10 rules for cooking beans that housewives must know

How to cook beans correctly, the benefits of beans and the best recipes

Raw beans contain toxic substances that are destroyed only during heat treatment. The easiest way to prepare beans is boiling. The prepared product can be used for preparing cold or hot dishes and snacks, side dishes or home canning.

Thanks to its mineral components, beans are considered a healthy dietary product. It contains large amounts of potassium, phosphorus, copper and zinc. Beans are a source of protein necessary for children's and medical diets.

Depending on the type and variety of beans, the cooking time and method may vary.

There are culinary rules that you can use to quickly cook beans at home, preserving all their beneficial properties and taste.

Rules and tips:

1. Beans must be carefully sorted before cooking, removing all empty, dried out or changed color and shape beans. The taste of the finished dish depends on their quality, so do not skip this important stage of preparation.
2. The beans should be soaked. The white variety is considered more delicate, so soaking time can be reduced to 4-5 hours. During this time, all bitterness and harmful organic substances will disappear from the beans.
3. The water should be discarded after soaking the beans. The liquid absorbs all harmful substances and bitterness contained in raw beans. It can cause gastrointestinal irritation, so fresh water should be used for cooking.
4. Cooking should be done over low heat. Due to extreme heat, beans lose most of their beneficial and nutritional properties.
5. You should first place the frying pan on the stove that is turned on. Place the beans for frying on a well-heated surface.
6. Cook until the beans are completely softened. Hard fruits are difficult to digest and can cause problems with the digestive system.
7. Cooking is the main stage of preparation before further cooking. If you plan to fry or bake beans, the grains should first be boiled until tender.

Cooking recipes for all types of beans:

1. Red. Pour fresh water over the prepared beans, place on low heat and bring to a boil. After 5 minutes of boiling, the water should be drained and replaced with cold water. Repeat the procedure for replacing the decoction 2 more times. For the last time, the liquid is brought to a boil, the heat is reduced to low, and the beans are simmered until tender (soft) for 2 hours.
2. White. Pour cold water over the beans, bring to a boil and cook for 3 minutes. Remove the pan with beans from the heat, close the lid and leave to steep for 60 minutes. Drain the cooled broth, pour in the beans again and cook until tender.
3. Capsicum. Pour cold water into a saucepan, bring to a boil and add salt to taste. Place the washed pods in boiling water and cook for 5-10 minutes (depending on size). Place the finished beans in a colander and cool.

General culinary rules and tips for cooking beans

The most important thing is to time it. We understand that planning dinner in advance is not always possible. However, you need to prepare for cooking in advance - a capricious lady requires more attention than other products. Allow an average of 16 hours for soaking and cooking.

If this figure scared you and you decided to give up and buy a canned vegetable, we don’t recommend rushing. First, imagine how many preservatives are in a 425 gram jar. Secondly, the beans were probably not prepared for cooking correctly, i.e. not pre-soaked. And this is really important. Why? You will learn about this a little later in the next section of the article.

Monitor the water level in the pan

Important Tips:

• Check the expiration date. Do not try to cook beans that have been in the bins for more than 1 year and have dried out. No matter how you cook, she will not soften;
• For cooking, choose a low saucepan with a large bottom diameter. This way the grains will cook evenly and won’t burn;
• Skim off any foam that appears during cooking;
• Cook the beans over low heat without stirring. With constant boiling, the shell of the grains will rupture, and the entire contents of the pan will turn into porridge;
• When cooking, pay attention to the water level. Add boiling water from the kettle to the pan if necessary.
• It is recommended to salt the beans a couple of minutes before they are ready, and spices can be added at any time;
• Cooked beans can be stored in the refrigerator for about 3 days. Therefore, cook the product for future use or prepare the dish for the next day.

How to prepare beans?

Preliminary preparation - cleaning. The beans must be poured onto a towel and sorted. All low-quality beans are removed: yellowed, changed shape, color, damaged, etc.

The main stage of preparation for cooking is soaking. Water is used for this. Since the liquid will absorb all harmful substances and bitterness, it is recommended to change it several times (every 2-3 hours).

Boiled bean salad

Ingredients

• Red beans – 150 grams
• Marinated champignons – 100 grams
• Red onion - 1 piece
• Mayonnaise - 2 tablespoons
• Parsley - to taste
• Olive oil - 2 tablespoons
• Salt and pepper

Preparation

1. First you need to boil the beans, then put them in a colander to cool.
2. Peel the onion and cut it into half rings. Fry until golden brown.
3. Take a salad bowl, lay out onions and beans, add chopped champignons, salt, pepper, add herbs and season with mayonnaise. Boiled bean salad is ready for the table!

How to soak beans?

