I don’t really care for beans, however I’m wondering if that is simply due to the way they have always been prepared. I am wanting to change my eating habits, and everyone seems to tout beans as a step down from a miracle food. And their cheap. So what are some good ways to make beans?
First, tell us what kinds you’ve had, and why you didn’t like them in the first place. Were they too bland? Too beany? Dry? Spicy? What didn’t you like?
I’ve discovered the joys of beans (mostly black or red kidney) this summer and can’t get enough.
I often do a kinda tex-mex thing:
- onions, garlic, corn, red peppers, jalepenos in a skillet. (and any other veges I happen to have around that might sound good). Cook all that for a bit.
- Toss in a can of black or red beans (I always buy canned. Why the heck spend 2 hours cooking them when you can have them ready instantly in a can for cheap? Just wash them off well first).
- toss in some rice (that you’ve had simmering the whole time of course).
Sprinkle some shredded mexican cheeses on top and serve with a (in my case, huge) dollop of sour cream. Gaucamole too.
I make enough to last a few days. Great bang for your buck.
I also have a sorta Afghani (I think) thing:
- garlic, onions, butternut squash. Again cook for a bit
- add a can of black/red beans.
- throw in some peanuts
- brown sugar, cumin (and other spices)
- serve over rice. (I’ve used just regular white, but now thinking about it, Basmati would probably be best).
Oh, I forgot the meat. Throw in some chicken or pork to either dish as well.
:smack: That might be helpful, wouldn’t it?
The beans were in a very strong, almost like tomatoe, sauce. I’ll admit they were the only ones I’ve had the guts to try, since those tasted so bad.
However, I recently had edamame (soybean) and fell in love.
Macaroni-Bean Salad
Cook 1/2 of a 7 oz. package of shell macaroni ( about 1 cup) following package directions. Drain well and cool. Combine cooked macaroni, one eight ounce can kidney beans, drained (black beans may be substituted), 2 hard cooked eggs, chopped and 1/4 cup sweet pickle relish, if desired.
Blend together 1/2 cup salad dressing(Mayonnaise, or Miracle Whip) 3 drops bottled hot pepper sauce, toss lightly with macaroni mixture. Chill.
Serves 6-8
Beans, beans, the magical fruit…
I like bean cakes: take 1 can black beans and 1 can pinto beans, drain and mash together (not until smooth, just until they’re sticking together.) Form into patties and skillet fry. Top with whatever: sour cream, salsa, cheese, etc., or eat them like a hamburger in a bun with whatever fixin’s you like.
Yeah, those are the ones my mom used to serve with hot dogs. They left a bad taste in my mouth towards beans in general as well.
Seriously, those are to regular beans as hot dogs are to pork chops. What about chickpeas, do they count? Toss a can of them (or a canned bean mix) with a bit of olive oil, lemon juice, chopped onion or garlic, cumin, chili powder, yogurt, and coriander. Delicious. Add in some roast chicken and red peppers for a meal with lots of protein.
Sounds like you ate some Campbell’s pork and beans. Those were a staple when I was growing up, but I can’t stand them now.
I’ve forgotten what it’s called and can’t find a recipe, but a crockpot bean dish is popular at potlucks around here.
Basically, it’s several cans of beans – different kinds, limas, butter beans, kidneys, chickpeas, pintos, black, northerns – mixed up with cooked hamburger, bacon, onions, mustard, garlic, brown sugar, and maybe some vinegar. It has a sweet and sour flavor and is pretty yummy.
There are a lot of good bean soup recipes too. I’ve never had bad bean soup.
