How and how much to cook the beans? How and how much to cook beans

Before the process of cooking the beans, they must be thoroughly washed and sorted out. In addition to possible debris, it is imperative to remove wrinkled, damaged or too dry grains. During boiling, these beans can spoil the consistency of the bulk. In order for the beans to cook quickly and evenly, it is recommended to soak them in cold water for 10 hours.

How to cook beans in a regular saucepan:

• before boiling, the beans must be soaked for a long time, which can be shortened by heat treatment (the beans must be rinsed, poured with water and brought to a boil, after which the workpiece must be left in boiling water for 1-2 hours);
• after any method of soaking, the beans must necessarily increase in size (the exception is young beans – soaking will not affect their size at all, and it is not required to immerse them in water for a long time);
• soaked beans must be poured with water and put on a low heat;
• in the process of boiling the beans, foam is formed, the amount of which can be reduced with a few tablespoons of vegetable or olive oil (oil must be added at the initial stage of cooking or after bringing the beans to a boil);
• it is imperative to add water to the beans during the cooking process (the liquid will constantly decrease, so you should not leave the beans unattended during cooking);
• the readiness of the beans can be determined by a change in their structure (the beans should be well crushed, but not too soft or boiled);
• after 30 minutes of boiling, it is better to check the readiness of the beans every 10 minutes;
• It is better to drain the water from the finished beans immediately (otherwise, under the influence of hot water, they can continue to cook even when the heat is off).

There are two important rules to keep in mind when boiling beans. First, the beans must be soaked, because they cannot be boiled dry (the beans will remain hard and tough). Secondly, you should not add additional ingredients, especially those with sour or sour taste, during the boiling process. Due to this technique, you can spoil the consistency of the dish, and the beans will boil up to the consistency of porridge.

How to boil beans in pods:

• beans are not eaten with pods, but you can cook them without removing the grains;
• before starting cooking, the ends of the pods must be cut off;
• you can cook the pods whole or chopped;
• lay the bean pods in boiling water;
• after the end of cooking, the grains are easily removed from the pods.

You can boil the beans using some cooking techniques. For example, in a slow cooker, they cook well in the “Stew” mode. In a pressure cooker, you can shorten the cooking time several times. However, do not forget that most legumes cannot be boiled in microwaves and steamers, so it is better not to carry out such experiments.

How much to cook beans

The cooking time of the beans mainly depends on the quality of the soak. If the preparation process was carried out correctly, then in a regular saucepan they will cook within 1-2 hours. Sometimes the process is accelerated up to 30 minutes.

The cooking time of the beans is influenced by the variety, for example:

• white varieties are boiled for 50-60 minutes;
• black beans reach readiness in 1 hour;
• red beans must be boiled for at least 1,5 hours.

Young beans cook much faster and do not need to be pre-soaked. They will be ready in 15-20 minutes after boiling water. You can even boil young beans in pods. If you need to open the flaps and remove the grains, then it is better to soak them in water for an hour beforehand (the pods will become tougher, and it will be much easier to open them).

In a multicooker, beans are cooked in the “Stew” mode for 1-1,5 hours. In a pressure cooker, they reach readiness in a maximum of 30 minutes. Beans are not cooked in microwaves and steamers.