The procedure for soaking beans before cooking is carried out several hours before preparing the main dish. The sorted beans must be poured into a container, the volume of which should be 3-4 times larger than the beans. Pour water into the beans in a ratio of 1:2 and leave for 6-12 hours. Depending on the size and type of beans, soaking time may vary.

Slow or cold way

This option takes a lot of time, but is the most optimal for preserving all the beneficial properties of beans. The grains are poured with cold (boiled) water and left for 10-12 hours in a cool, dark place. Large fruits can be left to soak overnight.

Water should be used previously boiled and cooled. Raw water will make the beans tough and lose their flavor.

Fast or hot method

If you don’t have time for long soaking, you can use a faster method. To do this, pour the beans with cold water, bring to a boil and leave in the broth for 1 hour. The procedure should be repeated 2-3 times, the last time you don’t have to drain the water, but cook the beans until fully cooked.

Each time you prepare a decoction, you should take fresh water.

General rules for storing and preparing different types of beans

The variety (red, white, green) and type (frozen, canned) of beans determine the characteristics of its preparation. However, there are general storage and preparation rules that apply to all varieties.

1. Beans should not be stored at high temperatures, otherwise they will germinate. The best option is a cool, dark place or refrigerator.
2. It is important to prepare the product correctly, since undercooked products contain substances harmful to the human body.
3. Salt slows down the cooking process and makes the beans tough, so it is added 10-15 minutes before they are ready.
4. You can check readiness like this: remove the bean from the pan and blow on it. If the skin bursts, the product is ready.

How to cook beans?

There are several ways to cook beans at home. It will be tasty, soft and healthy if you follow simple rules. To prepare a side dish or snack, it is recommended to cook beans with the addition of vegetable oil. When the water boils, pour 1 tsp into it. olive or corn oil. This will make the grains tender and crumbly, while protecting them from cracking.

The second method of cooking beans so that they are soft and tasty is called combined. While cooking the grains, add cold water 4-5 times. You need to pour in the cold liquid at the moment when the broth boils strongly. Add water 1 glass at a time, do not stir the beans.

The general rule to follow concerns salt and spices. The grains should be salted 1-2 minutes before the end of cooking. Spices and herbs are not added to the broth, but along with the dressing before serving the dish.

Useful tips

• White beans do not need to be pre-soaked.
• Beans are salted 10 minutes before the end of cooking, as salt slows down the cooking time.
• Use a large container for soaking - the size of the beans increases.
• When stewing, the beans may darken. Therefore, do not cover the pan with a lid.
• In summer, soaked grains are placed in the refrigerator.
• Do not eat undercooked beans as they contain harmful substances.
• Add salt at the beginning of cooking if you need whole beans.
• If you want to cook crumbly beans, add salt to the water at the end of cooking.
• Stirring the beans causes them to cook. This is how puree soup and pate are made.

Cooking time

The cooking time depends on the type and size of the grains. To find out exactly how long beans are cooked, with or without soaking, you should follow a simple rule:

1. Light varieties will be ready after 60 minutes of vigorous boiling.
2. Dark varieties take longer to cook, so it is better to use the method of adding cold water for them. The total time is 1-2 hours.
3. Beans in pods cook much faster. The procedure takes 5-6 minutes for a fresh product and 8-10 minutes for a frozen one.

You can determine the exact time for how long to cook the beans in a simple way. Pour water over a few grains and leave in a cool place. Remember the time during which the beans absorb all the liquid - the same amount will be needed to cook these grains.

Alternative cooking methods

Method with thermal changes . So, put the beans in a saucepan, add water, bring to a boil, reduce the temperature and simmer for 15 minutes. Then drain the water and fill the pan with cold water again. We repeat the steps 2 more times. When the water boils for the third time, cook for another 30 minutes until done.

A similar option : Add half a cup of cold water several times to a large boiling saucepan. Again, due to the temperature difference, the beans will cook faster.

Ready-made bean dish

Oven method . Surely many people inherited a cast iron frying pan (cauldron) from their grandmothers and parents. It can also be useful for beans. The recipe is simple:

• prepare the oven in advance: preheat to 180 °C;
• pour the beans into the roasting pan and fill them with water so that there is 10-15 cm more water;
• add a little salt and spices to taste;
• Be sure to close the cauldron with a lid and put it in the oven;
• After 2 hours, take out the finished dish with a delicate creamy texture.

How to determine the readiness of a product?

Ready boiled beans should be strong, whole, but soft inside the grain. You can determine readiness during cooking in 2 ways: by taste or using a knife or other sharp object. Soft beans should have a thin skin and be easily pierced, but not cracked. The popped grains can be used for puree soup or side dish.

Why do beans take so long to cook?

Boiled beans are great as a side dish for meat and fish. It can be served as a separate dish, or in combination with other boiled or raw vegetables, as well as added to vegetable soup or made into a puree soup. In any case, beans have a good taste and satisfy hunger perfectly.

