Dried beans

[Trudie]

This is personal home economics on a very small scale, but I was just at my local grocer (which was just bought out by a larger regional chain) to buy one bag of beans and as I was checking out he said, "Do you eat lots of beans?"  I shrugged because I probably eat more than the average person, but I'm not addicted to them or anything.  And up until now I've largely bought the canned variety.

He proceeded to tell me that he's got to get rid of the old store brand of dried beans and he's got lots of them and will make me a heck of a deal.  So, I left a message for him to call me tomorrow.

So this is all about the "musical fruit!"  Questions:

(1)  What sort of deal should I try to make?
(2)  What are favorite MM ways to cook and freeze them?
(3)  How much is TOO much?

We are a house with two people.  I was also thinking that if he gives me an offer I can't refuse and it's way too many I would just give a bunch to the food pantry.

[Exflyboy]

Around here dried red kidney beans are got for $1:17 a pound and the small white Northern beans for something like $1:04.

i PERSONALLY DON'T CARE FOR THE FLAVOUR OF THE LARGE WHITE nORTHERN BEANS.. oops caps lock.

Dried Beans are great I believe you get about a 4:1 ratio pound for pound in using dried beans vs canned.

You cook them in the pressure cooker for 22 minutes and can freeze them after cooking.

That should give you an idea.

Frank

[jfer_rose]

I love them all! I cook dried beans many, many weekends. Chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans), black beans, kidney beans, pinto beans, cannelloni beans, and when I am in the mood for a splurge, heirloom beans (on me oh my, Rancho Gordo Rio Zape beans!!!).

I cook up a batch and freeze what I won't be using immediately. I use wide mouth canning jars for that purpose. The wide mouth jars are better for freezing than regular canning jars.

I actually got rid of my pressure cooker. I cook my beans on the stove top. They simmer while I clean or do other household chores. Typically it takes no more than 2 hours but almost all of that time is hands off. I do soak my beans. Either overnight, or I use the quick soak method (quick soak: you bring the beans to a boil for 2 minutes, remove from heat and then let sit for 1-2 hours before cooking). Cook until done. I have learned the hard way that you really need to test 4 or 5 beans for doneness before removing from heat-- some beans will soften before the rest of the batch.

I typically cook 1 pound in a weekend, sometimes 2. I live alone and I like to keep my freezer to be loaded up with different kinds of beans so I can make a mean 3-bean chili, or similar.

[deborah]

He's got to get rid of the old store brand of dried beans and he's got lots of them and will make me a heck of a deal.  So, I left a message for him to call me tomorrow.

So this is all about the "musical fruit!"  Questions:

(1)  What sort of deal should I try to make?
(2)  What are favorite MM ways to cook and freeze them?
(3)  How much is TOO much?

We are a house with two people.  I was also thinking that if he gives me an offer I can't refuse and it's way too many I would just give a bunch to the food pantry.

1. Don't know.

2. I never freeze them, but we live on soup in winter, and minestrone, German Bean soup, and many other unpureed soups are all bean candidates. If the offer includes lentils and/or dried peas you can have dahl. Beans are protein and very cheap. Look for ethnic dishes - Refried beans, Boston Baked Beans, Egyptian beans (falafel), Indian beans and dahl.

3. We are supposed to have legumes at least twice a week according to dieticians. Dried beans from centuries ago have been cooked and eaten, and been OK - they don't go off unless they get moisture in them. So I don't think any quantity less than a lifetime supply is too much.

[Johnny Aloha]

I don't know what a 'good price' will be for your area ... but stock up!  Dried beans are a much cheaper alternative to the canned variety, and have more flexibility since you can spice them any way you want as you cook them.  We buy the 50lb bag from Costco!

[Pegasus]

If they get too old, dried beans won't soften no matter how long you cook them.  Ran into that with split pea soup last Winter.  Anyone else run into that or have a better way to store them to avoid it?  (Mine were newly purchased but think the store wasn't selling them in a timely way.

[deborah]

If they get too old, dried beans won't soften no matter how long you cook them.  Ran into that with split pea soup last Winter.  Anyone else run into that or have a better way to store them to avoid it?  (Mine were newly purchased but think the store wasn't selling them in a timely way.