Every once in a while I like to cook up a pot of Hurst’s Hambeens Brand 15-Bean Soup. You can get it in the dried-beans section of any supermarket – a 20-ounce bag of mixed dried beans*, directions on the package. You soak the beans in water overnight; drain, put into a large pot, and add 2 quarts water; add meat (a pound of ham, hamhocks or smoked sausage); bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer uncovered 2-1/2 hours; add a cup of chopped onion, 15-ounce can stewed or diced tomatoes, teaspoon chili powder, juice of one lemon, 1-2 cloves garlic (chopped) (and I always add a cup or two of chopped carrots – they go well with the mix); bring to boil again, and simmer another 30 minutes. At the end you’re supposed to add the packet of “ham flavoring” that comes in the bag, but I always omit that – I don’t like the smell of the stuff, and the real meat adds enough flavor.
A bachelor can live on that pot of soup for a week!
Tip: If you leave the beans soaking (in the fridge, of course) two days, it will significantly reduce the flatulence effect. (But why would you want that? 
)
*INGREDIENTS: CONTAINS 15 OF THESE VARIETIES: NORTHERN, PINTO, LARGE LIMA, BLACKEYE, GARBANZO, BABY LIMA, GREEN SPLIT PEA, KIDNEY, CRANBERRY BEAN, SMALL WHITE, PINK BEAN, SMALL RED, YELLOW SPLIT PEA, LENTIL, NAVY, WHITE KIDNEY, BLACK BEAN, YELLOW, PEARL BARLEY. SEASONING PACKET INGREDIENTS: Well, ya don’t really want to know . . .
Perhaps a 3 Bean Salad? The sweet vinegar marinade makes them taste very “un-heavy.”
Lots of recipes for this out there, so I won’t bother trying to pick a particular link.
I’ve had some very tasty creamy whipped bean/cheese spread. The beans add texture and a touch of flavor. I can’t remember which cheese or bean - maybe ricotta cheese whipped with white beans?
I hate baked beans that come in a can. Ugh. The rest of the family loves them, too. Those held me back from loving beans for quite some time.
I confess this is a comes-in-a-bag-add-water-and-boil thing, but I love the red beans and rice that you can buy in the grocery store. It’s not Zatarran’s–it comes in a red bag with a woman in a yellow dress on it. I believe they’re Cuban style. Follow the directions on the package, add a little browned meat of some variety, and there’s three or four meals, right there.
I’ve also discovered a love for the refried beans that you can get at Mexican restaurants run by real Mexicans, but I’ve discovered that lard is the secret ingredient, so I try not to like them so much.
I found the recipe for the sauce that goes with the crockpot beans, bacon, hamburger dish that I couldn’t remember before – came to me in a vision:
4 tbsp. vinegar
2 tsp. dry mustard
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1 c. ketchup
It’s called Calico Beans.
Got a crock pot? If not, you can use a big pot with a tight fitting lid.
Ham and Beans
Use a pound or so of beans, I like the small white beans or pink beans for this particular dish, but it’s a matter of taste. Cover with lots of water in a pot, bring to a boil, then turn off the heat and let sit until cool. Pour off the water, rinse beans thoroughly.
Layer in your big pot the beans, some hamhocks and/or chunks of ham (use at least a couple hamhocks, because even though they have very little meat on them the fat and smoked skin gives a tremendous amount of flavor to the dish,) chunks of onion and roughly diced garlic (two - three small/medium onions, 5-15 cloves of garlic, depends on how much of an allium freak you are.)
Cover with water and either set crock pot to high for about eight to ten hours or cover the pot with foil and set the lid on tightly, then bake in a 400 degree oven for three hours or so. If you’re cooking in the oven, open it up once an hour or so (watch out for steam burns when the foil comes off, ouch!) to make sure there’s enough water in there and give it a stir. Add water if necessary to make sure the beans are all covered. You know it’s done when the water thickens to a gravy like consistency (my mom called this “pot liquor”) and the ham is falling off the bone. Remove the skin and bones if you’re picky, otherwise leave 'em in there, as they’ll improve the flavor every time you reheat the leftovers.
