Author Topic: Rice & Beans - First Timer  (Read 4900 times)

Zola.

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Rice & Beans - First Timer
« on: October 21, 2018, 06:44:59 AM »
I always cook on a Sunday for 3 or 4 days food in work, and then something for evening meals. Up to now it has always involved meat, usually chicken or beef.

I took the plunge this weekend and bought loads of different types of beans, with the intention of trying some rice and bean combos... my wife will be having this as well, so it needs to be tasty haha.

Any easy recipes that are really good?


terran

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #1 on: October 21, 2018, 07:59:15 AM »
Budget Bytes has a bunch of good ones: https://www.budgetbytes.com/category/recipes/beansandgrains/. The spanish chicpeas and rice recipe at the top is super tasty (we do the regular version, not the rice cooker version right at the top, but you'll find a link to the original in the rice cooker version).

We also do a heavily doctored version of https://www.budgetbytes.com/moroccan-lentil-vegetable-stew/ but with rice and without lentils (although either version would be good depending on your opinion of lentils). Here's ours:

1 T olive oil
1 medium onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 stalks (about half a bunch) celery
1⁄2 T ground cumin
1 t turmeric
1 t cinnamon
1⁄4 t cayenne pepper
600 g chickpeas
1 (28 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1 lb. frozen cauliflower florets
6 cups chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1 cup uncooked rice

Turkey Leg

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SilveradoBojangles

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #3 on: October 21, 2018, 08:47:42 AM »
This pinto beans recipe from Serious Eats is sooooooo good. It's great over rice or in tacos. I usually use 1/3 of the bacon (still gives it that smoky flavor) and just regular canned diced tomatoes because that is what the sell at costco, and it is still delicious. I have also made it in the instant pot, where I use half the stock.

https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2016/06/frijoles-charros-mexican-pinto-beans-bacon-recipe.html

Zaga

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #4 on: October 21, 2018, 08:53:02 AM »
What you make doesn't have to be meatless necessarily, we often bulk up regular meals with lots of beans.  Examples are:

turkey chili with 2 cans of beans
chicken or fish curry with chick peas
taco night with black beans and/or refried beans
Whatever stir fry I'm making, toss in a can of beans

birdie55

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #5 on: October 21, 2018, 09:05:35 AM »
Here is a good beans and rice recipe.  It also has mushrooms, shallots and chili paste....and it makes a bunch too. 

https://www.frugalwoods.com/2015/01/23/our-epically-frugal-lunch-recipe/

Cool Friend

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #6 on: October 21, 2018, 10:24:44 AM »
An "epically frugal" bean recipe that uses canned instead of dried??

Nothing wrong with canned beans, but if you want to get both the cheapest and best tasting result, use dried.  Remember the following and you won't need to rely on recipes:

Soak them in salted water overnight or while you're at work, or don't if you don't mind them taking a bit longer to cook.  The smaller/thinner the bean, the less soaking they need.  Lentils don't need soaking at all.

Dried beans absorb flavor like champs and are basically a blank slate to do what you want.  Treat the liquid you cook them in like you would a soup: add seasoning, aromatics, vegetables, spices.  For a rich flavor, add bones with bits of meat on them if you have any, or the stub of some hard cheese, or a dollop of olive oil, butter, or bacon fat.

Cook low and slow and taste regularly until the beans have the texture you like.  You're going to remove all the solids but the beans and strain the broth, but do not throw out that broth.  You'll have so much flavor in there you can use it as a base later, or cook rice/noodles in it, or add it to literally anything that needs liquid flavor injection.  Refrigerate/freeze the beans in this broth.

For bonus tightwad points, save all the ends of vegetables and parsley stems and cooked meat bones from your day-to-day cooking in a freezer bag.  When the freezer bag is full, you just drop that into water with the beans and you basically have a "free" stock.

gatortator

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #7 on: October 21, 2018, 11:30:42 AM »
Black Beans (nachos, rice bowls,  chilaquiles). 
https://www.kcet.org/food/a-post-holiday-recipe-black-beans-and-rice. (skip the bacon/salt pork to reduce cost (tastes fine without),  I also omit the vinegar).