What were you cooking them with? For instance, you add tomatoes after you have softened them - they won't soften further. Also, how long did you cook them?

I haven't noticed any difference between new beans and 10 year old beans.

[Grid]

I don't know what a 'good price' will be for your area ... but stock up!  Dried beans are a much cheaper alternative to the canned variety, and have more flexibility since you can spice them any way you want as you cook them.  We buy the 50lb bag from Costco!

If Costco has a bag, maybe Sam's Club does as well...  dang, my store only sells a 10lb bag of pinto beans.

 I find this thread quite a coincidence as I just finished soaking a couple pounds of black beans overnight and cooking them this evening, for the first time in half a year.

[La Bibliotecaria Feroz]

I like to cook them in the crock pot! 8 hours on low suits most things, maybe if they were very old beans you might need 10 hours. I do usually soak them first. That way, I'm not having to check and make sure that the stove is set just right for "simmer" and stay home for the whole time they're cooking.

I freeze them in portions of a bit over 2 cups, in cooled-off cooking liquid, in freezer bags that I wash and reuse. (Usually I reuse them for rice to reduce the risk of leakage!) A can of beans is only about 1 3/4 cups, but when a recipe calls for a can of beans, I generally want more than it calls for.

[Kaminoge]

(1)  What sort of deal should I try to make?
(2)  What are favorite MM ways to cook and freeze them?
(3)  How much is TOO much?
We are a house with two people.  I was also thinking that if he gives me an offer I can't refuse and it's way too many I would just give a bunch to the food pantry.

1. No idea. You'd have to look at how much beans normally cost where you are.

2. I eat a LOT of beans. Basically I soak them overnight, simmer them for a couple of hours and then drain and
                a) mash up and then freeze (for later making of refried beans)
                b) just freeze as is

3. How much is too much is really dependant on you. When my boyfriend is with me we usually cook at least a kg of beans every weekend (dry weight). More if I want to freeze some. But we're a vegetarian/vegan combo who eats a LOT of beans. Partly it depends on your storage space. I can only freeze a few kg at a time because of freezer space.

[boarder42]

whats the 50lb bag cost at costco.  b/c based on the prices i've seen i can buy can beans cheaper around here aldi has can beans for 55c ... a can is a little less than 2 cups and you get 4 cups per pound.  at 1.19 a pound can beans are cheaper and you dont have to do any work or use energy to cook them. 

[lpep]

As a vegetarian, BEANS ARE THE GREATEST. You can put them in anything! They add a cheap beautiful protein! If you buy them dry, you can soak them first and not be so farty!

I cook them from dry in my rice cooker, and they simmer away without any open flames on my gas stove for me to worry about (plus, if you live in a hot hot place like I do... put the rice cooker outside and don't heat up the house!).

You can freeze them and then heat them right back up in the rice cooker. They are surprisingly resilient.

Some ideas for beany meals:
 - Plantains with black beans and rice
 - White bean, tomato, and kale Italian-spiced soup
 - Cannellini beans with rosemary
 - Chickpea chana masala, great served with Indian-spiced cabbage and rice
 - Red beans and rice
 - Hummus!
 - Huevos rancheros
 - Black bean bowls with onions, peppers, rice, cheese, and guac/sour cream
 - Black bean burgers (about 2c beans, 2 eggs, half a chopped onion, and some bread crumbs smashed all in a bowl with some spices, cook in patties, yum)
 - Falafel
 - Pretty much any kind of soup, just add 'em in!
 - Daal - if you haves split peas, I've made it with green and yellow (yellow is better), you don't need most of the spices the recipes call for and it'll still be good.
 
BUY THEM ALL. They freeze really well! They're good for you! They're super cheap protein! They last forever! What are you waiting for?!


(I live in Asia, and beans are kind of hard to find here. I might be living vicariously through you.)

[horsepoor]

I like to cook them in the crock pot! 8 hours on low suits most things, maybe if they were very old beans you might need 10 hours. I do usually soak them first. That way, I'm not having to check and make sure that the stove is set just right for "simmer" and stay home for the whole time they're cooking.

