Beans, Beans the Magical Fruit...

Oh goodness...beans! Beans can be a hard one, but they also make a great food storage item. We will talk in depth about beans during later posts, but they are worth serious consideration when planning your food storage.


Why store Beans?

• Paired with a carbohydrate, they make a complete protein- and one with a lot less fat than an animal protein (which is in and of itself a complete protein.)
• White beans can replace the fat in most baking. Cook, mash and replace in recipes cup for cup.
• Whole beans/peas can be sprouted for added variety and nutrition.
• Beans can be ground into flour for instant soups and will add protein to bread and other baked items.
• Beans provide an economical substitute for meat or other animal proteins.

I have read some sources that say the shelf life of dry beans is relatively short and after 2 to 3 years the beans are too hard to be useful. This is simply not true. Whole beans have a long shelf life- up to 30 years. For example, Sunday evening I went to my parents for dinner and my mom had made a white bean soup. While eating it I asked her if she poured the entire can of beans in with the juice or if she rinsed them first ( I was a worried about digestive distress.) She looked at me a bit confused and then said they were dry beans she had cooked. I was floored! I could not tell the difference! And the best part it is that they were over 10 years old and still going strong. So there you have it...storage in action.

The rest of the week we will be finishing up with our "what to store and where to store it " overview. And then will move on to an in depth discussion of grains.

One of my most FAVORITE soups...

Lentil Vegetable Soup

2 cups lentils, rinsed and drained

1/2 pound sausage, cooked and drained

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup chopped carrots

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

1 clove garlic, minced

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon oregano

8 cups water

1 (16 oz) can crushed tomatoes

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Place all ingredients in soup kettle (or pan), except tomatoes and vinegar. Cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours. Add tomatoes and vinegar. Simmer for 30 minutes longer.

Legumes

For those who missed our class last Saturday or anyone wanting info on Legumes...here is a little something.

Legumes are an inexpensive and nutritious protein food which are high in fiber, low in fat, a good source of protein, carbohydrates, folate, and many trace minerals. Beans store well, cost little, and provide a punch for the nutrition dollar.

The Mayo Clinic has some great information on different types of beans and how to use them.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/legumes/NU00260

Cooking Beans:

• Rinse all beans and legumes in cold water.
• Soak the beans in 3 times as much water as beans. Lentils and peas do not need to be soaked. Make sure and discard soaking water.
• Quick soaking method- For each pound of beans, bring 8 cups of water to boiling. Wash the beans, add them to boiling water, and boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat, cover, and soak for 1 hour. Discard soaking water.
• Add 1/8 tsp. baking soda and 1 T. cooking oil to each cup of beans while soaking. This will shorten the cooking time and decrease foaming.
• The slower the beans are cooked, the easier they are to digest.
• Beans will increase double to triple during soaking and cooking. (1 cup dry beans will produce 2-3 cooked).
• One pound of dry beans equals 6-7 cups cooked beans.
• Cooked beans freeze well and will keep up to 6 months in the freezer.

One major concern with bean consumption is digestive distress. A few things to try...

• Soak beans a minimum of 3 hours (8-12 hours better); disgard soaking water.
• Sprout beans before cooking-soak beans 2-3 days, changing water 3-4 times, until beans begin to sprout.
• Use Beano
• Continue to wash and soak beans until water is clear.

Bean flour is a great thickener and is finished and ready to eat in just 3 minutes.

A great and award winning legume recipe...

from Brooke Stucki

Chicken Chili Blanco

6 cans white beans

6 cups chicken broth

1 tsp chicken stock base (1 boulion cube)

2 onions chopped

1 tbsp. oil

6 cloves garlic, minced

4 oz. green chilies, drained

2 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. oregano

1 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional, but I put it in)

4 cups cooked and diced chicken

1 cup sour cream

3 cups co-jack cheese

Optional garnishes: sour cream, chopped fresh cilantro chopped tomatoes and tortilla chips

Saute onions in oil until golden. Combine beans, broth, chicken stock base, onions, garlic, green chilies, cumin, oregano, cayenne pepper, and chicken in large pot. Simmer for 30 minutes. Add sour cream and cheese. Heat until cheese melts. Garnish as desired. I also use the crockpot and combine all the ingredients except the sour cream and cheese (no need to saute onions) and cook on low for 5 hours. Add the sour cream and cheese 15 minutes before serving to let it melt.