Getting to Know Dried Beans

By Catherine DiCocco, Cancer Project Cooking Instructor

Jump out of your bean rut and try some of the many varieties of dried beans available today.

Why go through the trouble of cooking beans from scratch? Let me count the ways…. You have a larger variety of dried beans to chose from; you can “tweak” them into any ethnic cuisine by adding different herbs and spices during the cooking process, and they are a heck of a lot cheaper than buying all those cans! They can be made up in large batches, drained, and frozen in smaller portions to use later in soups, salads, and dips.

Bean Cookery
In a perfect world, dried beans are best soaked overnight to soften their skins. To use, just drain, cover by one inch with water, and cook until tender. No time to soak? Just place rinsed beans in pot, cover with three times the volume of cool water, and bring to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes. Cover pot, remove from heat, and let soak 1 hour. Drain, cover beans with 1 inch of fresh water, and return to stove to continue cooking until tender. Seasonings and salt should be added after beans have begun to swell in their skins. Beans should be soft and creamy inside.

Bean Math
Using dried beans is also the most economical choice. One 15oz. can of organic pinto beans yields approximately 1.5 cups of beans for $1.99 a can. That's $1.32 per cup. One pound of dried organic pinto beans (approximately 2 cups) yields 6 cups cooked beans for $1.49.  That's $0.25 per cup.

The Cancer Project News, Winter 2008

The Web site does not provide medical or legal advice.
This site is for information purposes only.
Full Disclaimer | Privacy Policy