My wife insists on rinsing beans before cooking with the argument that it reduces the beans’ gas-giving properties (even canned beans, which don’t otherwise need to be rinsed). I said that beans give you gas because we do not have the enzymes to digest the type of starch in the beans, therefore allowing our gut bacteria the chance to eat it, and they produce the gas. The starch isn’t just on the surface, it’s throughout the whole bean. But she insists.
What’s the straight dope? I could find online discussions about this but no authoritative science, just speculation by cooks.
Soaking, and changing the soak water with fresh, does seem to reduce the gas producing oligosaccharides,
But other preparation factors might be even more important,
Soaking in water caused a small decrease in the oligosaccharide content of the beans and the relative amount removed was not proportional to the solubility of the sugars in water. Cooking of the whole seeds led to a larger decrease in oligosaccharide content, especially when large amounts of water were used. https://ift.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-2621.1982.tb12746.x
Which I know about only because Dave Barry once wrote a column about an experiment he did with his family with this product prior to bean consumption. It was just intended to be a humour piece, but apparently the stuff works.
You are correct. Even if rinsing the beans could make any difference, it would be a drop in the bucket compared to the indigestible matter in your gut. But you’re not going to change her mind, so it’s probably not worth trying to convince her. She doesn’t make you rinse, them, does she? That would be annoying.
Might be one of those “choose your battles” deals. If she’s doing the extra step and not making you do it, and it doesn’t harm anything, doesn’t really seem worth stressing about, IMO.
I’m reminded of a guy I worked with in the Navy who came home one evening to find his young and inexperienced wife cutting slits in a bowlful of beans, one at a time. He asked her what she was doing and she said that she had told the neighbor how her husband loved beans but that he farted all night after eating them. The neighbor told her to cut slits in the beans to let the gas out. He and the neighbor had some words.
Rinsing works, and soaking them overnight, if they are dry beans, works even better. They actually pre-sprout in the soaking process.
Some people use the liquid from canned garbanzo beans to make dairy-free “whipped cream” but a warning: That’s where the oligosaccharides (gas producing stuff) go in canned beans.
OP, I’m with your wife on rinsing canned beans. I don’t like beans, myself, but when I’m cooking for those who do, I always rinse the canned beans to get rid of the salty, slightly goopy liquid they’re canned in. Both the USDA and Better Homes and Gardens agree.
Canned beans are the good kind of fast food because they’re already cooked, which is a great time-saver for participants. They’re convenient, ready-to-eat and can be served straight from the can (though rinsing and draining first is recommended)
But what about that cloudy, thick liquid the beans are packed in? Yes, it helps keep the beans preserved for a long shelf life, but the liquid is mostly starch and salt that may impact the texture or flavor of a finished dish. For that reason, most of our Test Kitchen recipes call for draining and rinsing canned beans, which can also remove the metallic flavor sometimes found in cans.
As for dried beans, no, rinsing doesn’t do a whole lot to reduce gas production, but it’s a good idea anyway, as the conditioning process doesn’t remove all the field dust.
Your wife’s theories are wrong , but her practices are right.
Draining sure, but I am unconvinced that the amount of fluid clinging to drained canned beans is sufficient to alter the flavor in any dish I use beans in. I also do not believe current cans impart metallic flavors and the salt in that small amount of clinging fluid is tiny relative to what any bean recipe calls for, which has other strong flavors added as well usually.
The viscosity of the beanjuice does vary, and I find some cans heavy with gel at the bottom, but your conviction is consistent with at least one paper:
Both draining and draining followed by rinsing were found to be effective ways to reduce the sodium content of commercially canned beans. All varieties of beans tested demonstrated significant reductions in sodium after draining (p < 0.05). However, there were no significant differences
in sodium content of drained beans and those that had been drained andd washed, although sodium values did decrease.
The OP asked a question. Because this is FQ and not IMHO, I researched and found what the USDA and the food science experts at a magazine recommend and why. If you don’t notice a difference in taste or texture and prefer not to follow their recommendations, that’s fine, of course, and I’m sure the OP appreciates your take on this.
