i like dry navy bean soup in a 5 qt pot add 1/2 full of watersalt and pepper to taste 1-lb dry navy beans sorted and washed 3-15oz cans of tomatoes 1-cup chopped onions 1-raw carrot peeled and shredded 2-celery stalks chopped 1-15oz can white corn[i use shoepeg] 1/2 box of annies dumpling[ i use homemade]add these after beans are done.
EMSR2D2 8/14/08 7:10 A
I'm also veggie so I use beans and pulses in stacks of food. I always buy canned ones though because I just cannot be bothered with all the sorting, soaking, boiling, rinsing etc of dried beans. Canned are SO simple! Pre-cooked, sometimes in brine or spiced water, but normally just in plain water, so you can just open the can, drain the water off and eat. Cold or heated up. Yum.
MARTALUNA 8/13/08 7:19 P
I have a question. If I cook some dry beans for use later (tacos, salads etc.), how long will they hold in the fridge? Can I freeze them?
HOMEPINK 8/13/08 7:05 A
I have a chick-pea salad that is so good, eveyone loves it!
Mix together one can of chick-peas, drained, 1 big tomato, diced, 1 cucumber, diced, a little olive oil, balsamic vinegar, a lot of fresh diced chives, salt and pepper...
Yumm... a great lunch as itself or sidedish with a grilled meat or fish!
Nathalie
LET_IT_SNOW 8/10/08 3:57 P
This is my favorite recipe using lentils. It's from the Everyday Food website.
Lentil-Walnut Burgers
3/4 cup toasted walnuts, cooled 1/3 cup plain dried breadcrumbs 3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped 2 teaspoons ground cumin 2 teaspoons ground coriander 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes Coarse salt and ground pepper 3/4 cup lentils, cooked, drained, and cooled 4 tablespoons olive oil 1 large egg
Yogurt-Cilantro Sauce:
3/4 cup plain low-fat yogurt Coarse salt and ground pepper 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
In a food processor, combine walnuts, breadcrumbs, garlic, cumin, coriander, pepper flakes, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; process until finely ground. Add lentils and 1 tablespoon oil; pulse until coarsely chopped (some lentils should remain whole). In a large bowl, whisk egg. Add lentil mixture; mix well. Divide into 4 equal-size parts; roll into balls, and flatten with the palm of your hand into 3/4-inch-thick patties. Heat remaining 3 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet. Add burgers; cook over medium-low heat until crisp and browned, turning gently with a thin-edged spatula, 8 to 10 minutes per side. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain.
Yogurt Cilantro Sauce
In a small bowl, whisk together yogurt, cilantro, and lemon; season with salt and pepper.
*Instead of cooking the burgers in 3T of oil, I just use a non-stick skillet and they turn out fine.
MEESH165 8/10/08 2:21 A
I put beans in everything I cook, almost.
My DH eats meat and I'm a vegetarian. So basically I cook the same thing but two versions. I've done chickpea taco's mashed with avocado. Black bean fajitas, black bean shepherd's pie (ok, not healthy) ... 3 bean chili's. When I cook spaghetti I normally grab all types of veggies then throw some beans in then add sauce.
Heck... I've even done Black Bean Hamburger Helper.
TRILLIANTOO 8/9/08 1:22 P
My BF makes a lentil soup with potatoes every winter, I don't know what's in it, but I'm sure you can find a recipe.
I add beans to my salad, and use refried beans (or whole beans) in tacos and burritos, or sometimes make a taco or tostada salad with lettuce, salsa, avocado, beans, ground meat (or ground soy) that's been cooked with some chili powder and garlic powder.
Beans are also great as a warm side dish.
I also cook my beans the way the previous poster said - not soaking adds just 1 hour to the cooking time, so it's really not a big deal.
I cooked garbanzo beans for the first time this past week simply by rinsing them and putting them in a big pot of cold water, bring to a boil, simmer partly covered until done, which was about 2 hours.
A recipe I got from Rick Bayless (host of Mexico One Plate at a Time) is to sautee white onions in canola oil on medium heat until the onions are carmelized, about 10 minutes, then add the rinsed beans (epazote if you can get it) and the water, bring to a boil, simmer partly covered for 2 hours.
I was watching a show that Emeril did recently where he sauteed onions with celery and carrots before adding water and beans.
One of these days I'm going to get the Italian white beans and cook them Rick Bayless's way, but instead of using epazote add fresh basil, and maybe some oregano.
A trick I learned from another TV cook is when cooking with basil, just put the whole plant in there, don't dice it or anything, because cooking makes basil turn black. That way you can cook the basil and get the flavor, and then easily pull it out before serving.
Also, salt the beans at the END of the cooking time, not the beginning, as it can keep the beans from softening while cooking.
I really like cooking my own beans because I can cook a wider variety of bean, I can cook as much or as little as I need, I can flavor it any which way I want, and I can control how much salt / sodium is in it.
In fact, I don't ever salt my beans mostly because I've gotten used to less salty foods, but I figure I'm picking up enough salt elsewhere, such as if I make the beans refried and then use them in a flour tortilla or top it with packaged salsa or cheese.
One thing I've not yet experimented with is beans of different size - broad beans are very large, aduki beans are very small, so I don't know if it would take less time to cook the aduki beans than the 2 hours for kidney, black, or garbanzo beans, for instance.
HORSEMANIA 8/5/08 8:06 P
Every single mexican dish I make...I add black beans to. I love black beans!
TPOP146 8/5/08 8:00 P
I substitute half the meat in a recipe for beans, like canolini beans in spagetti, or black beans in tacos. It lowers fat, and the cost, and increases fiber in a recipe. This week I browned a pound of 93% lean ground turkey with some onion and celery. I removed half the meat and froze it for spagetti a later night. I added a can of black beans and taco spices. For the spagetti, I microwaved the frozen meat, added the beans and some bottled low sugar ragu and served it over whole wheat spagetti noodles. Each meal made 4 servings. Good, cheap, quick, kid friendly meals.
CHEERIO2 8/5/08 10:39 A
I just wrote a message above. It applies to lentils also except lentils cook in about 30-40 minutes so they are alot faster. Lentils with onion and a bay leaf for seasoning. Add whatever you like! Easy!!
CHEERIO2 8/5/08 10:36 A
Beans are easy and wonderful. Buy them dry..I especially like the black variety. Pour bag out on a cookie sheet sort them looking for small stones. Don't worry about split beans you're only looking for foreign objects. Rinse in a colander in the sink. Cover with water and cook on low for 2-3 hours. Now add whatever you wish. Often all I add is a few boullion cubes. You can add onions if you want sometime during the cooking time too. I don't pre-soak my beans like I use to because I learned you lose nutrients when you do this. Your body will adjust to regular beans in your diet and gas shouldn't be a problem otherwise bean-no is a good product for gas. It's a natural product. Hope this helps!
MADELINE23 8/4/08 10:47 P
I love lentils but do not know how to cook them. I buy Progresso Lentil soup.....yummy !!
ANGELGIRL7608 8/4/08 9:34 P
It is said that having beans is good for you but exactly how do you cook them or what do you use them in? Any ideas of recipes would be helpful
