TIPical Mary Ellen host Mary Ellen Pinkham shares ideas for cooking, preparing and storing dried beans.
- For a quick black-bean salad, start with a can of precooked black beans. Chop up a green pepper, a red pepper and a red onion. Add four cloves of minced garlic and the juice of one lime. Mix together and top with salsa (see photo).
- Dried beans should be plump. Toss any beans that show signs of insect damage, such as beans that are shriveled or have holes in them. Beans that float in cold water should also be discarded. This means that they have been damaged by insects or mold.
- A farmer's cooperative is a great place to buy beans at low prices. Do not buy too many, however, as dried beans should not be stored longer than six months. Old beans will lose their flavor and much of their nutrition.
- Inspect beans carefully and look for debris and foreign matter.
- Most varieties of beans need to be soaked for about 12 hours before using. Place the beans in a large pot, and cover with water to a depth of three inches. Discard the water before cooking the beans.
- Always soak the beans before measuring the amount needed to fill a dish.
- Add two or three teaspoons of vegetable oil to the pot before cooking to keep the water from foaming over.
- Don't salt the beans until they have finished cooking. Salting earlier will make the beans tough.
- Beans need a gentle touch when cooking and should be simmered, not boiled. Boiling the beans causes the skins to fall off, and the beans will separate.
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