Want to drop your bean preparation time down to about two minutes?
Cook them in a rice cooker. Just put them in with about 3:1 water to bean, press the button, and it turns itself off when they're done. Cooking time is still about an hour, but preparation time is a couple minutes.
I add olive oil, salt, and herbs (meat eaters can add bacon, ham, or whatever), which may add another minute to preparation time. You can make several meals worth of beans with a few minutes' effort and a dollar or two of ingredients.
I recommend the Hitachi Chime-o-matic if they still make them.
Nice idea, I will try that. A question though: I have always heard that adding salt to cooking beans makes them tough. Add salt at the dinner table to taste.
I was under the assumption that uncooked beans contain enzyme inhibitors (which make digestion more difficult), and germinating the beans before cooking reduces the effectiveness of these inhibitors.
This article isn't nearly as scientific as I hoped it would be.
Perhaps germinating the beans also triggers a process similar to malting of barley for beer making. It breaks down some complex sugars, making them easier to ferment, and perhaps easier to digest as well.
I like to soak beans for over 24 hours in order to let them start to ferment (lactobacillus, not yeast) a little. It can be tricky to get the right timing, but I think that the slight tang is quite tasty.
Kidney beans should definitely be soaked prior to cooking. The FDA recommends soaking dry kidney beans for 5 hours then cooking them for half an hour to dissolve the toxin they contain. It takes a surprisingly low number of beans to induce the toxicity, as well.
I do agree that unsoaked beans are more flavorful, but I disagree with the assertion that "soaking does absolutely nothing to reduce the gas-producing properties of beans". I've eaten them both ways for years, and in my experience, unsoaked beans definitely produce more flatulence. The exception to that is pressure-cooking. Pressure-cooked unsoaked beans do not seem to produce any more flatulence than soaked. I'm not sure the scientific reason for that.
I know this is anecdotal but yeah, I have been eating pressure-cooked beans for 30 years now and I don't even recall the last time I had gases because of beans. I don't even get why people have problems with beans in the first place. I assume it is only because pressure cookers are not common in some countries.
Everyone here is mentioning the "bean flatulence" effect that soaking apparently prevents. Adding my two cents: if you take the article's advice specifically for red kidney beans, you'll have bigger problems than gas.
Title is misleading, as the article recommends not soaking beans in cold water.
Those of us who cover the dry beans in water, bring to a boil, drain, soak in warm water, drain again, then cook as required by the recipe are vindicated later in the article. That's when it mentions that the fermentable oligosaccharides responsible for bean-related flatus are largely removed by that method.
If you're going to soak uncooked beans in water cooler than pasteurization temperature for any length of time, it would be wise to inoculate your water with a safe fermentation bacterium, such as by adding a blob of yogurt. That will reduce the amount of internal fermentation that happens later, and if you opt to sprout the beans instead of cooking them, the safe bacteria may be able to outcompete any pathogenic bacteria that may have remained on the surface of the dry beans.
For larger beans like kidneys, I disagree. But for split lentils, various dals, navy beans, etc, you can get away with not soaking them. One thing I have found (and Cooks Illustrated concurs) is that you should salt both the soaking water and the cooking water.
Here's a paper on PubMed that found soaking reduces oligosaccharide content (that's what gets eaten by your intestinal flora to produce flatunelence) but not nutritional content: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12489819
Eliminating sugars and starches likely impacts both the texture and flavor, however. Likely negatively.
I am genuinely curious, why is this post on Hackernews' front page? Yes I know this type of comment is typically frowned upon (and will happily accept the downvotes), but seriously--a story about cooking beans with some vague science and anecdotes?
It's ironic that something named "Hacker News" focuses so much on rationalism & observable "proofs".
This article seems to be in the spirit of a Hacker. Vague science & anecdotes on something that seems to work is a pathway to discoveries & innovations.
It's important to remember that the hacker mentality is not limited to the field of computer science, or even science at all; the concept of creative ingenuity transcends fields and industries.
Per the guidelines: "On-Topic: Anything that good hackers would find interesting."
It doesn't say anything about it having to be computer-specific, or technology-specific, or even maker-specific. Just that it has to be something hackers would find interesting.
And considering that it made it to the front page, QED.
I thought the reason to soak the beans was not for texture or flavor, but to make the easier to digest. Ya know, that whole 'beans beans are good for your heart' thing?
Why do you describe the author as an amateur? He's been writing about cooking for 30 years and has several published cookbooks. What does qualifications would he need to be a "professional" bean cooker?
The reason you soak beans is not to improve the flavor. It is to dissolve the flavorless and indigestible sugars that give you massive bean-gas when you eat them. If you soak beans well before cooking -- then change the water and cook them -- then change the water again and rinse them well before finishing the cooking process -- you will have a tasty, nutritious treat that doesn't make your ass explode!
That's right! You can have totally fart-free beans. Only most restaurants and chefs are totally oblivious to this fact, so you can't really trust prepared beans any time you go out. There should be a certified-fart-free label for the restaurants that really know what's up.
"Conclusions: In 4 human male subjects, kept on a carefully controlled diet to which various fractions of soybean meal were added, the flatus-producing factor in soybeans was concentrated primarily in the low molecular-weight constituents. These experiments also showed that the soybean hulls, fat, water-insoluble polysaccharides, and protein are not associated with flatulence production to any significant degree. Caseinate and soybean proteinate appear to inhibit flatulence. When equivalent amounts of navy bean meal were consumed, flatus volumes increased 2.52 times that following the consumption of dehulled, defatted soybean meal."
"The main reasons for presoaking beans are to shorten the cooking time substantially, and to leach out the indigestible carbohydrates that make beans gassy. The disadvantage of presoaking is that you also leach out many other soluble materials, including vitamins and minerals.