Lentils
everyday yellow dal. https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/everyday-yellow-dal (replace chiles with sweet paprika to make kid friendly)
mujaddara  http://www.chewnibblenosh.com/recipe/mujaddara-rice-lentils-crispy-onions/
Ethiopian lentils https://www.africanbites.com/ethiopian-lentil-stew/ - I can find berbere in bulk at our local co-op,  but it is spicy so I only use 1-2 tsp to make more kid friendly
Pumkpin lentil curry. https://www.budgetbytes.com/curried-red-lentil-and-pumpkin-soup/

Garbanzos-
Garbanzo burgers. https://www.bbc.com/food/recipes/chickpea_and_sweetcorn_87660. I typically double the spice (not the salt though) to increase flavor.
many other garbanzo recipes but they are not specifically rice and beans in constructions...


I typically cook up a big batch of garbanzos for various dishes and freeze what I don't need immediately.  They freeze well. 

Here is a useful conversion of canned to dry beans to maximize recipe potential

https://www.thespruceeats.com/dried-bean-conversions-and-measurements-1388322

Hirondelle

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #8 on: October 21, 2018, 11:32:34 AM »
PTF as my close-to-WFPB diet needs more beans and I could use more inspiration.

birdie55

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #9 on: October 21, 2018, 01:17:10 PM »
I make lots of dishes with black beans or pinto beans.  I cook from dry and freeze in pint jars, which are roughly the same size as a can.  Many recipes call for one or more cans of beans, and I already have the correct size in my freezer. 

John Galt incarnate!

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #10 on: October 21, 2018, 01:56:53 PM »
I always cook on a Sunday for 3 or 4 days food in work, and then something for evening meals. Up to now it has always involved meat, usually chicken or beef.

I took the plunge this weekend and bought loads of different types of beans, with the intention of trying some rice and bean combos... my wife will be having this as well, so it needs to be tasty haha.

Any easy recipes that are really good?

Yes indeed!

My homemade bean soup consists of  water, some chopped onion, ~8 kinds of dried beans, salt, and garlic powder.

I cook it in a crock pot  overnight.

If I want rice and beans I put less beans in the pot so there's room for the rice.

During the last 1/2 hour of cooking the soup I add the rice.

Do not add the rice when you start cooking the beans because if you do the rice will be overcooked.

In the winter my bean soup w/ rice is one of my favorite meals.


HAPPY COOKING!
« Last Edit: October 21, 2018, 02:15:40 PM by John Galt incarnate! »

Zola.

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #11 on: October 22, 2018, 05:34:38 AM »
Looking at some recipes I realised I was missing a few things, so I went ahead and just made something off the cuff, and it was pretty good!

I put some rice in the rice cooker and in a pot I did the following

  • two onions diced and fried
  • two tea spoons of minced garlic
  • 1 tea spoon chilli flakes
  • 1 table spoon of brown sugar
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 can pinto beans
  • 1 can black eyed beans
  • 1 can chopped tomatoes
  • 1 can sweetcorn

Once sauce thickened a little I mixed in the cooked rice thoroughly and boxed it up into 5 boxes.
Definitely a lot lighter without the meat, but it was tasty.... next time I will need to add more to my lunch box, I could have kept eating...

wenchsenior

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #12 on: October 22, 2018, 07:09:53 AM »
I've been cooking beans overnight in a crockpot, but they always turn to mush.

Does anyone know if beans can be cooked in a rice cooker?  I bought one years ago and then only used it a couple times...

BuildingmyFIRE

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #13 on: October 23, 2018, 11:01:51 AM »
If you have an instant pot, preparing dried beans is super fast (but not instant).  I throw them in with chicken broth instead of water and in 30 minutes I have beans ready to go for different recipes throughout the week.

Minimalist Baker also has a coconut curried golden lentil recipe that is so delicious you wouldn't believe lentils are the base. 

https://minimalistbaker.com/coconut-curried-golden-lentils-20-minutes/

wenchsenior

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #14 on: October 23, 2018, 11:09:58 AM »
If you have an instant pot, preparing dried beans is super fast (but not instant).  I throw them in with chicken broth instead of water and in 30 minutes I have beans ready to go for different recipes throughout the week.

