I somehow made it through culinary school without cooking a pot of beans. I guess we were more interested in haute cuisine than a simple, inexpensive dinner.
I did, however, get an excellent bean cooking education at Rubicon, one of the first fine-dining establishments I worked. Stuck in the pantry station for a year I became an expert in salads. Eventually, one of my coworkers taught me how to cook dry beans, and beans became my signature salad ingredient.
At Rubicon, each cook had to create a daily special for their station. This unique menu item was something of a test to see where we stood creatively as line cooks. There was little produce to work with that wasn’t already on the menu somewhere else or wasn’t needed by another cook in another capacity. But this was where the beans came in. When you are always cooking fresh food, everything has a purpose, but since beans aren’t perishable, they were always hanging around in dry storage. I just had to remember to start them before anything else.
Each type of bean has a texture and shape all their own. Beans add bulk and richness to a dish in a way that only carbohydrates can. And they take on various flavors depending on what you put in their cooking liquid. Although, I have come to learn that bay leaves and garlic are all you need to enhance their natural earthiness.
I have since become a bean snob, discovering Rancho Gordo, the premier bean distributor in the United States. But I am not a cooking snob, and practical to a fault, and any store-bought dried bean can become a masterpiece with a bit of care.
The best qualities of beans, they store well, they are cheap, and they are easy to prepare when you have the time to cook them.
When you cook beans, you will get to experience the unique flavors without the preservatives added to store-bought canned beans.
I like to cook my beans in my crockpot. The crockpot is one way to accomplish the slow and steady cooking needed to keep the beans from bursting, with the least amount of effort. My favorite part about cooking in a crockpot is that you can set it and forget it. I used to start beans before leaving for work, and then they are ready to eat when you get home. I still use the crockpot, because I love the fact that I don’t have to keep an eye on them, and in the warmer weather, it doesn’t heat the house.
Of course, you need to own a crockpot to use one. If you don’t have one, don’t run out and buy it now, even if you could. Try the next method.
Right now, if you are going to be home for a while and the weather is cold, use your oven, and you can enjoy the same passive cooking method. Some people swear by oven cooking, saying that the beans and their liquid taste better, but I can’t speak to any quality improvements.
Do what works best for you.
To cook beans in your oven, you need to have an oven-safe pan or casserole dish. Better yet is a Dutch oven that can go from the stovetop to the oven, but if you don’t have that, you can bring water to a boil on the stovetop, pour the boiling water on the beans in your pan and then cover tightly and cook the beans in the oven.
I have even cooked beans in a hotel pan, which is the thinnest of stainless steel in a restaurant kitchen, so there is no need for a particular heavy bottom pot, but they are handy.
The oven gives the beans hot air on all sides, which helps for even cooking like the crockpot.
The alternative way to cook beans is on the stovetop. For stovetop cooking, you need to tend the pot a little more than the other methods, since the heat is only coming from the burner on the bottom. Once you find a heat setting where the water is at a low simmer, you will want to stir the pot occasionally, every 20 minutes or so.
The fourth cooking option is your pressure cooker or instantpot. I do own a pressure cooker, but the times I have used it for beans, I have always overcooked them and didn’t have the patience to test out different cooking times. I don’t have an instantpot, but their directions would be an excellent place to start for quantities and timing. Many bean cooking experts swear by their instantpot, so I know they work well.
The beauty of a pressure cooker is that you can delay your decision on what’s for dinner as long as possible. (It’s okay, I’ve been there too).
When I cook beans, I either make a half-pound, if I am preparing them for myself, for salads, or a simple lunch. If I am making them for a bean dish for the family, like chili (about 4–5 people), I will make a full pound and still have leftovers.
Here’s the recipe for one pound of beans:
In a crockpot combine 1 pound of beans with 6 cups of water, 2 teaspoons salt, 2 bay leaves, and 3–4 cloves garlic. Set it for 4 hours on high.
On the stovetop, in a large pot, combine the above ingredients. Bring the beans and water to a boil and then reduce the heat to low, cover the pot and simmer for 2–3 hours. Stir every 20 minutes or so. You might need to add liquid depending on the evaporation.
For the oven, preheat to 325 degrees F. Combine everything in a Dutch oven, bring to a boil, cover and place the pot in the oven for 2–3 hours. Check the doneness of the beans at one and a half hours and then every 30 minutes after that.
You still need to decide when the beans are fully cooked. The good news is that usually, this will be the same the next time you cook the same beans. As you learn the method that works best for you and the time it takes, you won’t have to check on things as much.
Let the beans cool in their cooking liquid. The liquid will help with keeping the skins from bursting.
When you cook beans, don’t add any acidic ingredients, specifically tomatoes or tomato products, until the beans are thoroughly cooked. Once you add in the acid, the skins stop letting in water into the center of the bean.
I usually add salt when I start the cooking process. You can add it at the end, but you will want to make sure the beans are in the broth, you want the salt to penetrate the skins and get into the center of each bean. My standard amount of salt is 2–3 teaspoons per pound of beans.
If you have some beans that still seem crunchy after extended cooking, they may be from a bad batch or very old. It’s not from the salt.
Overnight soaking? Do it or not, it’s your choice. I don’t usually soak.
If you cook too many beans, freeze them before they are a week old. The protein in beans makes it tempting for bacteria to take up residence. Leave lots of headspace in your freezer container, because the liquid will expand during freezing.
If you do overcook your beans, drain as much liquid from them and turn them into refried beans or hummus. Any bean will make a great dip with some olive oil, herbs, and spice.
My last bit of advice, if you burn your beans and they smell like an old ashtray, they are history, don’t try to serve them. It’s okay to try again, I’ve done it too.