Recipe: Beans

Happy AUGUST everyone!! I am so excited it is August, because August is going to be a great month!!

I was going to give you a really yummy bean recipe, but I don't have all the ingredients, and I don't want to make it... And I am an advocate of using dry beans, so I thought people might want to know how to cook them first.

There are a couple of ways to cook dry beans. There is a fast and an over night process. THEY DO YIELD DIFFERENT TEXTURES!!!

I like to cook my black beans fast, but my kidney and pinto beans slow.

Cooking Beans Slowly (Over night method)

Take about a pound of beans (about 2 cups)
Rinse and check for rocks
In a large pot with lid, cover the beans with 6 cups of water. Add 2 TBSP of salt.
Refrigerate for 8-12 hours (over night!)

In the morning, drain the beans and rinse the beans.
Using the same pot add the beans and enough water to cover the beans by about 2 inches.
Bring to a boil and simmer covered, until desired doneness.

Crock Pot/Slow Cooker:
After refrigeration and rinse, cook for about 6-8 hours on low. (With some water of course!)


Cooking Beans Fast (One day Method):

Rinse and sort beans
In a large pot with lid, cover the beans by about 2 inches of water. (You might need to add more water as the cook) Add 2 TBSP of salt
Bring to a boil, and simmer with the lid on a wooden spoon holding the lid slightly open. Cook for about 2 -3 hours until they reach desired doneness.


Tips:
Beans that I am going to cook longer, in soup for example, I don't cook as long.
2 cups yields about 4 cups.
Cooked beans can be frozen and stored in the freezer for 3 months. Freeze, while still hot and with some of the cooking water. This will keep the beans from "drying out"/freezer burn.