Search Results for: cooking beans

Cook with what you have sounds nice but what should/would you like to have on hand? This is a fun and complex question. I’m going to tackle a small fragment of this question today. I’m going to talk about beans, white beans, and cooking them at home. A quick side note about dry beans. Here in the Portland area we are lucky to have a couple of very local sources of dried beans. Ayers Creek Farm sells their beans at...... Read more »

 Note: There are many theories about the best way to cook dry beans. I particularly like this one but find whatever method works best for you! Do give this a try if you are not yet in the habit of cooking beans. I recently borrowed an Instant Pot and was impressed with the way it cooked beans.    The two most important things you can do to get hooked on cooking your own dry beans are: Cook a lot of beans to refrigerate and use over 5-6 days and/or freeze for future use. Let the beans cool in their cooking liquid for at least 1-2 hours. This vastly improves their flavor and texture. You do not need to refrigerate them while they’re cooling. Just leave them in the pot on the stove (with burner off) until they’re cool. Then refrigerate what you think you’ll use up in 5 days and freeze the rest. Keep as much of the cooking liquid as you can–it’s wonderful in soups, as a broth on its own, to loosen up beans when making a spread or refried beans, etc. and it also protects them in the freezer.   Place dry beans in a bowl covered by about 4 inches of cold water. Soak for 4-8 hours (or up to 24). If you can’t get around to cooking them after 24 hours, you can drain them and refrigerate them for another day before cooking with no ill effects.   Drain beans and put soaked beans in a large pot and cover with cold water by several inches. If you have time, add a couple of whole, peeled garlic cloves, a bay leaf and a chunk of peeled onion, but skip if you don’t. Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer and let cook covered until the beans are tender, stirring occasionally (this helps prevent some beans from softening before others.) I add salt towards the end of the cooking time and when you do add salt, be generous, as in at least 1 teaspoon sea salt for every 1 cup or so of dried beans. They will likely need more still. The time it takes for the beans to cook will vary depending on the kind/size of bean and the freshness of the dried beans. Pinto types typically take about 30-35 minutes, smaller white and black beans as little as 25. Let beans cool in their liquid (see above). Cooked beans keep in the refrigerator for 5-6 days and for several months in the freezer. To freeze: Fill container (1/2 pint, pint or quart—smaller sizes are good for quicker thawing and for quesadillas, burritos, salads & larger ones are good for soups/stews/chilis) with cooked, cooled beans. Cover with cooking liquid and freeze. Remember to put them out to thaw on the counter in the morning or the night before you need them or run hot water over the container and put the whole chunk of frozen beans/bean cooking liquid in a saucepan and thaw on low heat. Beans do not thaw well in the microwave—they go bad very quickly after thawing this way. Slow-cooked Oven Beans You can cook soaked or un-soaked beans slowly in the oven as well. Cooking time will depend on whether you soaked them and the size/type of bean.   Preheat oven to 275 Put beans in a heavy ovenproof pot for which you have a lid. Cover with water by 4 inches. Add a few cloves of peeled garlic, sprigs of thyme, sage, and/or parsley, a chunk of onion and a generous splash of olive oil. Bring the pot of beans to a boil on the stovetop, then transfer to the oven and cook, covered with just a small crack for steam, until tender. Give the beans a stir after about an hour and check to be sure there's plenty of liquid. Soaked beans tend to take about 2.5 hours with this method and up to 4 hours for un-soaked beans. When tender, remove from oven, salt generously and let cool to absorb salt. Use and store as described above.... Read more »

...beans in the summer! Black turtle beans (Sun Gold Farm) with brown rice and cilantro and my lovely son who loves rice and beans. Pinto beans (Sun Gold Farm), Mayacoba beans (Rancho Gordo), bean broth, herbs, radishes, harissa.   The two most important things you can do to get hooked on cooking your own dry beans are:   1) Cook a lot of beans at once since they freeze so well, once cooked and covered in their cooking liquid. That...... Read more »

...Beans with Cilantro, Yogurt and Lemon   Carol Boutard of Ayers Creek Farm told me about this method of cooking fava beans which eliminates the time consuming step of peeling each individual bean. This is an Iranian way of cooking favas.   2 pounds fava beans in their pods ¼ cup kosher or sea salt 1/3 cup Greek yogurt or plain, whole milk yogurt (or more if you want it saucier) 1/3 – 1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro (can use...... Read more »

