How to choose tasty and healthy beans?
Kidney beans come in different types and colors. Each type has its own characteristics, namely friability, texture, specificity of taste and compatibility with other dishes, which should be taken into account when choosing. The most popular and accessible types include white, red, black and variegated beans.
- White beans are the most common variety. It goes well with almost all dishes, and can be used everywhere, since its delicate taste is quite familiar to everyone. When choosing these beans, you need to take into account that they are quite crumbly;
- The red color is no less popular and familiar to everyone. Most often it is used for stuffing and in soups and salads. It has a pleasant taste and medium friability, and among its features one can highlight a bright burgundy color;
- The black variety is more exotic than the other types of beans listed. Having a sweet and bitter taste, it is suitable for stews and salads. It has a fairly dense texture;
- Pinto or variegated beans are versatile due to their delicate and creamy taste. The main catch with this variety is that it takes a long time to soak and cook, but the taste of pinto is worthy of it.
When choosing beans in a store, pay attention to the integrity of the packaging, the purity of the mixture, the absence of stains on the grains and flowability. Care and pickiness at the selection stage will allow you to enjoy a truly delicious dish at the end
Types of beans
In modern cooking, more than 200 varieties of beans are used, which differ in appearance and taste.
On this topic:
Winter preparation of beans in tomatoes - two in one: and...
Jul 25, 2020
For meat, fish, sauce and pizza - tomatoes in their own...
Jul 23, 2020
BACK FORWARD 1 of 270
According to the method of use, beans are divided into:
- grain - only ripened grains are eaten;
- vegetable - not only the grains are edible, but also the pods.
Bean grains vary in color, and each type has its own characteristics. Red beans are a leader in the content of antioxidants, which slow down age-related changes in cells and prevent many diseases. White beans are no less healthy; they are rich in magnesium and folic acid, and also have a high fiber content.
Green beans are of particular value for dietary nutrition. Of all the types of beans, green beans are the least high in calories and have absolutely no contraindications. Both grains and green pods are eaten.
Preparing to cook
Green beans cook quickly (about 15 minutes) and do not require pre-processing. It is ideal as a side dish for meat or fish and as an independent dish.
You can make anything from beans - from a basic side dish to cutlets and desserts. Before we study interesting recipes for its preparation, let’s figure out how to cook beans correctly.
- First you need to sort it out and wash it thoroughly.
- We soak the product in a 1:2 ratio, that is, twice as much water. After 3 hours, drain the liquid and fill it with clean liquid for another 2-5 hours. It is convenient to do this at night. However, you should not soak the product for more than 10 hours. During this time it can ferment. Before cooking the beans, you should pour the soda solution over them for another two hours, then rinse them again. One thing to keep in mind: when beans are soaked, they increase in size by about 3 times. That's why you should take large-sized dishes.
- To cook, you need to pour one glass of soaked beans with three glasses of water. Half an hour after the start of cooking, drain the liquid and refill with fresh water in the same ratio. Now cook the beans until tender over medium or low heat without a lid, constantly monitoring the amount of liquid.
- How long does it take to cook beans? It will take about 1 hour to cook the red one and about 1.5 until the white one is fully cooked. It should become soft. If you want the beans to cook, it will take longer. Salt is added 5-10 minutes before the end of cooking or to the finished dish.
Attention! If you neglect to change the water during soaking and cooking, you may find that the finished dish is bitter. To cook beans quickly, you need to bring them to a boil and leave to soak for 60-90 minutes, then rinse the beans, add fresh water and cook in a pressure cooker for 40 minutes
This processing method will allow you to get beans that do not taste bitter.
To cook beans quickly, you need to bring them to a boil and leave to soak for 60-90 minutes, then rinse the beans, add fresh water and cook in a pressure cooker for 40 minutes. This processing method will produce beans that are not bitter.
Another way to quickly cook beans is to cook them in the microwave. Before this, they need to be soaked for 6-8 hours, then placed in a glass container and cooked at high power for 10 minutes, and then another 20 minutes at medium.
If you want to use a slow cooker, then the beans need to be pre-soaked for 7-8 hours, as in the traditional version. And cook on the “soup”, “cooking” or “stewing” program for 1.5 hours and about 30 minutes longer if you want it to boil. The ratio of water to beans is 3:1.
The product preparation process is complete, now you can quickly make any dish from beans.
How long should you cook red beans?
