Cooking With Beans

I love beans. They are probably one of the healthiest foods that are abundantly available to us. They are also very inexpensive and easy to prepare. They come in all sizes and colors. Each type of bean has a slightly different flavor and texture. I like different ones for different dishes, but I will happily toss just about any of them into soups and salads to add extra protein and fiber to a meal. They are also very filling.  Did you know when you combine beans with rice they create a perfect protein?

 

Here are some of the beans I try to keep on hand.  I often have many others as well.

 

 

I think the most common way people eat beans are in baked beans.  Baked beans are wonderful and if you like them you will probably like many other bean dishes. Did you know that the slow cooker was designed originally in order to cook baked beans? Baked beans and brown bread are a New England classic and grace our table often.  I talked about making Brown Bread in the Crock Pot the other day.  Now it's time to talk about the beans.

Canned beans are very nice to have on hand for quick meals, but they are more expensive and have a higher salt content than dried beans cooked at home. Much of the sodium will be washed away if you simply drain and rinse the canned beans before using them. I will be honest, I would be less inclined to use dried beans so often if I didn’t have my pressure cooker. I can cook dried beans up in a snap. Otherwise it does take some planning ahead to have them simmering on the stove for a couple of hours on a day off. That works just fine too and the beans freeze beautifully.   Maybe reading about how easy it is to use will convince you to give a pressure cooker a try. New, modern pressure cookers are very safe and can’t explode like your grandmother’s might have.  Keep in mind that a can of beans can cost between $.79 to $2.00 a can.  A one pound bag of beans is usually between $1.00 and $2.00.  The bag of beans will make the equivalent of 4 to 5 cans of beans. 

Most of the time recipes for dried beans tell you to soak them overnight, which is fine if you are going to be home the next day. I usually put my beans to soak in the morning and cook them in the evening. If I am doing a slow cooker recipe I will cook the beans in advance and have them ready and in the refrigerator. If I am making Boston Baked Beans I don’t fully cook the beans prior to putting them into the slow cooker. Once the beans have soaked here are the cooking times for my pressure cooker (at full pressure):

Adzuki beans 6 to 8 minutes
Black beans 8 to 10 minutes
Black-eyed peas – no need to presoak, just cook
Calypso beans 4 to 6 minutes
Cranberry beans 9 to 12 minutes
Fava beans 12 to 18 minutes
Garbanzo beans (Chick peas) 10 to 12 minutes
Great Northern beans 8 to 11 minutes
Kidney beans 9 to 12 minutes
Lentils…no need to presoak, just cook
Lima beans 4 to 7 minutes
Navy beans 5 to 8 minutes
Split Peas 10 to 12 minutes
Pinto beans 5 to 7 minutes
Red beans 4 to 6 minutes
Soybeans 10 to 12 minutes

To prepare dried beans rinse them and look for stones or bad looking beans. Put them into a large clean pot and cover with water to a depth of at least 2 inches of water above the beans. Cover and let sit overnight or all day while you are at work. When you are ready to cook the beans, drain the water. Put the beans into the pressure cooker and add 3 cups of water for every 8 oz. of beans. DO NOT ADD SALT AT THIS TIME! Adding salt, or an acid like lemon juice, before the beans cook will toughen the shell and they will not cook fully. Add an onion cut into chunks, a crushed glove of garlic, some black pepper, and 1 teaspoon crushed thyme. Seal the cooker and bring up to full pressure. Begin timing the beans when you reach full pressure.

If you do not have a pressure cooker add 2 or 3 cups of additional water with the other ingredients, cover and simmer for 2 hours. Check the beans to see if they are soft. Cook additional time, if needed. I like to prepare beans this way in the winter when I am home. When the beans are cooked, drain them and use them in your recipe (unless you are making bean soup, then just proceed to make the soup according to the recipe) or cool and freeze them in containers of 1 or 2 cups for recipes. The cooking liquid left after making beans is full of vitamins and flavor. I often freeze it to add to soups and stews later.