I freeze them in portions of a bit over 2 cups, in cooled-off cooking liquid, in freezer bags that I wash and reuse. (Usually I reuse them for rice to reduce the risk of leakage!) A can of beans is only about 1 3/4 cups, but when a recipe calls for a can of beans, I generally want more than it calls for.

I have started doing this as well.  Chickpeas especially seemed hard to predict on the needed pressure cooking time, and it's annoying to bring down the pressure and discover they aren't soft enough.  So I've been soaking overnight in the crock, giving them a good rinse, then they cook away on low all day while I'm at work.  Super easy.

As far as what kind of deal you should get - around here bulk beans usually run around $1 a pound, so I'd maybe shoot for half price.  Who knows, he might just want to unload them at 25 cents or something.

FWIW on the fartiness, I did some experimentation on eliminating legumes and then adding them back into my diet, and found that black beans and lentils had the least effect on disrupting my gut, while the bigger kidney/red beans were the worst, so I tend to avoid those now.

Lentils have the benefit of more protein and a quicker cooking time, too.

[NumberCruncher]

whats the 50lb bag cost at costco.  b/c based on the prices i've seen i can buy can beans cheaper around here aldi has can beans for 55c ... a can is a little less than 2 cups and you get 4 cups per pound.  at 1.19 a pound can beans are cheaper and you dont have to do any work or use energy to cook them.

The amount of cups you can get from a pound of beans depends on the type of bean, as does the amount of swelling the beans will see. For chickpeas, for example, a pound dry is a little over 2 cups dry. When cooked, they yield roughly 3x the dry volume.

I would be surprised if the canned beans really are cheaper in your case...eh, either way the difference in price is probably not much. At my grocery store I think we figured out dry was roughly 1/2 the price, depending on type of bean.

To the OP, I'd figure out how old they were to get a general idea of what you're dealing with. See articles like http://www.mamaonthego.com/what-to-do-with-old-beans/ to gauge the work needed in preparing old beans

This article on expired food talks about discounts some store offer http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2013/11/08/what-does-expiration-date-really-mean/

It seems like something like 75% off the normal price may be a reasonable expectation. Have him say the first number. :)

[curlycue]

If they get too old, dried beans won't soften no matter how long you cook them.  Ran into that with split pea soup last Winter.  Anyone else run into that or have a better way to store them to avoid it?  (Mine were newly purchased but think the store wasn't selling them in a timely way.

I've had the same exact problem.

[unix_kung_fu]

Make sure you soak them overnight first, unless it is a pulse (lentil, split-pea) - even if cooking in a pressure cooker.  The gas you get from beans is the un-digestable sugars and soaking overnight (then dumping the water, then rinsing off) will eliminate most if not all of that issue. I eat a couple pounds of beans that were dried each week at a minimum and don't have any issues.

If you're going bulk I strongly recommend a pressure cooker. When cooking large volumes and/or frequently you'll end up paying in time alone if you cook it the normal way.

For those of you that don't get a great deal from a local grocer, keep this in mind: bulk bins are not always the best deal. Most of us probably know this but here goes anyway: grocers sometimes will jack up the prices on bulk bins, or economy size packages, etc, because most assume it will be cheaper.

I make sure to calculate the cost per ounce from the bulk bins and then check the packaged ones.

[Trudie]

As a vegetarian, BEANS ARE THE GREATEST. You can put them in anything! They add a cheap beautiful protein! If you buy them dry, you can soak them first and not be so farty!

I cook them from dry in my rice cooker, and they simmer away without any open flames on my gas stove for me to worry about (plus, if you live in a hot hot place like I do... put the rice cooker outside and don't heat up the house!).

You can freeze them and then heat them right back up in the rice cooker. They are surprisingly resilient.