The cooking time for red and white beans directly depends on whether they were pre-soaked or not, since this procedure helps to soften the beans and reduce cooking time. Let's take a closer look at how long beans are cooked in different ways:
- How long should you cook beans after soaking? After soaking, white beans need to be cooked for an average of 50 minutes, and red beans for an average of 60 minutes until tender.
- How long to cook beans without soaking? Without soaking, red beans need to be cooked for about 4 hours over low heat in a saucepan, and white beans for an average of 1.5-2 hours, also over low heat.
- How long to cook red and white beans in a slow cooker? In a slow cooker, beans need to be cooked for an average of 1.5-2 hours until tender (after soaking).
Having found out how long to cook beans (red and white), we will further consider the cooking process itself in order to know how to cook beans with and without soaking so that they turn out soft, tasty and do not become overcooked.
How to properly cook red and white beans with soaking?
To prepare more tasty and healthy beans, they must first be soaked, since after this they cook faster and retain their shape better, while becoming soft inside. Let's take a closer look at how to properly cook white and red beans with soaking:
- First of all, the beans must be thoroughly sorted, washed (using a colander and cold water), and then soaked in cold water for 6-8 hours in the proportion: 2 cups of water per 1 cup of beans (during soaking, the water must be changed 1-2 times).
- After soaking, drain all the water from the beans, transfer it to a saucepan and fill it with cold water in the proportion: 3 cups of water per 1 cup of beans and over medium heat bring the water to a boil, then drain all the water and pour in fresh water in the same proportion and bring Bring to a boil again over medium heat. To make the beans cook faster and be more tender inside, you can add 1 tablespoon of sunflower oil to the pan.
- After boiling water in a saucepan, cook the beans over low heat for 50-60 minutes (applies to red and white beans). There is no need to cover the pan with a lid during cooking.
- 5-10 minutes before the end of cooking, the beans must be salted (1 teaspoon of salt per 1 cup of beans).
- At the end of cooking, taste the beans; if they are undercooked and hard, you can cook them for another 5-10 minutes until fully cooked.
How to cook beans
The process of preparing beans is quite time-consuming, although it cannot be called labor-intensive, especially the soaking process. The main difficulty is to remember to fill the beans with water in time. Properly prepared beans become soft fairly quickly, although cooking time will largely depend on the variety.
After the beans are well soaked and swollen, they should be placed in a container and pour in water. The beans should be completely covered with liquid.
Cooking beans consists of the following steps:
- Place the pan on the stove and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Boil the beans for 5 minutes, then drain the water in which the beans were cooked and add fresh water.
- Cook bean seeds over low heat until soft. During the cooking process, a lot of foam can form in the pan, so the lid should not be closed tightly. In addition, to reduce foaming, you can add a tablespoon of any vegetable oil to the water.
- You need to monitor the amount of water in the pan; its level should always be above the beans, and if necessary, add more water.
- At the end of cooking, salt the beans to taste.
If desired, based on culinary preferences, you can add onions, carrots, spices and seasonings while cooking the beans. Properly selected flavoring additives will make bean dishes more aromatic and rich.
The cooking time for beans depends on their variety and method of soaking and can range from 30 minutes to an hour and a half.
In any case, the readiness of the beans must be checked. To do this, you should take out several grains and check each of them by mashing them with your fingers or a fork. If the beans are still hard, cooking must be continued.
If beans are needed for use in salads, they should be soft, but not boiled. And to prepare pasta, puree or cutlets, the beans should be well boiled to a porridge state.
On this topic:
Sour dessert for gourmets - how to soak apples for the winter...
Useful viburnum - harvesting for the winter and methods...
We are preparing a fragrant dessert - pear jam for the winter,...
It will completely replace cognac on the festive table - vodka...
BACK FORWARD 1 of 136
Freezing them in boiled form will help to significantly save time when preparing bean dishes. By spending one day freezing a large amount of semi-finished products, you can effortlessly prepare your favorite bean dishes at any time.
How to cook beans without soaking
The most delicious and healthy beans are those prepared in compliance with all recommendations, that is, pre-soaked in water. However, there are times when the soaking process is missed, and the dish needs to be prepared urgently. There is another way to cook beans - without pre-soaking. If you decide to try this method, you should keep in mind that the cooking time will increase and the beans may crack. In addition, compounds undesirable for the body, which disintegrate during the soaking process, will be preserved with this method. This can lead to the very side effect that causes many to stop eating legumes.
To cook beans without soaking with maximum preservation of taste and beneficial properties, you must adhere to the following recommendations:
- During the cooking process, you should change the water several times. After boiling the beans for 15 minutes, drain the broth, add cold water to the pan and continue cooking. Repeat this procedure 3-4 times.