Minimalist Baker also has a coconut curried golden lentil recipe that is so delicious you wouldn't believe lentils are the base. 

https://minimalistbaker.com/coconut-curried-golden-lentils-20-minutes/

No instapot,  no plans to buy one.  That's why I asked about the rice cooker.

carozy

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #15 on: October 24, 2018, 03:16:11 PM »
What about Buddha Bowls?  A grain, a bean, and a green.  I've made them recently this way:

rice, black beans, baked brussels sprouts, corn, onion, lime juice on the rice

rice, chickpeas, chard, cabbage, corn, lime juice on the rice

rice, black beans, broccoli, corn

Both versions turned out delicious.  You can google Buddha Bowls for more inspiration.

Cool Friend

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #16 on: October 26, 2018, 08:14:26 AM »
No experience cooking beans in a rice cooker, but some googling suggests it's possible: https://strengthandsunshine.com/how-to-cook-beans-in-a-rice-cooker/

Don't listen to the warning about adding salt, it's a common misconception.  Acids (vinegar, citrus juice, etc), however, WILL stop the beans from cooking through.

NextTime

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #17 on: October 26, 2018, 08:37:13 AM »
When you all are cooking black beans to freeze and use later (for multiple dishes), are you just cooking them plain in water?

Or are you seasoning them?

Cool Friend

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #18 on: October 26, 2018, 09:59:56 AM »
Always season, using salt as a bare minimum.  Seasoning beans while they cook is your best shot for infusing them with all kinds of flavor.  If you're worried about versatility of use for frozen beans, use simple flavors like chicken broth, a classic mirepoix or Cajun holy trinity, etc.


NextTime

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #19 on: October 26, 2018, 10:37:30 AM »
Always season, using salt as a bare minimum.  Seasoning beans while they cook is your best shot for infusing them with all kinds of flavor.  If you're worried about versatility of use for frozen beans, use simple flavors like chicken broth, a classic mirepoix or Cajun holy trinity, etc.

Thank you.  I had to go look up mirepoix, and cajun holy trinity.

Scortius

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #20 on: October 26, 2018, 11:54:05 AM »
I don't understand any rice and beans recipe that is lacking cilantro.

BrightFIRE

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #21 on: October 26, 2018, 02:25:45 PM »
Use brown lentils in place of ground beef. I was skeptical at first (and I love lentils) but it turns out they really do mimic the texture and color very well. Lentil tacos are great!

I cook all my beans a pound at a time from dry, either in a crockpot (not overnight - 3-4 hours on high for most beans) or in a pressure cooker. Not only is it tastier, but it's cheaper, and they freeze well if you can't eat them all in one go.

My personal favorite bean is probably the garbanzo. They're great in Indian, Mexican, Cuban, Italian, Eastern European, etc. applications. Also, switch up your grain - I just made vegetarian minestrone with navy beans and pasta shells the other day; couscous cooks really fast; bulghur; barley/farro/spelt; quinoa are all options to keep from boredom.

Pigeon

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #22 on: October 26, 2018, 07:08:40 PM »
Similar, but easier than the golden lentils, I make curried chickpeas.  Sautee a chopped onion in some oil.  Add a couple of tablespoons of curry paste and stir.  When that gets fragrant, add a half pound of cooked chickpeas, a cup or so of water or broth and a  can of coconut milk.  Heat to a simmer.  Serve over rice.

You can also brown some chicken along with the onion and proceed. Once you add the coconut milk, cover and simmer till the chicken is cooked through.
« Last Edit: October 26, 2018, 08:28:39 PM by Pigeon »

freeat57

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Re: Rice & Beans - First Timer
« Reply #23 on: October 27, 2018, 11:23:21 AM »
Chana Masala (also Chole Masala) is one of my standards.  It is especially nutritious with brown rice.  Top with garnishes like cilantro,chopped red onion, tomato, a squeeze of lime juice, etc.  You can improvise on the recipe to suit your taste.  A good start is the recipe by Manjula, http://www.manjulaskitchen.com/chola-chana-masala/  .  Also look at her other Dal recipes.  I am totally in love with this auntie.