Some ideas for beany meals:
 - Plantains with black beans and rice
 - White bean, tomato, and kale Italian-spiced soup
 - Cannellini beans with rosemary
 - Chickpea chana masala, great served with Indian-spiced cabbage and rice
 - Red beans and rice
 - Hummus!
 - Huevos rancheros
 - Black bean bowls with onions, peppers, rice, cheese, and guac/sour cream
 - Black bean burgers (about 2c beans, 2 eggs, half a chopped onion, and some bread crumbs smashed all in a bowl with some spices, cook in patties, yum)
 - Falafel
 - Pretty much any kind of soup, just add 'em in!
 - Daal - if you haves split peas, I've made it with green and yellow (yellow is better), you don't need most of the spices the recipes call for and it'll still be good.
 
BUY THEM ALL. They freeze really well! They're good for you! They're super cheap protein! They last forever! What are you waiting for?!


(I live in Asia, and beans are kind of hard to find here. I might be living vicariously through you.)

Gee, I should give your name to the store manager.  He can ship you boxfulls to Asia!

[unix_kung_fu]

If they get too old, dried beans won't soften no matter how long you cook them.  Ran into that with split pea soup last Winter.  Anyone else run into that or have a better way to store them to avoid it?  (Mine were newly purchased but think the store wasn't selling them in a timely way.

I've had the same exact problem.

I've seen this before, when soaking them overnight I remove any beans that float to the top to avoid this. Although with split peas I don't soak them so I wouldn't know. Then again I buy split peas in 5 lb bags every 1 - 4 months (depending on the season) from a grower that came from no later than last years season, so no need to worry :)

[netskyblue]

I can them.  I hate the smell of cooking beans, so I do a big batch once a year, and fill my canner with pints (it holds 19).  I find canned more convenient than frozen, and we're short on freezer space anyway.

As far as old dry beans, last year my mom found some that she'd stored over 20 years prior, and they were still edible.  I'm not sure if she pressure cooked them.  Probably, she often does.

[scottydog]

I like to cook them in the crock pot! 8 hours on low suits most things, maybe if they were very old beans you might need 10 hours. I do usually soak them first. That way, I'm not having to check and make sure that the stove is set just right for "simmer" and stay home for the whole time they're cooking.

If you're not boiling the beans, be careful to avoid red kidney bean poisoning: http://www.foodreference.com/html/artredkidneybeanpoisoning.html.

I encountered this when I cooked some white kidney beans in the slow cooker.  Cooking at low temperature can concentrate a toxin, and it's apparently much worse with the red kidney beans.  I had soaked them overnight (10-12h) and then cooked them on low for 8-10h (I can't remember exactly how long it was - I usually test them every 30 minutes or so after 8 hours).  I used the cooked beans in a baked loaf recipe, and my tummy went off about half an hour after eating; my wife's tummy reacted a few minutes after mine.  Both of us also developed headaches that went away the next day.  Luckily our kids were feeling particularly picky and didn't eat supper that night.  I felt like a huge idiot for potentially poisoning my family while expressly trying to prepare a healthy meal.

Now I'm paranoid and I always boil all beans for at least 10 minutes, and by that point it no longer makes sense to switch to the slow cooker so I just continue simmering them on the stove.  Unfortunately I'm still learning this new cooking method and so far my beans have typically been overdone - they split. 

I'm toying with the idea of buying a pressure cooker because the reduced cooking time should save a ton of energy, at least according to this chart: http://centralbean.com/cooking-beans/#bean-cooking-times.

[Conjou]

I like to cook them in the crock pot! 8 hours on low suits most things, maybe if they were very old beans you might need 10 hours. I do usually soak them first. That way, I'm not having to check and make sure that the stove is set just right for "simmer" and stay home for the whole time they're cooking.

If you're not boiling the beans, be careful to avoid red kidney bean poisoning: http://www.foodreference.com/html/artredkidneybeanpoisoning.html.

I encountered this when I cooked some white kidney beans in the slow cooker.  Cooking at low temperature can concentrate a toxin, and it's apparently much worse with the red kidney beans.  I had soaked them overnight (10-12h) and then cooked them on low for 8-10h (I can't remember exactly how long it was - I usually test them every 30 minutes or so after 8 hours).  I used the cooked beans in a baked loaf recipe, and my tummy went off about half an hour after eating; my wife's tummy reacted a few minutes after mine.  Both of us also developed headaches that went away the next day.  Luckily our kids were feeling particularly picky and didn't eat supper that night.  I felt like a huge idiot for potentially poisoning my family while expressly trying to prepare a healthy meal.