Here is a wonderful Boston Baked Bean recipe from The Best Slow Cooker Cookbook Ever by Natalie Haughton:

For 8 to 10 servings

1 (16 oz ) package of Great Northern or Navy beans, cooked partially as mentioned above.
2 cups very hot water
1/3 cup dark rum (I never have this)
½ cup molasses
½ cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 medium onion, chopped
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ pound salt pork, rind removed, pork chopped (I always use bacon)
Salt to taste

Add beans to slow cooker. Add remaining ingredients, except salt. Mix, cover and cook for 5 to 6 hours, or until the beans are tender. Salt to taste and serve. 

I shared by Brown Bread recipe already, but here is another way to enjoy the same flavor without taking as much time.  You will not get the same dense consistency with the muffins as you get with the steamed bread.

Brown Bread Muffin recipe from William-Sonoma Muffins& Quick Breads:

½ cup rye flour (I often just use regular flour)
½ cup yellow cornmeal
½ cup whole wheat flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
¾ teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk (or yogurt and milk combination)
½ cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup molasses
1 egg
1 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter standard muffin cups.

In a medium bowl stir and toss together the rye flour, cornmeal, whole wheat flour baking soda and salt. Set aside. In a small bowl whisk together the buttermilk, sugar, oil molasses and egg until smooth. Add the dry ingredients and stir until just blended. Do not over stir.  Stir in raisins.

Spoon into muffin cups, filling them about 2/3 of the way full. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Cool in the tins for a minute, then remove.

The bread and the muffins can be made in advance and served in a day or two, or frozen for up to a month. Often dishes made with beans actually improve in flavor if they are refrigerated overnight and then reheated. This is the kind of a meal that can be sitting in the crock pot and everyone can help themselves to whenever they are home and have time to eat. Just remind them to put the top back on the crock pot so the food is warm for the next hungry family member who comes home.

Another absolute favorite of mine is Black Beans and Rice. There are tons of recipes out there. This is one I have modified to suit our tastes. It is prepared in a pressure cooker, but can be done in a slow cooker or on a stove. You will need more liquid if cooking it on a stove, and obviously you will need more time. However, this dish freezes and reheats beautifully.

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 package andouille sausage, casings removed and browned
1 large onion, chopped
1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and chopped (frozen ones are fine)
2 chopped tomatoes (if using canned, add them after the beans are cooked)
2 crushed garlic cloves (1 teaspoon granulated will work)
½ teaspoon dried oregano
3 cups chicken stock, broth, or soup base
1 pound dried black beans, soaked and drained
Salt to taste to be added after beans are cooked.

In the bottom of the pressure cooker heat the vegetable oil. Add the onions, garlic and peppers and cook until soft. Add the browned sausage and the oregano. Stir until you can smell the oregano (about 1 minute). Add the stock and beans and tomatoes, if fresh.

Lock lid in place. As pan comes to full pressure put on a pan of rice to cook. When the pressure cooker is up to high pressure, cook for 7 minutes. Remove from heat and quick release the pressure. Return the pan to the heat and check to see if the beans are tender. You can repressurize if you need to or let them simmer until they are done. Add the canned tomatoes, if using, and salt to taste. Mash some of the beans to thicken the sauce.

Serve in a bowl with a generous helping of rice. 

This is the kind of dish I will make when I have put the beans to soak in the morning. You could soak the beans over night and let them boil while you get ready for work. Put this into the crock pot just before you leave.  You can dice your onions and peppers, and brown your sausage the night before. Keep the sausage in the refrigerator over night. Put it together, keeping in mind the salt issue, and let it cook all day. Try to avoid using bouillon when cooking beans because it has so much salt in it. You can make this same dish using dried kidney beans. Then you have red beans and rice. Use whatever kind of sausage your family likes. Hot Italian sausage is wonderful in this dish. You can also throw this dish together very quickly with canned beans.

Hummus is another favorite dish of mine. It is a cold bean paste made with chick peas, sesame paste (Tahini), garlic, lemon juice and olive oil. I could live off Hummus and pita bread.

Chili is an American favorite that is made with beans. Everyone has their favorite recipe and it can be made just as easily with inexpensive dried beans.

If you haven't ever cooked with beans much, give them a try.  The extra fiber and vitamins are a plus to just about any diet.