niki's favorite bean soup

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margo
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by margo »

Hi all...Good morning!


you can't find a really good manual can opener any more....i've thrown out a dozen of them it seems....i'm sure they are designed so that you'll either throw it out by mistake or so that it will not work well after a short time and you'll have to buy another one. 

Really must work on my pantry this week...i'll watch for specials on peanut butter.  Canned beans, peas, corn etc.  I do store water but  i only have about 10 two liter bottles of water for emergency but i know that's not enough for two adults -- bathing and cooking and drinking.  What are you guys doing about water storage?  (i keep telling my husband that i think water is going to be our next petroleum)

God bless!
margo
niki
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by niki »

they had ones at linen n things which looked just like mine...i didn't bother buying one at the time because i feel like the one i have will last forever....let's see when i now buy it if it is..........niki
Last edited by niki on November 18th, 2007, 4:51 pm, edited 1 time in total.
life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...it's about learning to dance in the rain..
niki
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by niki »

margo wrote: What are you guys doing about water storage? 

  i ALMOST bought a big drum to store water in and decided against it....now, i fill like the big gallon containers from juice with water which will be good for washing and other things and i probably have anywhere from 5-10 cases of water in my house at any given time.....whenever i see them on sale, i buy whatever they allow......niki
life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...it's about learning to dance in the rain..
Queenie
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by Queenie »

niki wrote:they had ones at linen n things which looked just like mine.............niki


Well, I guess that's where I head to buy a new one.  I've already checked at a couple of stores & didn't see one like "old faithful"  LOL!

Carolyn
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abundantlyblessed
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by abundantlyblessed »

I have the following beans in my cabinet, dried:
Chili
Kidney
Pinto
White (navy or northern)
Large Lima
Greenish brown lentils
red lentils

Which combinations would be good? Also, I have a 6qt crockpot that I will use, so I will need 2# worth. How many cups of dry does 1/2# correspond to?

I'm wanting to make this tomorrow so I need to soak overnight. I figure I should make some good beans to have on hand.

TIA,
Michele ºÜº
niki
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by niki »

Queenie wrote:& didn't see one like "old faithful" 

  haha..old faithful...anyone not reading the posts before this won't realize you're talking about a can opener...WELL, the TRUTH is that my can opener lasted 25 years which is more than i can say for EITHER one of my ex-husbands.......niki 
life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...it's about learning to dance in the rain..
niki
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by niki »

use whatever beans you want....YOU pick....and make something different.............one thing i've never done is mix lentils with regular beans..and i would probably cook red lentils separately because they're supposed to have a really nice unique flavor....i made them once but i didn't notice that....it might have been the lentils i bought...........otherwise,in a 6 quart pot, you should be able to fit 2 pounds..i believe a pound of beans is 2 cups....i'm not positive because i never measure them that way.....maybe you buy them loose..................niki
 
 
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abundantlyblessed
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by abundantlyblessed »

niki wrote:otherwise,in a 6 quart pot, you should be able to fit 2 pounds..i believe a pound of beans is 2 cups....i'm not positive because i never measure them that way.....maybe you buy them loose..................niki


Yep, you guessed it. I bought these loose!
Michele ºÜº
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by snowbirdie »

Hi Niki,
      I made this soup today-your favourite! I did add a few more different kinds of beans and it is really good!
                      Thanks  judie
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by niki »

glad you liked it........and thanks for letting me know......niki
life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...it's about learning to dance in the rain..
Red Lion Lass
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by Red Lion Lass »

Niki, I've been reading all the messages on the boards about how great this soup taste so I wanted to try it. Hopefully, it will be a hit with my husband.

I have a couple of questions that I'm hoping that you won't mind answering. You said to wait until the beans were soft before adding the tomato sauce. Then further down the recipe you said crushed tomatoes so I'm confused as to which one to use and also which size can. You also didn't give the amount of each spice to use so I'm assuming that you just eyeball it but could you please give me a rough estimate. It would be greatly appreciated because I'm not very good at figuring out how much spices I should use. I'm the type that has to have the exact measurements. Maybe that's why I'm a better baker than cook. Rachel Ray just eyeballs her amounts and is always telling everyone that she's not a very good baker like her sister because baking does involve exact measurements. My mother also told me to NEVER ADD SALT until the beans were soft because that would prevent them from softening. Was my mother incorrect?

Thank you so much for being so patient with me.

Red Lion Lass
Last edited by Red Lion Lass on January 18th, 2010, 12:22 am, edited 1 time in total.
crickadoodle
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by crickadoodle »

I don't know if this got answered.  I make this soup every week, practically.  It is my favorite and I share it with so many people.  One lady today told me I ought to make it and sell it!  It's that good.

Well, your mom was right about adding the salt after the beans are the softness you want them.  Do the same with any tomato product.  I use 1 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes.  I use 1 tablespoon of each spice -- oregano, cumin and chili powder.  (Well, I actually use 2 of each, but I double the recipe!) 

I just found this, and notice you asked in January.  I'm not Niki, but I have tons of experience with this recipe.  I recommend it to everyone.  So yummy!
niki
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by niki »

Red Lion Lass wrote:Niki, I've been reading all the messages on the boards about how great this soup taste so I wanted to try it. Hopefully, it will be a hit with my husband.

I have a couple of questions...
You said to wait until the beans were soft before adding the tomato sauce. Then further down the recipe you said crushed tomatoes so I'm confused as to which one to use and also which size can. You also didn't give the amount of each spice to use so I'm assuming that you just eyeball it but could you please give me a rough estimate.

