[bloviatrix]

Thanks for reviving this thread. I used the "Parsons" method to prepare my black beans for chili several weeks ago. Because of the aromatics I added to the liquid, the chili was even more flavorful than usual. I'm totally sold. (and it's so easy.)

[fifi]

Rachel Perlow, on Mar 17 2004, 06:37 PM, said:

We need to spread the word. At the very least this should be a Daily Gullet article. Hallelujah!

I am so glad we have another convert. Onward to better beans!

I think the article is a fine idea. (psst... Hey Russ!)

[ExtraMSG]

That's the only way I cook beans. It's the primary reason I bought a Le Creuset, too. It's so much easier.

[Rachel Perlow]

Does it work as well with pots that don't necessarily have as heavy a lid as Le Creuset?

Also, now I need more bean recipes, since I'll be cooking them so much more! Post in them in RecipeGullet people!

[fifi]

I don't think the weight of the lid has anything to do with it. If you do the math you find that you really aren't developing any significant pressure in the pot due to the weight of the lid. I cooked beans with this method for years before I got my LC. I do think that the weight of the pot evens out the temperature because of the mass of the pot. It is the same principle as with crockery. I am probably going to add an Emile Henry to my toy collection just because Wolfert says it works. Then I also use the crock pot if I am only doing a pound. It just seems like I do what seems like a good idea at the time. The crock pot takes a little longer because you don't have the heat on all sides but I can just set it to low and go shopping without worrying about it. I am more likely to use the oven in the winter.

You asked about recipes and I looked in my collection and find... I don't have any! Next time I do a pot I will take note and enter it, especially if they are particularly good. (Not all of my ideas are as good as they seemed at the time. )

[marie-louise]

I haven't tried ALL these variations for aromatics, but here's some ideas I've collected from various sources-I'm sure others can add more.

First of all, the basic recipe (I like to add some aromatics at the beginning, in addition to the salt.)

BASIC BEANS Note this recipe is for 1 cup of beans, not 1 pound.
Makes 2 1/2–3 cups cooked beans, which serves 2-3 as a meal or 4-6 as a side dish.

1 cup beans, rinsed well
1/2 tsp. salt (less if use salted stock)
3 cups water or diluted stock

Basic Aromatics:
1/2 medium onion, quartered
1–2 bay leaves
1 large clove garlic, smashed
several large parsley springs

Tie aromatics into a cheesecloth. Bring all ingredients to a boil, cover, & cook in a 250º oven until done (approximately 2 hours for flageolets; 2 1/2 hours for cranberry beans). Remove the aromatics and discard them.

VARIATIONS FOR AROMATICS

Stick whole cloves into the onion, use 2 bay leaves, and add smoked ham or turkey (decrease salt) for beans that are smoky and slightly spicy.

Add 1/2 cup chopped carrots to sweeten the beans.

Add whole allspice and a piece of a cinnamon stick to black or red beans.

Add rosemary or thyme for a nice herbal quality to white and lima beans.

TO FINISH BEANS: (I really like these slightly warm, served w/ grilled sausage or lamb.)

Put the warm beans in a bowl & toss them w/ 1 large shallot, finely diced or 3 scallions, including a little green, diced; 1 small clove garlic, pressed; 2 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped; 3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil; salt & pepper to taste. Serve w/ lemon wedges. Serve hot, at room temperature or cold. Variation: Toss w/ 1/3-cup Pesto or Salsa Verde.

[ExtraMSG]

I don't really use recipes for beans, but here are some things in my template:

1) Sautee aromatics, add spices and beans

2) 10 Cups of water to 1 lb of beans

3) No acids until the beans are the texture you want them

4) Lots of salt

5) Bring to simmer

6) Add covered to 250 degree oven until done

I think that's about it. McGee explains the acid thing, if I remeber right. Apparently acids will prevent the beans from softening properly. If you want extra mushy beans you can even increase the alkaline properties of the water. I think that's what baking soda does in beans. I try not to screw with the pH. Beans are so bland, imo, they need lots of salt. I treat it almost like pasta where traditionally you want the water like the sea. I don't go that far because I'm often reserving any leftover liquid, but I think it makes a huge difference to have adequate salt in the water.

[redfox]

Insipired by Rachel's raves, I made a batch today myself, and it is lovely!

I brought 4 cups of water to a boil in my smaller Le Crueset, added half a pound of picked and rinsed cranberry beans, about 3/4 t. salt, a bay leaf and a few smashed cloves of garlic. Back up to a simmer, on with the lid and into the oven -- my oven runs cold, so I set it to 300 which I think did give me an actual temperature of 250 (my thermometer is busted). But 1 hour was definitely not nearly enough time for these guys. Maybe they are old, maybe cranberries are slow cookers? BUT after about an hour and forty-five minutes, they were ready and so good! Really delicious, ideally salted, keeping their shape very well but with absolutely no unwanted crunch. Creamy and firm, both.

Edited to add: And we're using your preparation with the scallions and lemon tonight, Marie Louise. Once again, eGullet saves the day.

This post has been edited by redfox: 18 March 2004 - 06:03 PM

[ExtraMSG]

2 hours is usually closer for me, btw. I would have put way more salt than that, though!

[redfox]

Yeah, but you also have a higher proportion of water to beans, which probably makes a difference. I was pretty skeptical about using that little salt, myself. I love salt! But I thought the end result was pretty much ideal.

I thought I probably could have gotten away with using less water than that too, by the way.

[ExtraMSG]

Yeah, you always want as little water as possible. The less water the faster the absorption, according to McGee. But I don't want to take any chances. 10 cups per pound of beans was about the least I saw in any recipes when I started doing it. I guess I could retest it. Those might have been uncovered in the oven.

