So this brings me to my kitchen tip tuesdsay! (By the way, I do the same thing as Tammy - I store my dried beans etc in glass jars and also the plastic ones from the spices I get at Costco as long as I can get the smell out!)
I cook my beans in a pressure cooker. Pressure cookers have become much more user friendly (and safer) than when our moms were using them. And I can decided I need beans at the last minute and still have them less than an hour later!
If I plan ahead, I soak the beans over night, rinse, add fresh water, bring to a boil, put pressure lid on, bring to pressure, set timer for 12 minutes keeping the pressure between the first and second rings (I have a gas stove so I usually just drop it to low). Then I turn off the heat and let the pressure release naturally (usually takes about 30 minutes).
If I don't plan ahead I soak the beans for what time I have or just rinse them. Add enough water, bring to a boil, put pressure lid on, bring to pressure, set timer for 16 minutes keeping the pressure between the first and second rings (I have a gas stove so I usually just drop it to low). Then I turn off the heat and let the pressure release naturally (usually takes about 30 minutes). If I cannot let the pressure release naturally I will set the timer for 18 minutes.
The joy of planning ahead is that I know better how much I can put in and can maximize the use of the pressure cooker!
I have done this three times in the last week and now have frozen bags of beans in the freezer for all the beans we use! I usually wait until I need them for a meal, then make what I need plus extra!
To freeze them I just put what I consider to be "one can" of beans in a zip top bag, squeeze out as much air as I can and then freeze it flat! It works great!
If you don't have a pressure cooker they can often be picked up cheap second hand!
Updated to add: Once I take the lid off (after the pressure is all released) I dump the beans into a colander and give them a quick rinse as we prefer the taste that way. I wish I knew a good use for the bean juice (is it good in a composter?), but until then, we go with this. Because I give the beans a quick rinse with cold water they are a bit cooler before I bag them. I just put the beans in, nothing else!
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3 comments:
Thanks for the freezing idea. I always make beans and then have TONS that we get sick of. Do you wait for them to cool before putting them in bags? Do you add the juice with the bags, or just beans?
One idea for the leftover bean juice...it's really good broth that could also be frozen and added to soup. Although you couldn't use all of it that way as bean broth is a thickener, it does taste very flavorful. When I make potato bean soup, I always save a cup of my bean broth to add to the chicken stock. It gives the soup another dimensional layer without thickening it too much. There are probably other uses for bean broth, but I don't have any other personal uses for it:)
This is awesome, I just received a pressure cooker but don't really know what to do with it. We make beans all the times!
Toni
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