My mother also told me to NEVER ADD SALT until the beans were soft because that would prevent them from softening. Was my mother incorrect?

hi rll...........
let me just add that you can use any tomatoes you want....i usually use crushed tomatoes......when i said "tomato sauce", i meant crushed tomatoes......you COULD use tomato sauce or you could use the whole tomatoes, squeezing them to break them up, but what i don't like about that is that the pieces of tomato don't have that much time to cook down in size since the beans are already cooked when you add the tomatoes...so, i prefer crushed tomatoes.....
in fact, i haven't made this soup in SO long.....i have to get carrots from costco when i go today and i'll make a big pot on monday after i finish working this weeekend....oopps....i have to buy some black beans.....i have BAGS of small red beans and cannelini beans........i'll stop at walmart on the way to costco.......i have to stop and buy popcorn anyway...
yeah...the spices................i usually use enough to cover the liquid on top...i would say that for a 4 quart pot of soup i use what crick said.....a couple of teaspoons of each......but, LISTEN, even if you haven't been into that not measuring frame of mind, once you put the tomatoes in and the soup is all put together, add SOME spices and cook it for a half hour or so...then, taste it...and, add more if you like....i LOVE spicy soup.....
HEY, i'm a better baker than i am a cook....bear in mind, when you make bread or pizza dough or cookies from dough that's rolled out, flour IS the mystery ingredient that can't be measured.....

listen, from now on if someone has ANYTHING they want to ask me or discuss with me, PLEASE pm me...there are so many journals on these boards that i have trouble finding the posts of people that have questions that need answering.............i hope the red lion lass is still around to read mine and crick's responses to her questions............have a great day, all....................niki
life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...it's about learning to dance in the rain..
Red Lion Lass
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by Red Lion Lass »

Thanks guys for your replies.

CodingQueen showed me how to make it in my 7 quart crockpot.

Put 1 1/2 pounds (three cups) of different beans (I usually use black, pinto, navy and/or Great Northern) in the crockpot. Cover with water about 2-3 inches above the beans and let sit overnight.

In the morning drain/rinse and put back in the crockpot with 12 cups of water, seasonings (1 Tablespoon of chili powder, cumin, oregano, red chili flakes and 1/2 Tablespoon of black pepper) and chopped vegetables (three cups each...onion, carrot and celery). Sometimes she uses three cups of onion, celery and 1 1/2 cups of green peppers (the trinity used in Cajun cooking).

Cook on HIGH for 4 hours (or until beans are cooked). Add 1 Tablespoon of salt and the crushed tomatoes (28 oz) and cook on LOW for another 2 hours or longer if necessary.

Niki, this is very good. :thumbsup:

Red Lion Lass
Last edited by Red Lion Lass on April 9th, 2010, 11:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
CodingQueen
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by CodingQueen »

One pound of dried beans is equivalent to 2 cups for anyone who's interested.

I, personally don't like to mix lentils with my bean soups because they don't take as long to cook and are usually mush by the time all the other beans have cooked. I save them for my Moroccan soup recipes.

CQ
Gwennaford
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by Gwennaford »

CodingQueen wrote: I save them for my Moroccan soup recipes.


I use cumin in those!  :)
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CodingQueen
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by CodingQueen »

Gwen.... :laughing:

So do I...I can't wait until the Jazz Festival. You're such a comic.

CQ
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by CodingQueen »

Red Lion Lass wrote:In the morning drain/rinse and put back in the crockpot with 12 cups of water, seasonings (1 Tablespoon of chili powder, cumin, oregano, red chili flakes and 1/2 Tablespoon of black pepper) and chopped vegetables (three cups each...onion, carrot and celery). Sometimes she uses three cups of onion, celery and 1 1/2 cups of green peppers (the trinity used in Cajun cooking).


Red Lion Lass,

I didn't pay close attention to what you posted. You only need 9 cups of water instead of 12, otherwise, you're not going to have enough room for everything. I also use 1 1/2 pounds of onions, 1 pound of carrots and 1/2 a bunch of celery cooked in three batches (onions, carrots and then celery) using coconut oil (olive oil if you prefer) and diced tomatoes instead of the crushed (I like a chunky soup). Where did you come up with the three cups of each? Another soup recipe that I gave you? I also don't use the trinity for this recipe. I want the natural sugar in the carrots to offset the acid in the tomatoes.

CQ
Last edited by CodingQueen on April 25th, 2010, 10:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.
BMorg
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by BMorg »

NIKI, I want to make this soup....but can I use canned beans? Would you do anything differently if you used canned instead of dried?
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Red Lion Lass
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Re: niki's favorite bean soup

Post by Red Lion Lass »

BMorg,

I've made this with canned beans. You'll need approximately 2 cans of beans (I prefer undrained) for each 1/2 pound of dried beans in the recipe for a total of 6 cans. You also won't need as much water (about 4 cups). I've also found that 3 cans (15 oz) of diced tomatoes works better than 1 can (28 oz.) of crushed when using canned beans as well. I also prefer just using 1 Tablespoon of chili powder, 1 Tablespoon of cumin and 1 Tablespoon of salt for the seasonings. The oregano works well with the crushed tomatoes but the red pepper flakes really kicks it up. If you like it spicy then throw in the red pepper flakes, too.

Red Lion Lass
Last edited by Red Lion Lass on May 1st, 2010, 9:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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