Recipe: Bean and Dried Pea Cooking Basics

Bean Basics

Selecting:
Look for smooth surfaces and bright colors. Cracked seams or dull wrinkled surfaces indicate dryness.

Storing:
Store in airtight glass jar away from heat. Use within 6 months.

Freezing:
Cooked beans freeze very well, making time spent very worthwhile.

Very basic: 1 C beans to 4 C water, pressure cook soaked beans.

Adzuki: boiling 2 hrs. or pressure cook for 30 min. Lower in fat and easier to digest than most beans. Add cubes of peeled winter squash during the last 30 min or splash with tamari and barley malt for an Oriental "baked bean" dish. Combine with brown rice and sauteed scallions, mushrooms and celery for rice patties.

Black Turtle: 1 1/2 hrs boiling or 30 min pressure cooking. A staple of Latin American cooking. Combine with cumin, garlic and orange juice in soups or enchiladas. Toss with olive oil, fresh cilantro and chopped vegetables for a salad. Combine with rice and cumin for a Cuban-style dish.

Black-eyed Peas: 1 - 1 1/4 hrs boiling or 25 min pressure cooking. Traditionally served with rice ("Hoppin' John"), black-eyed peas can be tossed with yogurt vinaigrette, tomatoes and fresh parsley.

Chick Peas (Garbanzos): 3 hrs boiling or 35 - 40 min pressure cooking. Puree well-cooked chick peas with tahini, garlic, lemon, sea salt and olive oil to make hummus. Add cooked chick peas to salads, soups and pasta dishes.

Great Northern: 2 hrs boiling or 30 min pressure cooking. Good in pasta dishes with tomatoes, basil, parmesan cheese and olive oil. Toss in Italian soups or serve as a salad with a vinaigrette and roasted vegetables. Serve cooked with lamb or sausage dishes.

Red Kidney: 1 1/2 hrs boiling or 25 min pressure cooking. Use in chili, marinated salads and soups. For refried beans, saute well-cooked kidney beans in canola oil with garlic, onions, cumin and chili powder (place in fresh tortillas). Combine with tomatoes, mustard, onions and barley malt for savory baked beans.

Red Lentils**: 20 - 25 min boiling avoid pressure cooking. Combine with olive oil, red onion and balsamic vinegar for a salad, or as a side dish with fish or chicken or puree with basil, thyme and shallots. Mix with curry pasta to serve over couscous or rice.

Green Lentils**: 45 min boiling or 20 min pressure cooking. Season green lentils with tarragon in soups. Combine with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, mustard, parsley and garlic as a salad. Puree with cumin, ground ginger and tumeric for an Indian dal.

Lima (baby): 1 1/2 hrs boiling or avoid pressure cooking. Combine with corn and green beans for succotash. Add to minestrone soup.

Pinto: 2 1/2 hrs boiling or 30 min pressure cooking. Combine beans with onions, chili powder, garlic and tomatoes for chili enchiladas. Saute cooked beans in olive oil, garlic and tamari for refried beans. Place in corn tortillas.

Navy: 2 1/2 hrs boiling or 20 - 30 min pressure cooking. Navy beans make a great soup with squash and kale. Partially puree with basil, garlic and tomatoes for a cool summer side dish. Use in chili or as a salad with a vinaigrette, red onions and olives.

Soy: 3 hrs boiling or avoid pressure cooking. Well-cooked soybeans can be made into a sweet and sour dish with garlic, ginger, pineapple and tomatoes.

Yellow Split Peas**: 1 - 1 1/4 hrs. boiling or 25 min pressure cooking Good in curried dishes over brown basmati rice, or pureed in a mint and garlic yogurt sauce, with lemon and cumin in soups.

Green Split Peas**: 1 - 1 1/4 hrs boiling or 25 min pressure cooking. Most often used in soups with tomatoes, carrots, celery and a touch of balsamic vinegar. Or puree with cumin, coriander and turmeric. Serve with minted yogurt for an Indian touch.

To prevent overcooking, check beans 10 min before these times have elapsed.

Salts, fats, sugars and acidic ingredients (tomatoes, wine) will extend cooking time and harden skins, so add them near the end.

One pound of most dry beans measures 2 1/2 - 3 C and yields 6 - 7 C of cooked beans.

**DO NOT PRE-SOAK