-acidic seasonings till the necessary softness, again depending on what you're using them for. Once they're as soft as you like, THEN you can add salt and acidic stuff. (NOTE: There is a debate whether salt affects the tenderness of cooked beans. Some people have a hissy about salt being put in before the beans are done; others say it doesn't matter. The only bean I've added salt to at the beginning of cooking is the large lima bean and they come out fine. Maybe one of these days I'll do some experimenting)
4. If you want to have no-fuss beans, put them in a crock pot after soaking. Just drain and rinse, and chuck them in the crock with the seasonings and 6-8 cups of water, and turn it on low and cook till soft.
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you're cooking dried kidney beans (red or white) in a crock pot, make sure you pour off the soaking water and then boil them for at least 10 minutes at a rolling boil on the stove before you transfer them to the crock. Let's let the author of this blog explain: "Red kidney beans contain high levels of a toxin that occurs naturally in beans, Phytohaemagglutinin (also known as Kidney Bean Lectin.) If raw or undercooked red kidney beans are eaten…well, bad things happen. Let’s just say you’ll be getting to know the pattern of tiles in your bathroom very well. For all the gory details, check here." And believe you me, they're pretty gory! I can tell you from first hand experience, it is NOT a fun way to spend the evening after dinner!
If you use canned kidneys, you'll be fine without boiling; the processing takes care of the lectin.
As I said, the above method will do for most beans you're likely to be cooking. The amount of time needed varies with the bean, but usually around 45 minutes. If you're in a hurry, do lentils or split peas; they don't need to be soaked and cook in 35-40 minutes.
Once your beans are cooked, they can be used for just about anything: soup, salad, side dish. My favorite bean for side dish (or even main dish) is the huge lima beans I mentioned earlier. When you cook them in the crockpot, they break down and create a gravy-like broth that is heaven. Cooked with a bay leaf and hickory smoked salt (or salt and a DASH of liquid smoke) and you'll swear they were cooked with a ham hock. They're even thicker the next day! A beloved aunt, now deceased, had these on the table for every dinner, no matter what. Every time I cook and eat these, fond memories come flooding back. Thanks, Auntie J.!
Salad beans need to be a bit firmer than soup beans and so will need to be cooked for less time. Just drain the beans (save the cooking water to make veggie broth!!) and use according to the recipe.
To freeze beans, just drain (again saving the cooking water for broth) and then place in freezer bags in 1 3/4 cup batches (the usual equivalent of a can of beans, but without all the sodium and other additives). I use freezer bags rather then those square freezer tubs because flat bags are much easier to store in the freezer and also thaw much quicker.
Well, that's it for now. I'll start with recipes in my next post. See you then!
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