When I look into my pantry and see colorful dry beans, lentils, grains and spices I’m comforted. When I find frozen blueberries and salmon, extra butter, stock and bread in the freezer I feel lucky beyond compare.   I’m a bit of a homebody and we all know how much I love beans so the advice being dished out in these uncertain times–stay home, cook beans, skip the grocery store if possible–makes me feel useful. If I can cook for...... Read more »

...of beans, olive oil and red wine. But back to yesterday’s lunch salad–the salad I make in some fashion several times a week for lunch and for dinner has two main components: greens and beans. I always have home-cooked beans in the freezer and usually a quart in the fridge (canned beans work fine for this kind of thing too). And in the winter I almost always have kale around (which works beautifully in this hearty salad in its raw...... Read more »

...fall, they are perfect for this dish. Bryant adds home-cooked butter (lima) beans and broth to the tomato-y greens for the last half hour of cooking. You can do the same, use different beans or omit the broth and serve the greens over rice or quinoa or another grain of your choosing or mashed potatoes and rutabagas! I used Zolfino beans from Ayers Creek Farm. 2 bunches collards, leaves and stems, well washed 3 tablespoons olive oil 1 large onion,...... Read more »

...Curry Summer Squash Soup Italian Lentil and Rice Stew Leek and Green Garlic Soup Spring Soup with Herbs and Grains The Best Soup Turnip and Turnip Greens Soup Red Lentil and Winter Squash Dal White Beans, Roasted Tomatoes, Spicy Sausage Zuppa Bastarda (Black Bean Soup over bread with pesto)   Beans   Cooking Beans Barley Lentil Soup with Green Garlic and Parsley Bean, Herb and Cheese Quesadilla Bean and Egg Burrito with Greens Chickpea Avocado Salad Sandwich Chickpeas and Cauliflower...... Read more »

...bean consumption this spring with less hassle.   If your beans are on the larger side, there’s always an Iranian method of cooking them–the whole pods are cooked in heavily salted water until they start falling apart. The resulting beans are tender and well seasoned and do not need peeling. So there! Skip the finicky peeling, enjoy the beans and more nutrients to boot!   Seared Young Fava Beans with Garlic Scapes and Lemon In this dish I shelled some...... Read more »

When you cook and adapt and create recipes every day it’s easy to get swept up in the many variations and tricks that are certainly fun but not always necessary. And a few of the teaching projects I’m currently working on are forcing me to strip things down to the very simplest preparations, to really practice what I preach– that cooking can be liberating, a way to frankly make life less complicated rather than more; that cooking can be simple,...... Read more »

...tomatoes, chopped up, or 1 cup canned, roasted tomatoes (or just plain canned ones) 3 cups cooked white beans with their cooking liquid. I used Ayers Creek farm’s Zolfino beans (in case you’re local and have some on hand) or canned beans, drained and rinsed 3 cups bean cooking liquid and/or water or vegetable broth/veggie bouillon about 1/2 bunch of parsley, tough stems removed, the rest finely chopped 1 large clove garlic, minced and mashed with a little salt on...... Read more »

I put this salad together on a whim after I splurged on a beautiful Dungeness crab. I had both fava beans and shelling peas on hand but either or is fabulous too. And you could substitute canned Oregon Albacore for the crab or bay shrimp or omit entirely or add chopped hardboiled egg or no additional protein at all. Adapt to your tastes/what you have on hand. ... Read more »

When you have young/small fava beans you can eat the whole pod, either grilled or just seared in a heavy skillet, in this case alongside some shelled ones and garlic scapes and scallions. The whole pod gets tender and when well seasoned with salt and lemon, is just delicious. You can cook them all whole or shell a few for contrast and fun-either way is delicious.... Read more »

This simple but thick and luscious soup is a mainstay of Tuscan cooking and used to be made by re-cooking (ribollire) yesterday's minestrone and simmering it over stale bread in this second incarnation. I make it all in one go, as do many Italians, but it is even better the next day. It takes a while to make unless you are using already cooked beans, but it is worth the time.   Ribollita calls for a modest list of ingredients and the bread and some good olive oil are important. And it's extra good if you have some roasted tomatoes to use, but canned is just fine.  ... Read more »

...their strings along my fence but I managed to pick about a pound over a four-day period. Aioli with green beans. My favorite thing to do with these tender things is to make aioli (garlicky mayonnaise) and dip the perfectly cooked beans (by which I mean four minutes in salty, rapidly bowling water) into the aioli. I recently ate three-quarters of a pound of beans in a single sitting. My boys got a few but they don’t rhapsodize about them...... Read more »