Now I'm paranoid and I always boil all beans for at least 10 minutes, and by that point it no longer makes sense to switch to the slow cooker so I just continue simmering them on the stove.  Unfortunately I'm still learning this new cooking method and so far my beans have typically been overdone - they split. 

I'm toying with the idea of buying a pressure cooker because the reduced cooking time should save a ton of energy, at least according to this chart: http://centralbean.com/cooking-beans/#bean-cooking-times.

Wow! I really had no idea this could be an issue. Lucky I have only done black beans in the crock pot. Thanks for the link and info.

[brewer12345]

I'd offer 50 cents a pound and be willing to go up to 60 cents. Then start learning to cook with beans.  At the moment I buy beans in bulk and have a bucket of pintos, a bucket of black beans and a bucket of garbanzos on hand and we are members of the Rancho Gordo bean club, which means every 6 or 8 weeks we get a shipment of foo-foo beans that are often small lot stuff not available to the general public.  I figure the 50 pound sacks ofstuff I buy for peanuts offsets the Rancho Gordo extravagance.

[jfer_rose]

I'd offer 50 cents a pound and be willing to go up to 60 cents. Then start learning to cook with beans.  At the moment I buy beans in bulk and have a bucket of pintos, a bucket of black beans and a bucket of garbanzos on hand and we are members of the Rancho Gordo bean club, which means every 6 or 8 weeks we get a shipment of foo-foo beans that are often small lot stuff not available to the general public.  I figure the 50 pound sacks ofstuff I buy for peanuts offsets the Rancho Gordo extravagance.

Rancho Gordo beans are one of the luxury items I don't mind paying extra for from time to time. So great! That said, since becoming more Mustachian I don't buy as many or as often.

[MrsPete]

I agree with the poster who says fifty cents a pound is a good deal.  I would not distinguish between types of beans -- they don't vary widely in cost. 

I usually cook mine in the crock pot.  Soak them overnight, pour off the water and replace with fresh.  Cook them all day.  What could be easier?  Never add salt or tomatoes until the beans are done /almost done.  That's what makes them hard. 

If you get a great price, I'd aim to buy two years' worth -- more than that, I'd say isn't worth storing.  Beans aren't an expensive item anyway.  And definitely store them well in glass jars or some type of bug-proof, mouse-proof container.  It'd be awful to buy a large quantity of beans and then discover that some critter has helped himself.

[Gerard]

I second the suggestion to make sure to boil kidney beans (red or white) at least briefly. I once foolishly tried to cold-soak and grind them to make falafel, and the consequences were grim, grim, grim.

An interesting legume recipe that I found recently was in the Joe Beef cookbook (they're the guys that Tony Bourdain gets drunk with in Montreal):
http://www.amazon.ca/The-Art-Living-According-Beef/dp/1607740141

They cook red lentils (which are fast) with the same ingredients as baked beans (maple syrup or brown sugar, onions/garlic, mustard, pepper, cider vinegar, bacon/ham, bay leaf). They taste great, but they're much faster than real baked beans, so you'll actually consider whipping up a quick batch for a weekend lunch.

[bonjourliz]

We use a lot of dried beans.  Normally we cook them in the oven, a pound at a time, in the dutch oven.  Takes a couple hours.  We freeze the cooked beans in zip lock bags, about 2 cups per bag.

But they are best when they are cooked with spices. 

Simple recipe: 1lb pinto beans + 6 cups water + 2 tablespoons taco-style seasoning (5 parts chili powder; 3pts cumin, 2pts garlic, 2pts black pepper).  Cook in crock pot on high for 5.5 hours.  Use in burritos with diced potatoes, salsa, cheese, whatever you like.