However, raw or undercooked beans should not be eaten. The fact is that beans contain toxic glycosides that can cause severe poisoning. This is not such a rare case, many vegetables and fruits contain some amount of toxic substances - potatoes, radishes, radishes, mustard, almonds, peaches, pears, plums and even apples and cherries. But the glycosides contained in beans can only be removed in one way - by dissolving them in boiling water. Therefore, you should not eat raw pods or the beans themselves - to eat, the beans must be cooked until fully cooked.

Before the beans are cooked, they are soaked in water for a long time. Pre-soaking beans in water not only speeds up their cooking. Carbohydrates in beans are contained in the form of oligosaccharides, which are very poorly absorbed by our body. It is oligosaccharides that cause gas formation and flatulence, which is why many people refuse to eat beans altogether. But during soaking, they dissolve and no longer cause harm to the digestion process.

On a note! One-fifth of beans consists of protein; only meat contains more protein. In addition, beans are an excellent source of copper, zinc, potassium and phosphorus, as well as many vitamins - A, B, C, K, PP and E. But the most important difference between beans and other vegetables is that all the beneficial substances contained in them are completely preserved during heat treatment. There is simply no other such wonderful vegetable.

How long does it take to cook frozen green beans?

Cooking beans depends not only on the type and variety, but also on the method used. Frozen semi-finished products are prepared much faster, since they have already undergone primary heat treatment. On average, the pods cook for 8-10 minutes.

It must be remembered that it is not recommended to defrost semi-finished products after blast freezing. This way, the products will lose not only some of their beneficial properties, but also their visual appeal. To prepare a salad or side dish, the frozen pods should be thrown directly into boiling salted water.

Features of choosing white beans

White beans are good because they are a low-calorie product. So people who want to get rid of extra pounds need to include such a product in their diet as often as possible.

People with liver and gastrointestinal diseases, or problems with the pancreas and gall bladder, should avoid eating white beans.

Animal protein is much more difficult to digest than plant protein. Therefore, it is preferable for older pensioners to eat beans instead of meat. White beans improve the functioning of the cardiovascular system, which will have a beneficial effect at any age.

Substituting Ingredients

For those engaged in heavy physical labor or sports activities, it will be more difficult to get enough of white beans. Therefore, active people are recommended to consume red beans. It is higher in calories and has more nutrients. But compared to white, it is absorbed much more slowly.

How to cook the pods?

When using green beans, you should pay attention not only to their appearance, but also to their size. Cooking time, as well as the taste of the product, depend on its age. Young bean pods cook quickly. If you fill them with hot water, they will be ready to eat in just 7 minutes.

Pods with thicker, tougher skins will take 10-12 minutes to cook. It is recommended to cut adult fibrous fruits into 2-3 parts. After freezing, the pods cook 2 times faster, 4-6 minutes.

Vitamins

Is soaking necessary and why?

Beans soaked in water will cook faster than those cooked without soaking, and will retain their shape without turning into an unsightly “porridge” during cooking. And most importantly, antinutrients are destroyed in soaked beans - substances that protect the fruit from external influences, but can cause digestive problems in people .

Only beans are subjected to this treatment; green beans do not need to be soaked before cooking!

Soaking simulates the beginning of bean growth, which requires a moist and fairly warm environment to germinate. Enzymes are activated in the beans, the availability of vitamins and minerals increases - the beans seem to “wake up”. This is very beneficial for PP specialists, because after soaking this product becomes about 80% healthier.

But the main thing here is not to overdo it. It is enough to soak the beans for 6-8 hours, periodically changing the water. But there is no need to leave it in water for a long time, since after soaking it overnight in the beans, the processes of destruction of useful substances begin. In addition, the beans may simply turn sour!

Soaking beans is very easy - fill them with cool water so that the liquid level is 2 fingers higher than the beans, which quickly swell in water. After 3 hours, the water needs to be changed (again 2 fingers higher). It is strictly not recommended to use such water for cooking!

Beans in the pp diet: so different, but so cool!

An amazing fact: fresh beans contain more than 300 kcal, while dry beans “weigh” about 265 (per 100 grams of product). But when boiled, the calorie content of this product becomes quite suitable even for dietary nutrition, and not just pp:

• white beans - 102 kcal;
• red - 93 kcal;
• legume - 24 kcal.

At the same time, green beans contain the most vitamins, antioxidants, minerals, folic acid and fiber. But the content of nutrients in white and red beans is practically the same, except that the latter contains more B vitamins, which have a positive effect on the condition of the skin, hair and nervous system.

Boiled beans effectively “expel” excess water from the body and stabilize blood pressure, remove toxins, excess “bad” cholesterol and help the immune system fight viruses.