- During cooking, you can add cold water little by little. Due to the temperature difference, the beans will cook faster.
- Salt the beans only at the end of cooking. If you add salt right away, the beans can remain hard for a long time.
How to cook green beans
Green beans are much easier to cook than dry beans. It does not require preliminary long soaking, except that more mature pods can be placed in salted water for a couple of hours.
Before you cook fresh green beans, they must be washed, after removing the branches and stems. All pods should be of the same degree of maturity; it is advisable to choose younger fruits. They are more delicate in taste and cook faster.
Prepared beans should be placed in lightly salted water and cooked for 5-7 minutes. It is necessary to ensure that the beans are not overcooked. With prolonged contact with boiling water, some of the vitamins may be destroyed, and the taste of the vegetable may also deteriorate.
After the pods are cooked, they should be strained from the water and used for further cooking. If the fruits are very long, they can be cut into pieces and added to omelettes, salads or vegetable stews.
Video selection of green bean recipes
How to improve the taste of beans: 5 proven life hacks
Cooking beans without soaking is quite simple. As you can see, the dish can be cooked in just 1.5 hours, which is not so much for such a “harmful” product. One question remains - how to cook beans not just quickly, but also tasty?
There are several proven methods for this – let’s consider everything in order:
A classic addition to boiled beans is vegetable frying. Traditionally it is made with onions and carrots. This is a good option that can be enriched with tomatoes. If it’s not the season, it’s better to buy tomatoes pureed in their own juice. After the chopped onions and carrots are fried until half cooked, add finely chopped tomatoes and juice (from the same jar). Add a pinch of salt and almost the same amount of sugar. Boil for literally 10 minutes, add finely chopped garlic and herbs. At the last stage, you can add beans here and simmer everything together. If simply boiled beans do not seem like such an interesting dish, they can be used in salads. In general, a salad is a great way to make even the most bland foods tasty. It's all about the right combination. For example, beans are in harmony with smoked meats - be it sausage, brisket or other delicacies. They are very high in calories, but the beauty is that you only need 50 g of them - purely for the smell. You can add canned corn, a clove of garlic and just a little mayonnaise to the mixture. Another good flavoring addition is crackers that you can dry yourself. After all, when cooking beans, time is freed up, and it needs to be used usefully. Crushed croutons are dried on a baking sheet in the oven at 200 degrees for just 10 minutes, after which they can be combined with beans and, for example, canned corn and the same fried onions. Chop the garlic and add a little mayonnaise. Another proven combination is boiled beans with pork. It must first be fried, cut into small pieces.
Please note that it is better to fry onions. Those
first, it is fried in a frying pan (until half-cooked), and then pork is placed on top. After a crust appears on the meat, you can mix both components and cook until cooked. Finally, for those who like to cook everything in a hurry, we can offer the easiest way to cook beans. Cook it according to the step-by-step recipe with photos described above, but do not drain the last water, but leave it. Separately, boil 2 eggs and fry a small onion. Combine all ingredients, add a teaspoon of mayonnaise and the same drained water. The beauty is that the mayonnaise is diluted with liquid, but the taste of the beans is not lost.
Bon appetit!
How to prepare beans
The first thing to do is check the expiration date. Beans that have been sitting for more than a year are likely to have dried out. Such beans will not become soft and tender, no matter how much you cook them.
Sort through the beans (don't worry, it's quick) and discard any shriveled or suspicious beans, as well as stems and other debris.
Then rinse the beans thoroughly in a colander under cold running water.
The next step is soaking, and there are several good reasons for this. First, pre-soaked beans cook faster. This, by the way, is not the main reason: without soaking, the beans will cook longer by only 15–20 minutes.
Secondly, during soaking, oligosaccharides are partially dissolved, which cause increased gas formation in the intestines.
Thirdly, there is an opinion that during soaking beans lose so-called antinutrients - compounds that interfere with the absorption of nutrients. In particular, legumes contain phytic acid, which interferes with the absorption of zinc, calcium, magnesium and iron.
Slow or cold way
Proponents of this soaking method claim that it eliminates the unpleasant side effects that legumes are notorious for. However, keep in mind that it takes time. Place the beans in a large saucepan, cover with cold water and refrigerate for 12–24 hours.
For 1 cup of beans you will need 5 cups of water.
Fast, or hot, way
If you don’t have time for long soaking, then simply pour the dry beans into a pan and add water in the same proportion as in the previous method. Bring the water to a boil and cook the beans for 2-3 minutes. Then remove the pan from the stove, cover and let sit for at least 1 hour.
