Beans. Beans. The Magical Fruit. Beans. Beans. They make you…
Alright, Alright.
I couldn’t help it. I’m surrounded by little boys who think that saying the word “toot” is the FUNNIEST thing…EVER!
There really isn’t anything funnier than a little boy giggling after saying “toot.” That word invokes a special giggle.
And I can’t help but laugh when I hear this “toot-y” giggle. Such is the life as a mom of boys!
No really, beans are good for your heart. And they are magical.
They are loaded with good fiber and when paired with other foods that are incomplete proteins, they are an excellent source of complete protein.
I love them because they are so inexpensive…and nutritious!
If you’re intimidated by cooking dried beans, let me help…
Place 1 lb. bag of beans into large bowl.
Sift and sort through the beans and remove any pieces of dirt and broken beans.
Fill bowls with HOT water to cover bowls at least 2 inches. Remove any beans that float to the top when soaking.
Beans will at least double in size. Soak in HOT water for at least 2 hours, but ideally, soak overnight.
After soaking, drain beans and rinse with cool water.
Place in large pot and cover with at least 2 inches of water.
Place the lid on top with a slight crack. Bring water to a boil. (I crack the lid at the start because I find that when I put the lid on all the way and move onto another task in the kitchen or around the house, the water will be boiling over and make a mess on the stove! So I crack the lid to avoid the spillage.)
Once boiling, reduce heat to medium and then cover completely. Let cook another 1 – 1.5 hours, or until beans are soft.
Drain beans.
Use in favorite recipe.
Or place into freezer baggies in 1, 2 or 3 cup portions to use in future meals.
I find that making up a big batch and freezing them helps reduce cooking time in future meals.
There you have it!
Cost Effectivness
Cost of cans: at least $.79/can
Cost of dried beans: $.97 for 1 lb. bag; makes approximately 8 cups of beans; or 4 cans worth. So less than $.25 “per can”!
Time in preparation: The total time to prepare dried beans is at least 4 hours, between soaking and cooking. The actual hands on time is probably a total of 10-15 minutes for the sorting, rinsing and draining!
Of course, cans are more convenient! But, be sure to read the label and look for no salt added cans and those with no additional preservatives!
I’m all for the healthiest and least expensive option!
{ 21 comments… read them below or add one }
When I cook beans, I soak them overnight in lightly salted water, drain, and rinse. Then, I cook them in the slow cooker on low until they are done. I learned about soaking in salted water from Cook’s Illustrated, though I use less salt than they say. The new crock pots I’ve seen bring food to a boil. The older ones don’t.
A crock-pot is a great time saver for cooking beans! You can either follow Erin’s steps and then put the beans in the crock-pot to cook, or you can cheat (NO! Not that!) and sort and rinse the beans and throw them in the crock-pot with water (rule of thumb – water should be at least twice as high in the crock pot as your beans). Turn your crock on, walk away for 6-8 hours, come back, let them cool, pack them up and freeze them! Here’s a 3 Bean Chili that I make with this method that is way yummy! http://bit.ly/2L87uI
Since husband has heart issues, I freeze beans like that for use in recipes. I had not been draining them, though. I will, from now on, because I have always poured off the liquid after thawing. This way I can put them right in the chili (or whatever) and let them thaw in there.
Thanks so much for these simple tutorials! My mom was not much of a cook, so I missed out on a lot of basics…like how to cook dried beans or cook butternut squash. Thanks for helping me out!
Very interesting! I had one problem with dried beans and was sort of turned off… even though I have a few bags in my pantry. I do eat a lot of beans. Didn’t realize that I could freeze them!! Thanks so much for this tutorial. It’s a HUGE help.
Great post! Wish I had read this before I cooked my beans this morning, lol! Well, at least I will know how to do it the “right way” next time!
Oh, thank you so much for this!
Thanks for the tips! When you say “Soak in HOT water for at least 2 hours, but ideally, soak overnight.”, do you keep the soaking water hot for those 2 hours? How? Or do you just leave the bowl on the countertop? Or in the fridge, if soaking overnight?
I saw on a cooking show that you could just throw the beans in your recipe without soaking. You just have to make sure that you sort and rinse them well before you do. I did this with my three beans and sausage recipe in the crockpot and I’ll never go back! I feel like the flavor was soooo much better than cooking them first and then putting them in the recipe. You also have to make sure you have plenty of liquid in there along with your recipe since they do absorb a lot, but this way they absorb all the flavor too, not just water!
I am using this techinique but find that my beans are mushy if I use them in a recipe that I prepare in the crockpot (like Red Beans and Rice). Do you cut back on the boiling time if you are going to be using them in recipes that are slow cooking?
Hey, I’ve always soaked the beans in 7-up after sorting and washing to reduce the gas. It works!
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January 1, 2010 at 10:34 am
This was great. I tried to cook Kidney beans and over cooked them. Now when the beans go on sale I know how to freeze them. Now how about potatoes how do I make french fries and freeze them?
how long can dried beans, lentils be stored? when/if do they lose their
nutritive value?
I rarely soak my beans overnight. I “look” them(that’s what my mom calls picking through them to find small pebbles and rejects), put them in the pot they are to be cooked in and bring them just to a boil and turn them off for a couple of hours. After the quick soak, rinse them and fill pot with fresh water and cook until tender.This step is important because beans are dirty and have to be rinsed! Never skip the the first step because although rare you will occasionally find a rock in the bag of beans. OUCH!
Great – thanks for the post! I didn’t know that I could freeze the beans ahead of time. Now I have a project for this weekend!
I am so glad I found your blog. This is great information. Sometimes it seems ridiculous to pay so much for a can of beans. Now that I know how to make them myself I put them on my next freezer day plan!
You shouldn’t skip soaking overnight. This reduces the gas a lot, as it inactivates anti-enzymes that prevent the beans from sprouting, AND that keep you from properly digesting them.
Question about the beans. Can you use them in the crockpot for chili after they’ve already been cooked? I do crockpot chili so it’s ready to eat when we get home from work. I guess they would be ok since the beans in the cans are cooked. I bought black beans the other day for $2.18 for 2 lbs.Not as cheap if beans are on sale in cans but granted there’s no added salt. Does it actually save money doing it the dried bean way? Have a good day! Thanks!
Thank you so much for these directions! I am cooking chickpeas in my crock pot right now for the first time and have been anxiously awaiting to try them all day. I’m also glad to know that they will freeze well as I am cooking a large amount. When you freeze them, do you cover them with water or drain them first? Seems like draining them first would make them easier to thaw, but I don’t want the beans to dry out.
Thanks again!!
I attempted to make Baked Beans yesterday and soaked them overnight before making the recipe. However, they NEVER got soft! I had that happen one other time, years ago, when making split pea soup. I cooked the soup for 36 hours and those hard little pebbles never softened. Is that due to old beans or…? Thanks!
Like others have said, thanks for this post! I have wanted to use dry beans but didn’t kow how to prepare them….I am not soaking some navy beans to add to chicken n dumplings soup (to bulk up fiber)…..we are not huge “bean” eaters but I want to sneak some into foods we already eat. Thanks again!