dried black beans

[lisaflex]

for the first time, i tried it today! i soaked in water for 1 hour. then i drained and covered once again w/ cold water. brought to a boil, put the lid on and simmered on LO for 3 hrs. they were still hard! i then drained again and put in crockpot w/ more fresh cold water and strted on high for about 10 minutes then LOW for about 4-1/2 hrs and they are finally softened.

yeah for me! but, is this normal? seems kind of long....

thanks!

[savvy_sniper]

What did the directions on the package state? Normally you soak them overnight and then they will cook in a few hours. If you only soak for a couple of hours they will take much longer to cook.

[lisaflex]

the bag said to put in cold wter bring to a boil. remove from heat for 1 hr and then they would be done!!!

they were the goya brand

but, i chose to do it the way i did after doing some internet reading...

any other thoughts?

thanks for the input mary

[jlaporte]

I usually soak mine over nite.It is how my aunt used to do hers.

[lisaflex]

so, do you just put them in cold water and put in frig overnight? and then, drain, more cold water, bring to boil..and then what? thanks again ladies. just tryin to get it straight!

[itsahumanzoo]

the bag said to put in cold wter bring to a boil. remove from heat for 1 hr and then they would be done!!

That is actually what you do if you don't want to soak them overnight. After that, you can throw them in the crockpot for 8 hours or cook them on the stove like you normally would.

[frugrrl]

For the quick soak, I bring them to a boil for 2 min, turn off the heat and let them sit (covered) for 1 hour. Then I drain the water, fill up the pot again and bring it to a boil again. After it boils, I reduce it to a simmer (covered) for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Done!

For the overnight soak, I soak them overnight. Then the next day I drain them, cover them with water and bring to boil. Then I reduce the heat and simmer (covered) for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

[mauimagic]

Mahalo for the info. The last time I did black beans, they didn't soften enough following the pkg. directions. I will give them another shot using your suggestions.

[lisaflex]

thanks for the tips

[Judi Dial]

I don't put them in the frig. If you're worried about insects, etc. put a plate over the bowl. I rinse them, drain off that water, refill with water, and put them on the counter over night.

Judi

[frugalwarrior]

No I don't refridge either. I just soak overnight on the stove w/ a cover. Drain/rinse. Then boil as directed.

[Grainlady]

Central Bean Co. web site has great information about a number of ways to prepare beans. I love this web site....

http://www.centralbean.com/cooking.html

The older the dried beans, the longer it may take to cook them - whether using the quick method, or overnight soak.

I use an energy-saving method, and cook black beans (and other grains and beans) in a Stanley Thermos (1 liter/1.1 quart size).

Black Beans

--3/4 c. black beans yields approximately 2-1/4 c. "cooked" beans

--a can of black beans measures approx. 1-2/3 c. if you are replacing a can of beans in a recipe

Soak 3/4 cup (or less) black beans for 8 hours (or overnight) at room temperature. Drain soak water. Fill the thermos with hot tap water and allow to heat-up for 10 minutes. Drain hot water. Place beans in thermos and fill with boiling water. Place the cap and lid on the thermos and lay on it's side (food in a Thermos cooks more evenly when distributed over a larger space of the Thermos on it's side, than at the bottom of an up-right thermos).

If you think about it, you can roll/shake the thermos several times during the day. Drain after 8-10 hours. If the beans aren't completely cooked, add more boiling water and allow to "cook" some more.

CAUTION: remember beans expand to approximately 3X the dry amount, so don't over-fill your thermos. This method also works best in a "quality" thermos (Stanley, Nissan), not a child's plastic lunch box Thermos.

Links about cooking in a thermos... http://peaceandcarrots.homestead.com...kinglinks.html

[FromBrazil]

Hi everyone!

I thought I could share with you all how we cook beans here in Brazil. For those that dont know, rice and beans are our daily food here, but we eat them as a base, rice and beans (but not together, they are made separately and they are put in the plates separately), then with some meat and salad and veggies.

here is how we do here, step by step (we here use pressure cook, in fact we use pressure cook to make a lot of food here, but I already cooked the goya beans in USA using a normal pot and it didnt take all that time):
* pick the beans so you will put only the good ones to soak;
* put them to soak in water, let it soak overnight (12 hours), leaving enough water for the beans to "swell";
* drain the beans, rinse it 2 times, then put it to cook with enough water to cover and pass them around 2 or 3 fingers, and add one bay leaf to them;
* if cooking in a pressure cook, cook it for 20 minutes after the pressure starts to "whizzle", then turn off the fire;
* if cooking in a normal pot, normally it would take 2 hours to cook, but you can try it to see how soft they are. Once they are soft to your taste, turn off the fire.

Now the way we do it here, we dont season the beans while they are being cooked. We cook them only in water (and an occasional bay leaf), then when they are cooked, we season them. Here is how I make my daily beans:

* chopped bacon (enough to your taste),
* 2 cloves of garlic, mashed,
* 2 tablespoons of chopped onions
* 1 tablespoon of chopped chives
* salt and black pepper

You will fry the bacon until it is almost crispy, then you will stir fry the onions and chives, when the onions are transparent, add the garlic, stir it for a while (dont burn the garlic or it will be kind of bitter), then add the beans, season with salt and pepper to your taste, and let it simmer until it is creamy. Black beans are never so creamy as the pinto beans or some of other kind of beans, so you may want to add a bit of corn starch to make it more thick, but that is according to taste.

I once tried the quick soak, but the beans came up completely tasteless. They taste like the seasons I put, not like beans, maybe I did something wrong. So I only do the normal length method.

[lisaflex]

thanks brazil!

[lisaflex]

they were a bit dry? maybe some fresh squeezed lime on them? we are trying to watch cholesterol and sodium.