Please note that the volume of beans after soaking and cooking will increase 2-3 times, so choose a larger pan.
By the way, some housewives claim that with this method of soaking the dish turns out tastier.
Beans come in different varieties - white, black and even red. One of the most affordable and popular is red beans. It can be bought at a price that everyone can afford, and it is also very filling and has a meaty texture, so it satisfies perfectly. It is often used to prepare salads, stews, rice dishes, and soups. Beans absorb the taste of spices and other foods, they practically merge with the dish.
Red beans are a source of valuable fiber, folic acid and magnesium. You can find dried and canned beans on sale. The only difference is in price, as for taste - both options are practically no different. So if you have some free time and want to save money, buy dry beans and boil them until tender. When boiled, it can be used to prepare any dish.
How and how long to cook red beans correctly?
The procedure is simple, but you will need a little time. Therefore, it is better to cook legumes in your free time in order to control the entire process:
- Fill the beans with water, remove stones and debris - they should float to the surface.
- Rinse the beans again under running water, place them in a saucepan and fill it with water. Place over medium heat and bring to a boil, reduce heat and leave to simmer. 1 cup of dried beans requires 3 cups of water.
- Cover the pot and let simmer for at least 1 hour or until the beans have doubled in size. You can extend the cooking time if the beans are still a little hard after the specified time.
- Once the beans are cooked, drain and rinse with cold water. The legumes are ready, all you have to do is figure out what dish you are going to cook.
Note: Many people add salt at the beginning of cooking, don't do this. It prevents softening and the beans will cook longer, so it is better to add salt at the end of cooking.
How to cook red beans with soaking?
If you have the opportunity to prepare the beans in advance, we recommend soaking them in water. This trick will speed up the process of preparing them almost twice. Plus, the beans will be juicier and cook evenly. Soak the beans for at least 3-4 hours, or better yet, overnight. Then drain the water and rinse it. That's it, the beans are ready to cook! They will almost double in size. Place them in a saucepan and cover with water. The amount of water should be 2 cm above the level of the beans.
We do not recommend soaking beans for longer than 10 hours. Why? It begins to lose its aroma and taste.
Bring the beans to a boil and reduce heat. Cover with a lid and leave for 40 minutes. After this time, taste the beans for softness - if they are still hard, add a little water and leave to cook for another 10-15 minutes.
Helpful cooking tips:
- If you want dense and slightly hard beans, cover the pan with a lid when boiling. If you want soft beans, remove the lid.
- You can never accurately determine the cooking time of red beans - it depends on the size, variety, temperature. Therefore, we advise you to monitor its condition and test for softness every 15 minutes.
- Remember to stir the beans occasionally and add water if necessary.
- You need to cook red beans over low heat - this way they will retain their texture and taste, won’t get soggy and will cook evenly.
- If you are going to use the beans to make soup, we advise you not to cook them a little, otherwise they will become too soft later.
- By pre-soaking in water you can prevent flatulence.
- Salt and spices should be added when the legumes are already boiled until soft.
- If you want the beans to be more flavorful, add beef broth or tomato paste to the cooking water.
How to store boiled red beans?
Leave it to cool at room temperature, then pour it into a jar or plastic container. Cover with a lid and place in the refrigerator. The shelf life of the finished product is up to one week. You can also freeze boiled beans for up to 3 months in the freezer.
Women's online magazine Delafe.ru
How to quickly cook beets, potatoes, peas, beans and other vegetables?
All year round, we try to eat more vegetables. We can say that we cannot do a single dish without their use.
- How to speed up the cooking process while maintaining all the beneficial properties of this product?
- How to quickly feed your family and reduce the time spent in the kitchen?
Experienced housewives know the answers to these questions. And today we will reveal several secrets of this secret. Let's talk about the most commonly used vegetables in cooking and more.
How to quickly cook beets
Boiled beets are suitable for preparing various dishes. The roots of this vegetable contain a wide variety of vitamins and minerals that are so necessary for our body. How to cook beets, and not spend 1.5 or 2 hours cooking them. And at the same time preserve color, nutrients and taste? There are several ways to quickly cook beets.
Prepare the beets for cooking - wash them well. Do not cut off the tails, do not cut out the eyes, and try not to disturb the integrity of the root crop, otherwise the beets will lose both color and taste. Now let's cook, here are 3 different ways:
- You can instantly boil beets in the microwave. In just 10 minutes we can prepare it. To do this, put the beets in a plastic bag, twist them tightly to ensure a tight seal and put them in the microwave. Turn on for 8 - 10 minutes (depending on the size of the tuber). Done.