Also this recipe is so good: http://www.averiecooks.com/2013/05/bourbon-maple-slow-cooker-baked-beans.html

Sent from my HTC first using Tapatalk

[lpep]

I like to cook them in the crock pot! 8 hours on low suits most things, maybe if they were very old beans you might need 10 hours. I do usually soak them first. That way, I'm not having to check and make sure that the stove is set just right for "simmer" and stay home for the whole time they're cooking.

If you're not boiling the beans, be careful to avoid red kidney bean poisoning: http://www.foodreference.com/html/artredkidneybeanpoisoning.html.

I encountered this when I cooked some white kidney beans in the slow cooker.  Cooking at low temperature can concentrate a toxin, and it's apparently much worse with the red kidney beans.  I had soaked them overnight (10-12h) and then cooked them on low for 8-10h (I can't remember exactly how long it was - I usually test them every 30 minutes or so after 8 hours).  I used the cooked beans in a baked loaf recipe, and my tummy went off about half an hour after eating; my wife's tummy reacted a few minutes after mine.  Both of us also developed headaches that went away the next day.  Luckily our kids were feeling particularly picky and didn't eat supper that night.  I felt like a huge idiot for potentially poisoning my family while expressly trying to prepare a healthy meal.

Now I'm paranoid and I always boil all beans for at least 10 minutes, and by that point it no longer makes sense to switch to the slow cooker so I just continue simmering them on the stove.  Unfortunately I'm still learning this new cooking method and so far my beans have typically been overdone - they split. 

I'm toying with the idea of buying a pressure cooker because the reduced cooking time should save a ton of energy, at least according to this chart: http://centralbean.com/cooking-beans/#bean-cooking-times.

Get a rice cooker instead! Like this one: http://www.amazon.ca/Aroma-ARC-914SBD-Cooked-Digital-Steamer/dp/B007WQ9YNO/ref=sr_1_2?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1402713592&sr=1-2&keywords=rice+cooker

It cooks the beans at a high simmer, like rice, so should eliminate your problem! Plus, you can cook anything in a rice cooker - I've made daal, tomato sauce, curry, soup...

[unix_kung_fu]

Get a rice cooker instead!

Get a pressure cooker instead! The times will be a fraction that of a rice cooker!

[Rezdent]

Get a rice cooker instead!

Get a pressure cooker instead! The times will be a fraction that of a rice cooker!

+1 for the pressure cooker as it can be used as a regular pot without pressure.
We keep a steady supply of beans going in the crockpot with leftovers in the fridge.  Having them always available has increased our consumption.

[lpep]

Get a rice cooker instead!

Get a pressure cooker instead! The times will be a fraction that of a rice cooker!

BUT you can't stir things in a pressure cooker. You can in a rice cooker :)

[deborah]

If you use the pressure cooker as a normal saucepan you CAN stir things!

[Erica/NWEdible]

I can them.  I hate the smell of cooking beans, so I do a big batch once a year, and fill my canner with pints (it holds 19).  I find canned more convenient than frozen, and we're short on freezer space anyway.

As far as old dry beans, last year my mom found some that she'd stored over 20 years prior, and they were still edible.  I'm not sure if she pressure cooked them.  Probably, she often does.

+1 to pressure canning your own dry beans. That's what I do, because the convenience of having ready to go, shelf stable beans is such a win, and the cost is only marginally more than dry beans. A flat lid for the canning jar, which is about 10 cents, is really the only cost above and beyond what you'd use for cooking dry beans anyway.

Just a quick safety note: beans must be canned in a pressure canner. A water bath canner is not sufficient. A pressure canner is also not the same as a pressure cooker. OK, stepping off my canning safety soapbox now...

[Rezdent]

Awesome!

[wtjbatman]

Just a quick safety note: beans must be canned in a pressure canner. A water bath canner is not sufficient. A pressure canner is also not the same as a pressure cooker. OK, stepping off my canning safety soapbox now...

This is the first time I have ever heard of a canning safety soapbox.

[unix_kung_fu]

any good ideas on where to find these at .25 or .50/lb? I assume finding some small ethnic grocers.. the local chains and even online I'm not finding anything near that low.

[wtjbatman]

any good ideas on where to find these at .25 or .50/lb? I assume finding some small ethnic grocers.. the local chains and even online I'm not finding anything near that low.

