I’m pushing beans because I’m trying really hard to get you to eat them several times a week. These little nutrient bombs provide significant amounts of fiber, protein, magnesium, zinc, and a host of health-enhancing phytochemicals. Although I’m not denying that canned beans are fast, easy, and nutrient-dense, cooking dried beans is definitely worth the little bit of extra effort. The texture and flavor are so different from canned beans, plus you get the delicious bean broth for soups and stews. Cooking a pot of beans on the weekend while I’m doing other things around the house is so easy. Just add some vegetables and herbs to a large pot, add water and the beans and in an hour or two, you’ve got deliciously creamy, flavorful beans that can be eaten as is or used in lots of different dishes.
When purchasing dried beans, you can certainly buy them at any supermarket but for fresher beans and a greater variety of beans, I suggest buying them online from this company that specializes in Heirloom beans, Rancho Gordo. If beans are sitting on the grocery shelf or in your pantry too long, they can get very hard, making it almost impossible to soften them no matter how long you cook them. Give this easy method of cooking dried beans a try and then use some of them to make the delicious toast with sauteed greens and eggs highlighted at the end of this post.
Here’s a link to a virtual cooking class I presented on cooking with beans. Ignore the first few seconds, it’s me setting up the camera. Athens Nutrition Cooking with Beans and check out lots of easy bean recipes at JudyMatusky.com https://judymatusky.com/2021/03/01/the-basics-of-cooking-beans/