- Place the beets in a saucepan with cold water and add 1 tablespoon of vinegar (to preserve the color), bring to a boil, cook for 30 - 40 minutes. After this, remove from heat, drain the boiling water and place under cold water until the tuber is completely cooled. As a result of the temperature difference, the beets reach readiness.
- You can cook beets in another way for a short time. Pour cold water (with 1 tbsp vinegar) over the beets and let it boil. Boil a little and add cold water. And so several times during cooking until the root vegetable is cooked. This takes 30 - 40 minutes.
And one more thing: when cooking, always add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil. This will speed up the cooking process.
How to quickly cook beans
Legumes are among the most important food products. They have high nutritional value and a unique composition of microelements, which is simply irreplaceable for the prevention of vitamin deficiency.
First, decide what color beans you are going to cook. The fact is that colored beans take less time to cook than white beans. Also, if possible, soak it overnight. This will speed up the cooking process.
- Method: Cook white beans. Place the beans in the pan and add water - just enough to cover the top of the beans. Place on the fire and let the beans simmer a little (5 - 10 minutes). Then add cold water. And we repeat this several times. Temperature changes cause beans to cook much faster. This cooking method is also suitable for cooking colored beans.
- method: Cook red beans. During cooking, put a little soda in the water. On the tip of a knife, no more, otherwise your beans will boil. In the same way, you can reduce the cooking time for white beans.
- method: When the water with beans boils, pour all the boiling water from the pan and pour in cold water. Let it boil and repeat the procedure.
How to quickly cook peas
Peas are a source of protein and can be used as a substitute for meat. It is well absorbed by the body. Peas are used to prepare soups and main courses.
Peas are a legume crop. That’s why it’s cooked like beans:
- It is advisable to soak it overnight;
- The temperature difference will cook it much faster;
- Add a little soda (0.5 tsp per 3 liters of water);
- You can add 1 tablespoon of sunflower oil to the water - a protective film will appear on top and this will help cook the legumes faster;
- You need to salt the peas at the beginning of cooking.
- And yet, peas in halves swell and do not cook as slowly as whole ones. The chopped one is cooked for 40 - 60 minutes, and the whole one - from 1 hour. 20 min to 1 hour. 40 minutes.
How to quickly cook potatoes
Potatoes are one of the most important and most consumed food products. The variety of potato dishes is very large. And the rich chemical composition of the beneficial properties of this root vegetable makes it indispensable on our table.
Speed-cooking potatoes also has its own little secrets!
To quickly cook potatoes for salad, you need to peel them, cut them into small cubes and cook. When the water boils, add vinegar or citric acid. And the potatoes will cook for about 7 or 10 minutes. But this is if you need chopped potatoes.
To cook whole tubers, add a spoonful of oil (any kind) to the water and close the lid tightly. It will cook faster.
Salad “Beans”
Category: Preparations Vegetable salads
It’s simply criminal not to share the recipe for this bomb preparation. I have been making this for two years in a row in huge quantities. The pantry is now unimaginable without it. So simple. And the composition is normal. And nothing unexpected. BUT! My God, how delicious it is! I learned about this salad from my sister. She called with the words: “Make a note! This is a thing!” A friend taught her, then a friend taught her... In short, the circle is closed, now all my friends close “Fasolka” and praise it. Girls, this is a recipe for a universal salad - it is tasty and nutritious in itself, a jar is a complete lunch or dinner, I take it with me to work in the winter - beauty! As a side dish, the salad is simply great. If you use it in broth with potatoes, you will be delighted with a delicious bean soup in winter. Put more, thicker - you will have a fragrant vegetable hodgepodge. It’s especially gratifying that men really like Beans. Helps out both on holidays and on weekdays. And if you put it in such a thick layer on black bread... It’s delicious! From this amount of products, you end up with 14 jars of 0.5 liters each. But I always make several servings at a time.
How to quickly cook red beans
- Cook the beans in a pressure cooker; the cooking time after boiling is about 40 minutes.
- Dry beans will cook in half the time if you replace the water with ice water after five minutes of boiling. And repeat this a few more times.
- Regular sugar helps soften the beans: after boiling, add 25 g of granulated sugar per 200 g of product.
- Use a microwave or slow cooker.
So, by regularly eating red beans, you will get a supply of almost all the necessary minerals and vitamins. In addition, you will certainly feel its positive effect on your body - increased vigor, endurance and calmness. Try all the recipes, choose your favorites and bon appetit!