Is this a general question or a reference to what the OP paid? Because in the first post of the thread she said she was buying them from a store that was getting rid of their old stock.

[unix_kung_fu]

OOps. I did read the thread but it was days ago and I didn't re-read it.

[Gerard]

Something I didn't mention before and didn't see in the thread: I bet even pretty old beans would cook up fine if you actually sprouted them first, instead of just soaking them. I mean, Indian style, with the tiny tail, not like Chinese bean sprouts.

Soak whole seeds overnight or thereabouts, drain and rinse, stick them in a big jar with a piece of cheesecloth or other porous thing over the top (hold it on with an elastic, or a screw-on ring if it's a canning jar). Put the jar on a plate with its mouth tilted downward so remaining water can drain. Rinse and drain a couple of times a day. Cook when the sprouts are about a quarter of an inch long (usually in about two days). Obviously you can do this with fresher beans, too. The beans get softer and sweeter from starting to grow, and cook much faster. Yellow whole peas are especially awesome... they come out tasting a bit like sweet corn.

[kkbmustang]

I like to cook them in the crock pot! 8 hours on low suits most things, maybe if they were very old beans you might need 10 hours. I do usually soak them first. That way, I'm not having to check and make sure that the stove is set just right for "simmer" and stay home for the whole time they're cooking.

If you're not boiling the beans, be careful to avoid red kidney bean poisoning: http://www.foodreference.com/html/artredkidneybeanpoisoning.html.

I encountered this when I cooked some white kidney beans in the slow cooker.  Cooking at low temperature can concentrate a toxin, and it's apparently much worse with the red kidney beans.  I had soaked them overnight (10-12h) and then cooked them on low for 8-10h (I can't remember exactly how long it was - I usually test them every 30 minutes or so after 8 hours).  I used the cooked beans in a baked loaf recipe, and my tummy went off about half an hour after eating; my wife's tummy reacted a few minutes after mine.  Both of us also developed headaches that went away the next day.  Luckily our kids were feeling particularly picky and didn't eat supper that night.  I felt like a huge idiot for potentially poisoning my family while expressly trying to prepare a healthy meal.

Now I'm paranoid and I always boil all beans for at least 10 minutes, and by that point it no longer makes sense to switch to the slow cooker so I just continue simmering them on the stove.  Unfortunately I'm still learning this new cooking method and so far my beans have typically been overdone - they split. 

I'm toying with the idea of buying a pressure cooker because the reduced cooking time should save a ton of energy, at least according to this chart: http://centralbean.com/cooking-beans/#bean-cooking-times.

Get a rice cooker instead! Like this one: http://www.amazon.ca/Aroma-ARC-914SBD-Cooked-Digital-Steamer/dp/B007WQ9YNO/ref=sr_1_2?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1402713592&sr=1-2&keywords=rice+cooker

It cooks the beans at a high simmer, like rice, so should eliminate your problem! Plus, you can cook anything in a rice cooker - I've made daal, tomato sauce, curry, soup...

That's going on my Christmas wish list I have to give my parents and my husband's parents. They insist on giving us something (even though we need nothing) and this rice cooker is something I could us regularly. We eat a lot of rice and quinoa. And if it also cooks dried beans, even better! Thanks for the suggestion!

[scottydog]

Get a rice cooker instead! Like this one: http://www.amazon.ca/Aroma-ARC-914SBD-Cooked-Digital-Steamer/dp/B007WQ9YNO/ref=sr_1_2?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1402713592&sr=1-2&keywords=rice+cooker

It cooks the beans at a high simmer, like rice, so should eliminate your problem! Plus, you can cook anything in a rice cooker - I've made daal, tomato sauce, curry, soup...

This is a neat idea.  Thanks!  We already have a rice cooker, and although it's not digital I'm sure it's worth a shot.  I think the trick will be getting the beans:water ratio correct.  When I use it to cook brown rice, I need to add much more water than for white rice, but the end result is fine.

Do you have any favourite recipes for your rice cooker?  I've been unimaginative and only used mine for rice.

