Dried vs Canned Beans

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LINDA RN
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Dried vs Canned Beans

Post by LINDA RN »

Dried vs. Canned Beans
Canned beans are fast and easy to use. Or you can prepare dried beans from scratch. Here are some equivalents and cooking instructions:

1 lb dry beans = 2 1/2 cups dry beans = about 7 1/2 cups cooked beans
1 cup dry beans = about 3 cups cooked beans
14 oz/398 ml can beans = about 1 1/2 cups drained beans
19 oz/540 ml can beans = about 2 cups drained beans
First, rinse and sort dried beans, discarding any blemished ones or any grit. Then soak:

LONG SOAK: Cover dried beans with three times their volume of water and lets stand in refrigerator for 12 hours or overnight. Drain.
QUICK SOAK: In saucepan, cover dried beans with three times their volume of water and bring to boil. Boil for two minutes. Remove from heat, cover and let stand for one hour. Drain.
In a large saucepan, cover drained, soaked beans with three times their volume of fresh water. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, and topping up with water if necessary, for about 45 minutes to 1 1/4 hours, depending on age and type of bean. Drain.

Bean cooking tips
Hard facts. When soaking and cooking dry beans, resist the urge to add anything other than fresh, cold water. Salt and acidic ingredients like tomatoes, citrus juice, vinegar, wine, or mustard inhibit the absorption of liquid and stop the softening process. Once hardening agents are added, the bean will not soften any further. Also, make sure to increase soaking and cooking times when using hard water.

Know when to say when. How do you know when beans have soaked enough? Soaking re-hydrates the beans and prepares them for further cooking. Slice a soaked bean in half. If the center is opaque, your beans need to be soaked longer.

A Taste Test. To check doneness during cooking, some bean aficionados recommend blowing on one or two beans spooned from the cooking pot. If they are done, the skins will burst. Want a foolproof way to test? The American Dry Bean Board recommends tasting. After ¾ of the cooking time has elapsed, try a taste test. Beans should be tender, but not mushy. Beans vary in cooking time according to the age of the bean, size or type of the cooking pot, simmering temperatures, and even the type of water (e.g. hard or softened.)

Soak separately. In the time it takes one bean variety to become tender, another can become mushy. Generally, it is important to soak and cook black beans and white beans separately. Always rinse black beans to remove liquid which otherwise blackens foods the beans are added to or combined with.

Shaken, not stirred. To retain the shape of soft beans to be used in salads and sauteed dishes, carefully shake the pot rather than stirring it near the end of the cooking process.

Cut down sugar and sodium. Soaking and rinsing dry beans rids the beans of complex sugars that sometimes cause stomach gas. You can also reduce the complex sugars by draining and rinsing canned beans. The sodium content of canned beans is also reduced by 1/3 if you drain and rinse the beans before use.

The bean jar. Because jars of dry beans look attractive in the kitchen, many cooks like to display them. Just make sure beans are stored in airtight containers in a cool, dry location. Also, keeping beans out of the direct sunlight will prevent discoloration and a change in flavor.
Some maintain that discarding soaking liquid helps to reduce flatulence.

Another person wrote:


One 15-ounce can of beans = one and one-half cups cooked beans, drained
One pound dry beans = six cups cooked beans, drained.
One pound dry beans = two cups dry beans.
One cup dry beans = three cups cooked beans, drained.
Linda
"And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. Joel 2:26

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cameron
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Joined: March 13th, 2010, 11:56 pm
Location: VANCOUVER BC CANADA

Re: Dried vs Canned Beans

Post by cameron »

Thanks for the info Linda!
Paulo
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Joined: November 3rd, 2011, 2:21 am

Re: Dried vs Canned Beans

Post by Paulo »

Thanks for the information Linda. great post!!
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