How to cook beans quickly and without soaking
To begin with, before you have time to complicate your work, I will say that beans are salted only 5 minutes before turning off the heat under the pan. Not earlier, otherwise you risk cooking it for a very long time, more than two hours. And now that I have done everything so that you can avoid this mistake, you can begin the step-by-step description.
Take a larger saucepan, pour water into it and add the beans. Stir everything, and you will see that some beans have floated to the surface - they need to be removed, they will not cook, as they are already spoiled. We put everything else on the fire and wait until the water boils.
As soon as it boils, drain everything, rinse the beans under running water in a colander, and fill them with clean water again. We put the saucepan on the fire again, wait until the beans boil, after which you need to turn off the heat under it, cover the saucepan with a lid and leave to stand for about 40 minutes. During this time, the beans will swell in the same way as they would swell if they stood overnight.
After 40 minutes, drain the water, put a new one in a saucepan - about twice as much as the beans themselves - and set them to boil over medium heat. I remind you that we do not add salt under any circumstances, otherwise the cooking time will lengthen by two or even three times. Then we cook the beans for an hour, sometimes a little longer. Before you turn off the heat under the saucepan, it’s worth taking a test to see if your type of bean takes a little longer to cook. Once you are sure that everything is ready, you can add salt to taste. Cook for another 5 minutes and turn everything off - you can prepare salads, pates, soups, and whatever you like.
How to cook beans -> how to cook beans without soaking.
Sometimes it happens that this or that dish, according to all the rules, must take so long to prepare that you simply physically do not have time to prepare it. This may be the case with the preparation of beans, which are preferably pre-soaked in cold water for at least 7-8 hours, and even better for as long as 9-12 hours. Sometimes the decision to cook this or that dish appears in our heads spontaneously and we simply don’t have that much time left for pre-soaking the food and other preparations. Does this mean that in this case the beans cannot be cooked quickly at all? Not at all. Beans can be cooked without pre-soaking, you just need to follow certain rules for their preparation.
To cook beans without soaking
. you need:
- Carefully sort the beans so that no debris, dust, pebbles or spoiled beans get into the food;
- After you have sorted the beans by hand, rinse them under cold running water and let them dry a little;
- Take a large, deep saucepan and fill it about two-thirds with water;
- Pour the washed beans into the pan and place it over medium heat;
- In order for unsoaked beans to cook faster and more evenly, the water in the pan should be replaced at least twice during the cooking process;
- When the water first boils, wait about fifteen minutes, then drain all the water and cover the beans with clean, cold water;
- Place the pot of beans back on the heat and when the water boils a second time, repeat the process of replacing the water;
- After this, the beans should continue to cook for about 30-40 minutes.
It is also acceptable to cook beans that have not been pre-soaked, when the water in the pan is not changed completely, and a few tablespoons of cold water are simply added to the boiling water. This procedure should be carried out on average 3-4 times, but at the initial stage of cooking, and not towards the end. In general, in both cases, the speed of boiling beans is stimulated by the temperature difference in the container in which they are boiled.
Additionally, beans can be soaked for significantly less time than the recommended minimum of 7-8 hours. In this case, you should do the following:
- Rinse and sort the beans, then fill them with a small amount of water and place on the stove over moderate heat. When the water boils, remove the container with the beans from the stove, cover it tightly with a lid and let it sit for about one hour;
- After one hour, put the beans back on the stove and cook as usual.
However, the fastest way to cook in this situation is frozen beans, which a priori do not require pre-soaking. The method of preparing it is very simple and frozen beans will be ready to eat after 15-20 minutes of boiling in a saucepan over moderate heat.
How to cook red beans?
Dishes made from red beans are hearty and tasty, and can replace meat in terms of nutritional value. It is not for nothing that it is contained in the traditional English breakfast: for centuries, ordinary workers needed a lot of calories in the morning to do hard work, and since further snacks were impossible, they ate scrambled eggs, meat, vegetables, toast and beans for breakfast, and thus provided themselves with strength for the whole day.
Red beans are high in fiber and vitamins, and as a bonus, they normalize blood sugar levels and help eliminate toxins.