[lpep]

This is a neat idea.  Thanks!  We already have a rice cooker, and although it's not digital I'm sure it's worth a shot.  I think the trick will be getting the beans:water ratio correct.  When I use it to cook brown rice, I need to add much more water than for white rice, but the end result is fine.

Do you have any favourite recipes for your rice cooker?  I've been unimaginative and only used mine for rice.

You don't need digital! I like that one because it's insulated and not just a crappy glass lid on top with no good seal, although that would probably work fine too. I cook with one that has two settings, cook and warm.

For beans: you don't need a ratio like you do for rice. Just put in way more water than you think you need, and check while they cook! You're not going to use the water they cook in anyway, so having extra is no problem. Salt the water well too.

Anything you would simmer for awhile you can cook in a rice cooker! Think of it like a well-insulated hot plate. I've made the recipes I'll link to below, but pretty much any soup, stew, chili thing I think you could make just fine.

Yellow split pea daal (I only had turmeric and it still turned out delicious): http://www.vietworldkitchen.com/blog/2011/01/basic-yellow-split-pea-dal-recipe.html
Tomato sauce, kinda like this one but with a bit more stuff and not preserved: http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-basic-tomato-sauce-with-fresh-tomatoes-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-193622
Thai curry, based on a recipe from the curry paste jar but this would work: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/420641/veggie-thai-red-curry
Rice pudding: http://allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/30990/creamy-slow-cooker-rice-pudding.aspx
Italian soup, made up the recipe
Rice and beans (with pre-cooked beans)

I keep it outside it I'm doing beans or something that doesn't require supervision, so it doesn't heat up the house in the summer!

Also, if you're going to cook in it a lot, I recommend getting one that's easy to clean around the edges, because you'll definitely have some spillover :)

And now, for your reading pleasure, Roger Ebert's The Pot and How to Use It: http://www.rogerebert.com/rogers-journal/the-pot-and-how-to-use-it

[lpep]

That's going on my Christmas wish list I have to give my parents and my husband's parents. They insist on giving us something (even though we need nothing) and this rice cooker is something I could us regularly. We eat a lot of rice and quinoa. And if it also cooks dried beans, even better! Thanks for the suggestion!

^^^ Read above for some ideas!

Also, a gift you might consider in addition: http://www.amazon.com/The-Pot-How-Use-It/dp/0740791427

Rice cookers are just named badly. They are the everything cooker!

[boarder42]

crock pot recipe rocked.  i'm back to dried beans now ... Thank you.  should save around 100-200 bucks a year

[OSUBearCub]

whats the 50lb bag cost at costco.  b/c based on the prices i've seen i can buy can beans cheaper around here aldi has can beans for 55c ... a can is a little less than 2 cups and you get 4 cups per pound.  at 1.19 a pound can beans are cheaper and you dont have to do any work or use energy to cook them.

You get more like 6-7 cups of cooked beans from a pound of dried.  From my research, beans in the crock pot or pressure cooker method yields the highest value - easily beating canned.

[OSUBearCub]

Just an update...I was able to buy them for 25 cents a pound.

Nice!  How many pounds did he sell you?

[Trudie]

I could have bought way more than I did, but I bought about 6 pounds.  I'm just making my foray into beandom.

[OSUBearCub]

I could have bought way more than I did, but I bought about 6 pounds.  I'm just making my foray into beandom.

Nice!

[scottydog]

You don't need digital! I like that one because it's insulated and not just a crappy glass lid on top with no good seal, although that would probably work fine too. I cook with one that has two settings, cook and warm.

Yeah, mine has the same two settings plus the crappy glass lid. ;-)

Thanks for the suggestions!  I'm definitely going to try this the next time I cook some beans, and I'll try some of your other ideas too.

[OSUBearCub]

Can anyone go into further detail on this red bean food poisoning thing?  I had some long frozen chili the other night (with red beans) and I think I may have abused the beans.  I'll spare the details but something was seriously not right. Ha ha

[Trudie]

Yes -- I'd like to know about the "poisoning" too.  I've found that sometimes after I have beans I get really bad headaches.