Nutrition Packed Beans
Source of Recipe
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List of Ingredients
Preparing dried beans
Sort and rinse: Spread beans out on a clean kitchen towel or in a cake
pan
and remove shriveled beans and pebbles. Rinse in cold water.
Soak: Beans should be soaked for up to 8-24 hours depending on the type
of
bean. This is the vital step in bean digestibility. Add water: about 3
inches
above beans, or 4-5 cups water per cup of beans. Some beans are softer
than
others and therefore require less time soaking. Some of these are
garbanzo and
peas. Tiny beans and pulses such as lentils also require less soaking.
Short soak/boil method: Boil beans in water for 3 minutes in a
heavy-bottomed
pot. Cover and set aside for 2-4 hours [soaking longer doesn´t help or
hurt].
Drain and discard water. Rinse beans. Proceed with cooking. This method
reduces hard-to-digest complex sugars by 80%.
Long soak method: Soak beans for 8 hours or overnight. Drain and
discard
water. Rinse beans. Proceed with cooking. This method is better than no
soaking at
all. However it does not remove the complex sugars as well as the short
soak/boil method.
Basic cooking instructions
Cook beans in fresh water - not the water used for soaking - in a
large,
covered pot. Use 3-4 cups of water for each cup of dry beans. Water
should be
about 1 inch above the top of beans. Do not salt or add acidic
flavoring until
beans are cooked all the way through. Use 3-4 cups of water for each
cup of dry
beans. Each cup of dry beans yields 2 to 2-1/2 cups of cooked beans.
Seasoning beans
Cook from the start with these basic spices: chopped onion and garlic
cloves, traditional digestive spices - bay leaves, cumin, epazote;
kombu, a
tenderizing sea vegetable available in bulk. Do your major seasoning
30-45 minutes
before beans are due to be done. Spicing too early can cause the
flavors to break
down. The following items will toughen uncooked beans and increase
cooking
time considerably: salt/unrefined sea salt; miso, tamari and soy sauce;
sugars;
acidic ingredients, including tomatoes, wine and lemon. Add a final
flash of
flavor to cooked beans with one, two or three of the following: fresh
lemon and
grated Parmesan; yogurt, fruity olive oil and balsamic vinegar, toasted
sesame oil, rice wine and soy sauce; red wine, miso and toasted sesame
seeds;
umeboshi (Japanese plum) vinegar or brown rice vinegar; fresh basil,
cilantro,
parsley, garlic, ground black pepper.
Freezing
Cooked beans freeze very well; cook up extra and freeze for later use.Recipe
BEAN: Adzuki
BOILING: 2 hrs.
PRESSURE COOKING: 30 min.
USES: Lower in fat and easier to digest than most beans. Add cubes of
peeled
winter squash during last 30 minutes or splash with tamari and barley
malt for
an Oriental "baked bean" dish. Combine with brown rice, sauted
scallions,
mushrooms, &celery for rice patties.
BEAN: Black Turtle
BOILING: 1 1/2 hrs.
PRESSURE COOKING: 30 min.
USES: A staple of Latin American cooking. Combine with cumin, garlic
&orange
juice in soups &enchiladas. Toss with olive oil, fresh cilantro,
&chopped
vegetables for a salad. Combine with rice &cumin for a Cuban-style
dish.
BEAN: Black-eyed Peas
BOILING: 1-1 1/4 hrs
PRESSURE COOKING: 25 min.
USES: Traditionally served with rice ("Hoppin´ John"), black eyed-peas
can be
tossed with yogurt vinaigrette, tomatoes, &fresh parsley.
BEAN: Chickpeas (Garbanzos)
BOILING: 3 hrs.
PRESSURE COOKING: 35-40 min.
USES: Puree well-cooked chickpeas with tahini, garlic, lemon, sea salt,
&
olive oil to make hummus. Add cooked chickpeas to salads, soups, and
pasta dishes.
BEAN: Dahl [Bean] such as split Mung Beans or Lentils
BOILING: 25-30 min.
PRESSURE COOKING: Avoid
USES: Dahl is an Indian word referring to split legumes usually
unhulled, or
the dish made from these legumes.
BEAN: Great Northern
BOILING: 2 hrs.
PRESSURE COOKING: 30 min.
USES: Good in pasta dishes with tomatoes, basil, Parmesan cheese &olive
oil.
Toss into Italian soups or serve as a salad with vinaigrette &roasted
vegetables. Serve cooked with lamb or sausage dishes.
BEAN: Green Lentils*
BOILING: 45 min.
PRESSURE COOKING: 20 min.
USES: Season green lentils with tarragon in soups. Combine with olive
oil,
balsamic vinegar, mustard, parsley &garlic as a salad. Puree with
cumin, ground
ginger &turmeric for an Indian dahl.
BEAN: Green Split Peas*
BOILING: 1 1/4 hrs
PRESSURE COOKING: 25 min.
USES: Most often used in soups with tomatoes, carrots, celery &a touch
balsamic vinegar. Puree with cumin, coriander &turmeric. Serve with
minted yogurt
for an Indian touch.
BEAN: Lima [Baby]
BOILING: 1 1/2 hrs
PRESSURE COOKING: Avoid
USES: Combine with corn &green beans for succotash. Add to minestrone
soup.
BEAN: Navy
BOILING: 2 1/2 hrs.
PRESSURE COOKING: 20-30 min.
USES: Navy beans make a great soup with squash &kale. Partially puree
with
basil, garlic &tomatoes for a cool summer side dish. Use in chili or as
a salad
with vinaigrette, red onions &olives.
BEAN: Pinto
BOILING: 2 1/2 hrs.
PRESSURE COOKING: 30 min.
USES: Combine beans with onions, chili powder, garlic &tomatoes for
chili
enchiladas. Saute cooked beans in olive oil, garlic &tamari for refried
beans.
Place in corn tortillas.
BEAN: Red Kidney
BOILING: 1 1/2 hrs.
PRESSURE COOKING: 25 min.
USES: Use in chili, marinated salads &soups. For refried beans, saute
well-cooked kidney beans in canola oil with garlic, onions, cumin,
&chili powder
[place in fresh tortillas]. Combine with tomatoes, mustard, onions
&barley malt
for savory baked beans.
BEAN: Red Lentils*
BOILING: 20-25 min.
PRESSURE COOKING: Avoid
USES: Combine with olive oil, red onion &balsamic vinegar for a salad,
or
serve as a side dish with fish or chicken. Mix with curry paste to
serve over
couscous or rice.
BEAN: Soy
BOILING: 3 hrs.
PRESSURE COOKING: Avoid
USES: Well cooked soy beans can be made into a sweet &sour dish with
garlic,
ginger, pineapple &tomatoes.
BEAN: Yellow Split Peas*
BOILING: 1-1 1/4 hrs.
PRESSURE COOKING: 25 min.
USES: Good in curried dishes over basmati rice, pureed in a mint
&garlic
yogurt sauce, or with lemon &cumin in soups.
*Do not pre-soak.
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