"You retain more nutrients by cooking the beans in the soak water, but you also retain the gassy carbohydrates. I recommend soaking beans, then cooking them in the same water at a bare simmer for at least a couple of hours, even if they’re soft before then. Extended cooking breaks down the gassy carbohydrates."
He also suggests adding salt to the water when soaking [2]:
[+] [-] spodek|11 years ago|reply
Cook them in a rice cooker. Just put them in with about 3:1 water to bean, press the button, and it turns itself off when they're done. Cooking time is still about an hour, but preparation time is a couple minutes.
I add olive oil, salt, and herbs (meat eaters can add bacon, ham, or whatever), which may add another minute to preparation time. You can make several meals worth of beans with a few minutes' effort and a dollar or two of ingredients.
I recommend the Hitachi Chime-o-matic if they still make them.
[+] [-] haroldp|11 years ago|reply
I live at high altitude, so no amount of time just boiling in a pot will ever soften dry black beans.
[+] [-] mark_l_watson|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] curlyquote|11 years ago|reply
This article isn't nearly as scientific as I hoped it would be.
[+] [-] analog31|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] wtbob|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] dj-wonk|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Havoc|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] freehunter|11 years ago|reply
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phaseolus_vulgaris#Toxicity
[+] [-] califield|11 years ago|reply
http://cafejohnsonia.com/2013/02/how-to-slow-cooker-black-be...
She recommends skipping the soak and I haven't noticed any problems yet!
[+] [-] iffz|11 years ago|reply
http://www.dadcooksdinner.com/2010/09/slow-cookers-and-red-k...
[+] [-] mrfusion|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] o_nate|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] caio1982|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] namecast|11 years ago|reply
http://www.foodreference.com/html/artredkidneybeanpoisoning....
Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Ugh.
[+] [-] logfromblammo|11 years ago|reply
Those of us who cover the dry beans in water, bring to a boil, drain, soak in warm water, drain again, then cook as required by the recipe are vindicated later in the article. That's when it mentions that the fermentable oligosaccharides responsible for bean-related flatus are largely removed by that method.
If you're going to soak uncooked beans in water cooler than pasteurization temperature for any length of time, it would be wise to inoculate your water with a safe fermentation bacterium, such as by adding a blob of yogurt. That will reduce the amount of internal fermentation that happens later, and if you opt to sprout the beans instead of cooking them, the safe bacteria may be able to outcompete any pathogenic bacteria that may have remained on the surface of the dry beans.
[+] [-] serve_yay|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] anateus|11 years ago|reply
Eliminating sugars and starches likely impacts both the texture and flavor, however. Likely negatively.
[+] [-] unknown|11 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] tobylane|11 years ago|reply
Apparently socks and sandals are in fashion this year. Is this a phase the cool kids are going through or is it science?
Including heinz five bean, I think I've had 8-10 different beans in the last year. Which bean is this article so scientifically talking about.
[+] [-] tdicola|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] briantakita|11 years ago|reply
This article seems to be in the spirit of a Hacker. Vague science & anecdotes on something that seems to work is a pathway to discoveries & innovations.
[+] [-] JustSomeNobody|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] yellowapple|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bunderbunder|11 years ago|reply
It doesn't say anything about it having to be computer-specific, or technology-specific, or even maker-specific. Just that it has to be something hackers would find interesting.
And considering that it made it to the front page, QED.
[+] [-] aqme28|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|11 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] pauldino|11 years ago|reply
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=525529
[+] [-] dec0dedab0de|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] benihana|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] code_duck|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] munificent|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bronson|11 years ago|reply
Was your post just a teaser?
[+] [-] zachberger|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] maxk42|11 years ago|reply
The reason you soak beans is not to improve the flavor. It is to dissolve the flavorless and indigestible sugars that give you massive bean-gas when you eat them. If you soak beans well before cooking -- then change the water and cook them -- then change the water again and rinse them well before finishing the cooking process -- you will have a tasty, nutritious treat that doesn't make your ass explode!
That's right! You can have totally fart-free beans. Only most restaurants and chefs are totally oblivious to this fact, so you can't really trust prepared beans any time you go out. There should be a certified-fart-free label for the restaurants that really know what's up.
[+] [-] dj-wonk|11 years ago|reply
"Conclusions: In 4 human male subjects, kept on a carefully controlled diet to which various fractions of soybean meal were added, the flatus-producing factor in soybeans was concentrated primarily in the low molecular-weight constituents. These experiments also showed that the soybean hulls, fat, water-insoluble polysaccharides, and protein are not associated with flatulence production to any significant degree. Caseinate and soybean proteinate appear to inhibit flatulence. When equivalent amounts of navy bean meal were consumed, flatus volumes increased 2.52 times that following the consumption of dehulled, defatted soybean meal."
[+] [-] heywire|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] tzs|11 years ago|reply
"The main reasons for presoaking beans are to shorten the cooking time substantially, and to leach out the indigestible carbohydrates that make beans gassy. The disadvantage of presoaking is that you also leach out many other soluble materials, including vitamins and minerals.
"You retain more nutrients by cooking the beans in the soak water, but you also retain the gassy carbohydrates. I recommend soaking beans, then cooking them in the same water at a bare simmer for at least a couple of hours, even if they’re soft before then. Extended cooking breaks down the gassy carbohydrates."
He also suggests adding salt to the water when soaking [2]:
[1] http://consults.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/23/a-healthy-way-t...
[2] http://dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/08/09/harold-mcg...
[+] [-] bvanslyke|11 years ago|reply
For some reason I find this hard to believe.
[+] [-] unknown|11 years ago|reply
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