...mint. The chickpeas added heft and texture and it was a lovely way to spend NO time at the stove. And if you don’t have cooked beans, canned beans are a good shortcut here. Previously cooked and then frozen navy beans with tomatoes, cilantro, jalapeno, sweet onions, feta, and a dressing of red wine vinegar, s & p and good olive oil. Just now for lunch I employed some just-thawed white beans in my attempt to eat as much produce...... Read more »

...time of year.   Finally, my Kitchen Fundamentals, Pantry Stocking 30-Minute Dinners series is filling up quickly so if you’re considering it for yourself or as a gift, let me know asap. Happy Cooking and Eating and Celebrating! Katherine Cilantro Bread Soup (Acorda) –loosely adapted from Tea & Cookies serves 4 (with plenty of leftovers) or 6 1 cup dried white beans (cannelini, great northern, Ayers Creek white beans of any kind, Rancho Gordo Marrow beans . . . )...... Read more »

...in the fridge. Dress lettuces and greens as well as roasted vegetables or plain chickpeas/beans with the same vinaigrette, adding some chopped herbs and toasted seeds. . . Cook a good quantity of beans. Cook twice as much rice, barley or farro as you need for any given meal and freeze half of it to make fried rice, rice and beans or a soup the following week. Toast sunflower or pumpkin seeds. Use in salads or as a snack. Make...... Read more »

...by its simplicity. 1 ¼ cups dried black beans, soaked (or 3 cups of cooked black beans in their cooking liquid, see headnote) 6 cloves garlic, peeled 1/2 medium onion, peeled and cut in half 2 tsp dried crumbled dried sage or chopped, fresh sage 6 3/4-inch thick slices good bread, toasted Salt to taste Freshly ground black pepper 6 tablespoons basil pesto 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil Drain the beans and place in a soup pot along with...... Read more »

...brought from her garden. One night I made Pasta Carbonara with the above peas. This is an inauthentic addition to the classic Carbonara which just includes eggs, cheese, pancetta (or bacon), lots of black pepper and pasta but it’s a mighty good one (recipe below). I used some of the last of the season’s sugar snap peas, fava and garbanzo beans to make this impromptu three-bean/pea salad. I employed the fava bean cooking technique I’ve discussed here before and it...... Read more »

...enough for lunch the next day + cooking without spending an (extra) dime makes me very happy   My “Rules” (for this meal): Don’t hesitate to serve an Indian-inspired dish next to a French-inspired one next to an undefinable salad Rich nuts like cashews can stand in for cheese in salad Nuts are critical pantry staples Grating the zucchini and squeezing out some of the liquid before sauteeing it makes it cook more quickly and have a better consistency A...... Read more »

Seven years ago this week I taught two classes in my home kitchen to a handful of you. Then I taught a series of classes at Zenger Farm to a dozen of you. And I bought the url cookwithwhatyouhave.com and the rest is history, I suppose. I set out to spread the joy and deliciousness of simple, everyday cooking with in-season vegetables and whatever your pantry had to offer. I still believe that cooking can simplify and improve our lives....... Read more »

Minestrone Talk about a template; minestrone is a bean and vegetable soup and, loosely defined, can use any bean, any shape of pasta (or no pasta), most any vegetable and herb, meat or no meat (diced bacon or a little sausage is good, added when cooking onions) be hearty and stew-like or light and brothy. For me, what makes or breaks minestrone are the beans and the bean broth. You can certainly use canned beans but home-cooked beans with their...... Read more »

...(harissa) Spiced Meatballs w/ Tomatoes & Chickpeas (roasted tomatoes, cooked chickpeas) Squash & Rice Fritters w/ Cilantro Yogurt Sauce (cooked rice) Stovetop Scalloped Leeks and Potatoes (chicken stock) Tuscan Bean and Farro Soup (roasted tomatoes, cooked beans) Tomato, Chard & Peanut Stew (roasted tomatoes) Very Green Risotto (chicken stock or veggie bouillon) White Beans, Roasted Tomatoes, Spicy Sausage (cooked beans, veggie bouillon, roasted tomatoes) Zucchini Rice Fritters (cooked rice) Zuppa Bastarda (Black Beans over Pesto Bruschetta) (cooked beans, pesto)  ...... Read more »

People love the cook! This is I think why I started cooking when I was quite young. My mother suffered from migraines and when she was out of commission I started cooking for my family. The house was a sad place when my mother was sick and I hated it. My only fond memories of those times were when my brothers and father liked the food I made and told me so.   I just returned from a few days...... Read more »