But beans can also be harmful if you try to eat them raw - they contain many toxic elements that can only be removed by pre-soaking them. In addition, children and pregnant women are not recommended to consume beans more than once a week. Before cooking, raw or dried beans must be prepared for further processing. A slow but sure way is to soak the beans in water and let them sit for 8-10 hours or overnight. It would be a good idea to change her water every 3 hours. A quick way is to pour cold water over the beans, wait until they boil and boil for 5 minutes, then leave to steep for an hour, and then boil for about another half hour. Regardless of the preparation method chosen, after soaking, you need to drain the water and rinse the beans. Also at this moment you can add two tablespoons of vegetable oil - this will make the taste of the beans softer and more tender. After this, the beans must be poured with 3 glasses of fresh cold water and simmer over low heat. The cooking time for store-bought beans is about an hour and a half, but fresh beans may take less time. To check readiness, after 40 minutes you need to take out three beans and try them: if at least one grain is not soft enough, take out the beans too early. During cooking, it is important to ensure that the amount of water in the pan does not decrease, so during natural evaporation you need to add a new portion of liquid. Lobio
Beans are widely used as an ingredient for both meat and meatless dishes. For example, traditional Georgian and Armenian lobio, which translates as “beans,” can be prepared with or without meat.
lobio To prepare lean lobio you will need:
- 3 cups boiled beans;
- 1 cup of broth remaining after cooking;
- 1 tbsp. l. vegetable oil;
- 2 medium carrots;
- 2 tbsp. l. tomato paste;
- 1 red onion;
- half a head of garlic;
- salt;
- a bunch of greens (preferably cilantro).
Boil the beans. Grate the carrots and simmer them in a frying pan for two minutes with the lid closed. Add the beans to it and fry a little, then pour in the broth and add the rest of the ingredients. Simmer over low heat until slightly thickened - this will take from 40 minutes to an hour. Five minutes before cooking, add salt and let the dish rest a little. Lobio can be used both as an independent side dish for meat and as a sauce for buckwheat. In addition, the longer the finished lobio sits, the tastier it is. Lobio for serving with lavash
Lobio for lavash Lobio for serving with lavash differs in the degree of thickness and texture. To prepare it you will need:
- 2 cups boiled beans;
- 2 tbsp. l. liquid remaining after cooking;
- 1 tbsp. l. vegetable oil;
- half a glass of walnuts;
- 2 onions;
- 3 cloves of garlic;
- 1 tsp. khmeli-suneli seasonings or a mixture of turmeric and ground black pepper;
- salt;
- a bunch of cilantro.
Chop the onion and garlic and fry them in a frying pan until golden brown. The moment you turn the onion over, add the spices, mix well and fry the mixture for another five to seven minutes. Peel the walnuts and grind them in a mortar or blender with half the onion and garlic mixture from the pan, and pound the other half of the mixture with the cilantro. After this, thoroughly mix the beans and all prepared ingredients in a large container, add salt and pepper. Do not rush to dilute the lobio with bean broth: while the dish is infused, it will give a little juice. Close the container with a lid or wrap it in cling film and let the dish sit for about an hour. Traditionally, this lobio is served as an appetizer with thin pita bread. Pasta with beans
pasta with beans An almost equivalent substitute for boiled beans is canned beans in their own juice. It makes the taste more spicy. Canned beans can be a real salvation if you need to quickly and easily prepare something hot and satisfying, but don’t have time to soak natural beans. In this case, you should pay attention to stewed pasta and beans, which take only 15 minutes to cook. To prepare it you will need:
- can of canned beans;
- pasta;
- a can of stewed meat (if desired, you can replace it with any meat, but then the cooking time will increase proportionally);
- salt;
- spices.
Boil the pasta until slightly firm – this will take about ten minutes. Place the stew along with the jelly in a frying pan. Drain almost all the water from the beans, leaving a couple of tablespoons, and when the stew boils, add the beans along with the liquid. Stir and turn the heat to maximum and leave until the mixture thickens without covering with a lid. When the sauce reaches the consistency of sour cream (this will take about 7-10 minutes), pour it into the pan with the pasta, add a little dried paprika, mix well and serve. If desired, you can sprinkle the dish with grated cheese and herbs, or add a small piece of butter. Bean salad
bean salad Among all the recipes for salads with canned red beans, the leader is the one where the soft texture of the beans is mixed with the smooth texture of the mushrooms. To prepare this salad you will need:
- can of canned beans;
- a can of canned champignons (you can use fresh or frozen);
- 2-3 red onions;
- 1.5-2 tbsp. l. mayonnaise or sour cream;
- salt;
- spices.
Cut the onion into small but fleshy pieces and fry over medium heat in plenty of vegetable oil for five minutes. Add finely chopped mushrooms to the onion and fry until golden brown. Drain the liquid from the beans and mix all the ingredients in a deep bowl, adding sour cream or mayonnaise, spices and, if desired, herbs. The salad can be served on its own or as a side dish for meat dishes. Helpful Tips:
- During initial processing, the beans swell almost twice, so you need to take a large container for soaking.