Serve on hot split cornbread, sprinkled with chopped red onion. My SO puts cheese on his, but he’s got a legume allergy and the cheese helps to keep the dietary upset to a minimum–no idea if this is scientifically sound, but it’s his gut and butt so I don’t argue. Me, not so much for the cheese on this dish.
On a cold winter day this is the most comforting dish imaginable, short of a lamb stew.
For summer you can’t beat hummus and pita bread–just whap a can of drained garbanzo beans (chickpeas) in a food processor with tahini, garlic and a bit of olive oil and process until smooth. You can add all kinds of fun stuff to this–sundried tomatoes, olives, mint, crushed red pepper, whatever strikes your fancy. I like putting it on naan bread more than pita because I like the chewiness.
Beans are a great addition to your diet, lots of protein, lots of fiber. Beans are Nature’s little heart attack deflectors. Judging the infinite variety of the bean family by canned nasty tomatoey baked beans is like saying all dogs are evil because a chihuahua bit you when you were a child!
My Maine Baked Beans are navy beans.
I soak them overnight. In the morning, they go into my bean pot. They get cooked at 350 for 1 hour, then 250 for about 5 hours.
They get 2 TBSP of molasses, 5 TBSP of sugar, and a chunk of salt pork before cooking. Keep them just covered with water.
That’s what I think of when I think of beans. I serve it with home made cornbread, hot dogs, and beer.
Another great dish. . .
Saute finely diced red bell pepper and onion in a pan until almost soft. Add a can of drained cannelini beans to the pan. If your wife is around, sing, “CANNN-AHHH-LEEE-NEEE” in a big phony, stereotyped Italian accent. Add a bit of chicken stock/broth and simmer until it has reduced a little. Add a lot of salt & pepper to taste.
I’ll also add a dash of lemon juice, or white wine to that. It’s great with pork tenderloin, or pork chops, and a small side of pasta or bread. White wine, typically.
And, then there are about a million things to do with black beans. The most basic might be to saute some jalapenos and garlic in a pan. Add a drained can of black beans, and heat through. Serve with rice.
And, then there is chili.
Beans, beans, good for your heart.
Beans, beans. . .
GREAT for your heart!
I have two great bean recipes.
French cut green beans with butter, salt, pepper and slivered almonds. TO DIE FOR.
and Gazillion Bean Soup. You can by a number of different brands of multi bean soup packages. Soak ‘em overnight, change out the water, add veggies and spices, and OMYGOD it’s good eatin’ for 3 days. Don’t forget the french bread.
Dump all that except the yogurt in a blender and you’ll end up with some yummy hummus.
I think you’d like 'em in this.
SmartAleq’s post reminded me that hummus should have tahini, so replace the yogurt with that.
Last weekend I was at my in-laws and we made quesadillas. My father-in-law told me that he normally doesn’t like black beans, but he liked the ones I made a lot; take that for what it’s worth. Here’s my basic recipe, which can be used as a burrito filling, quesadilla filling, tostada topping, chip dip, etc.
-Slosh some oil into a pan over medium heat.
-Sprinkle in some cumin and some salt.
-Saute half an onion (diced fine) until it’s soft.
-Crush in a couple cloves of garlic and saute it a little more.
-Add a 15-oz can of black beans, slightly drained.
-If you’re feeling all spiffy, add in the juice from half a lime, and/or a diced hot pepper. But neither of these are necessary.
-Cook it a little more until the beans are all hot and bubbly.
-Take a potato masher or a fork or something and mash the beans up a bit. You don’t need a puree; you just want enough of the beans squished that you get a lumpy substance rather than discrete beans.
-Serve.
It’s really very easy, takes about 15 minutes start to finish, and it’s very tasty. For a real treat, make Daniel’s Heartstopper:
-In another pan, fry up two eggs.
-Heat up two corn tortillas.
-Grate some sharp cheddar cheese.
-Make a tower: tortilla, egg, beans, cheese, tortilla, egg, beans, cheese.
-Top with salsa, diced avocado, and sour cream.
-Dig in.
Daniel