- In the summer, if soaked for a long time, the beans can easily ferment, so it is better to put them in the refrigerator.
- Beans are never salted at the beginning of cooking, as salt slows down the process and makes the beans tougher.
- When cooking, do not cover the beans with a lid to prevent them from darkening.
- To determine the degree of readiness of the beans, you can remove them from boiling water and immediately blow on them. When the beans are ready, the skin will burst immediately.
The most amazing thing is that you can eat beans every day and never repeat them in recipes (for example, they can be used instead of potatoes, and bean soup can warm you up on any chilly evening), so the use of beans is limited solely by your imagination.
How to quickly cook beans?
Beans are one of the most delicious and healthy members of the legume family. However, like all its brothers, it has the only drawback - a long cooking time.
Today we will talk about how to significantly reduce it without compromising the taste and appearance of the grains, we will offer several options for quickly cooking beans in a pan on the stove, and we will also tell you how to cook them in the microwave.
How to quickly cook red beans without soaking?
As you know, soaking beans significantly speeds up the cooking process.
But what to do if for some reason you were unable to soak the beans in advance? You should not refuse to prepare the planned dish or wait long and tediously for the beans to cook without prior preparation. There are other ways to speed up the softening of grains. This recipe is about how to cook red beans without soaking.
Ingredients:
- red beans – 210 g;
- purified water – 1.8-2.2 l;
- table salt - to taste.
Preparation
We wash the red beans thoroughly, put them in a saucepan and fill them with purified water so that it only slightly covers the contents. Let the beans boil, add a little more cold water and bring to a boil again.
We do this until the bean grains soften. And this will happen approximately thirty to forty minutes from the moment of the first boil, depending on the type of beans. Temperature changes will speed up the cooking process of the legumes.
Add salt to the beans at the end of cooking to taste.
How to quickly cook white or red beans in the microwave?
It's no secret that a microwave oven allows you to save a lot of time if you cook dishes in it. And cooking beans is no exception. Even without pre-soaking, the grains quickly become soft. About all the nuances of such preparation in this recipe.
Ingredients:
- white or red beans – 210 g;
- purified water – 700 ml;
- table salt - to taste.
Preparation
We wash white or red beans thoroughly, put them in a container suitable for cooking in a microwave oven, fill them with purified water, set the device to maximum power and set the timer for ten minutes. After this, mix the beans in a bowl with a spoon, return to the microwave and extend cooking for another fifteen minutes. Five minutes before the end of the process, add salt to taste.
Useful tips
- Since the beans take a long time to cook, the water boils away a lot. Do not add cold water, because sudden changes in temperature may cause the beans to crack. These beans do not become soft for a long time. Therefore, if necessary, add only boiling water or at least hot water.
- Many housewives add baking soda to the water to help the beans cook faster. It really helps to cook the beans quickly, but it also takes away most of the vitamins.
- If salt is added at the beginning of cooking, the beans are not cooked and remain somewhat harsh. These grains can be used to make salads or soups.
- For soup, the beans are first boiled and the water in which they were boiled is poured out. If you cook the soup in the same water, its broth will be cloudy and tasteless.
- And also such a dish will become a source of excessive gas formation in the intestines. After all, during cooking, substances that cause fermentation are released into the water from the beans.
- For the same reason, you should not eat undercooked beans, much less raw ones. This can lead to stomach upset.
- The cooking time for beans also depends on the quality of the water. It is believed that if you pour chilled boiled water over the beans, they will cook faster.
- If the recipe calls for adding tomato, tomatoes or vinegar to the beans, this is done after the beans are cooked. But a bunch of herbs or other spices can be added during cooking. They will improve the taste of the beans.
- If different varieties of beans are used for a dish, then each of them is boiled separately, the water is drained and only then mixed.
- Beans come in white, plain colored and variegated colours. White beans are used for preparing first courses (so that the appearance of the broth does not deteriorate). Main courses are prepared from colored beans.
- White beans cook faster than red beans . It will be ready in about 40-50 minutes from the moment it boils, so to prevent it from turning into porridge during cooking, you need to monitor the process all the time. Red beans, if cooked according to all the rules, are usually ready in 1-1.5 hours.
To prevent a bean dish from causing negative consequences, you should not neglect the cooking rules and artificially speed up this process. Health is more valuable than an extra hour spent near the stove.
Product Matrix: Beans