[bloviatrix]

I also use about 10 cups/pound with 1 tsp of salt. Pot was uncovered in the oven. The beans remained submerged, but almost all of the water was absorbed.

[ExtraMSG]

I should do a blind taste test on my salt-averse wife to try and find the optimal amount of salt. I just need three Le Creusets. Time to shopping.

[redfox]

Ah, I was doing it covered, so of course less water left via evaporation.

[Jaymes]

ExtraMSG, on Mar 18 2004, 08:19 PM, said:

Yeah, you always want as little water as possible.

Depending, of course, on what kind of beans you're preparing and how you want them to turn out.

My personal favorite, Mexican pinto beans, are generally very soupy. They are served in bowls and eaten with spoons. The liquid broth is delicious. In fact, many Mexicans will tell you that the best part is the "bean juice."

This post has been edited by Jaymes: 18 March 2004 - 07:45 PM

[rancho_gordo]

Jaymes, on Mar 18 2004, 06:39 PM, said:

My personal favorite, Mexican pinto beans, are generally very soupy. They are served in bowls and eaten with spoons. The liquid broth is delicious. In fact, many Mexicans will tell you that the best part is the "bean juice."

Despite the advice given here at different times, I agree with Jaymes. It's free soup! Pot Liquor is a gift. Poach eggs with it, make enfrijoladas (instead of a chile sauce, dip tortillas in the pot liquor), make rice with it, etc.

But it depends on the bean, too. Some don't have such a swell broth, others are incredible.

[Mabelline]

Is there anyone familiar with the Native beans of many Az.,N.M., Chihuahua, and Texas beans known as tepary beans? I have had such a craving for them, I could shake like a junkie thinking of a pot of them with some gooood pork!!! I have ordered some seeds from Native Seed Search, but I despair, because I WANT SOME NOW!! Spoiled brat coming out...please tell me someone else has tasted them?

[ExtraMSG]

Jaymes, on Mar 18 2004, 06:39 PM, said:

ExtraMSG, on Mar 18 2004, 08:19 PM, said:

Yeah, you always want as little water as possible.

Depending, of course, on what kind of beans you're preparing and how you want them to turn out.

My personal favorite, Mexican pinto beans, are generally very soupy. They are served in bowls and eaten with spoons. The liquid broth is delicious. In fact, many Mexicans will tell you that the best part is the "bean juice."

I just meant for speed. Black bean soup rocks. You gotta have that pot liquor.

I made the most luscious refried beans the other day. I used red beans and cooked them with some onion, garlic, home-made chicken stock, cumin, coriander, and a chipotle. Drained, added in some leftover salsas from the upcoming salsa class, and sauteed in some lard, then mashed and added back in the pot liquor to smooth it out. Yum, yum, yum.

[Rachel Perlow]

It makes sense that the cranberry beans took longer to cook, as they are about twice the size of the beans I was using (small red and small white beans).

[JennotJenn]

mongo_jones, on Feb 2 2004, 07:01 PM, said:

russ,

i wonder if your experiments have included cooking beans in a pressure-cooker.

I'm curious about the pressure cooker as well. Perhaps my success with that method comes partly from the fact that I'm making what Rancho Gordo referred to as pot beans, I believe. This is the traditional way to eat them in the Appalachian Mountains, where pinto is also king. I usually do a quick soak (boil and soak for an hour) because I forget to soak them until I get home from work on the night I plan on making them. Put them in the pressure cooker with a handful of salt (1/8 cup? dunno, I have small hands, so whatever a cupped palm will hold). I've never had a problem with toughened beans, or with the beans breaking apart. I get perfectly cooked, perfectly soft beans every time. I don't know if they would work as well in recipes, but for eating with the broth and a slice of cornbread, the pressure cooker cannot be beat. At least IMO. My grandma and mom say so, too. Can 3 generations of hillbillies be wrong?\

McGee's chapter on legumes did change one thing for me...I do tend to cook them with less water than when I first started making my own beans. I still get plenty of bean juice and they do seem to achieve a creaminess that I wasn't seeing before (softness, yes, creaminess, no).

Oh, and I've found that it makes no difference with the amount of flatulence w/traditional stovetop vs. pressure cooker. I have not tried the oven method, though I may give it a go next weekend.

[rancho_gordo]

Mabelline, on Mar 18 2004, 09:55 PM, said:

Spoiled brat coming out...please tell me someone else has tasted them?

Teparys are great. they taste earthy. They look like lentils but they don't fall apart. They remain chewy and creamy at the same time. And they're drought tolerant. Plus higher in protein and fiber. Everybody wins!

[redfox]

JennotJenn, on Mar 19 2004, 08:14 AM, said:

I have not tried the oven method, though I may give it a go next weekend.

Please do and report back! I think it will wind up taking no more time than your quick soak + pressure cooking, and with even less fuss.

[redfox]

And now I have made the mistake of looking at Rancho Gordo's wonderful heirloom beans and setting myself up for unfulfillable cravings. How I wish I still lived in the Bay Area! I WANT.

[fifi]

I have to agree with Jaymes and rancho_gordo on the "bean juice" issue. While I prefer most beans cooked with "just enough" liquid, there are those that lend themselves to wonderful bean juice. The pintos, of course, but also those fresh shelled peas in the summertime. Good cornbread to soak it up is a necessity. Nothing is right or wrong, just a whole 'nother thing.

I have always heard of teparys but, strangely, never tried them. I will have to go looking for them.

[bloviatrix]

Rancho -- is there any way we can convince you to do mail-order your egullet family? Please???? We'll ask nicely?

[russ parsons]

customer says to the waiter: "what do you call this soup?" waiter says: "it's bean soup." customer says "I know it's been soup, but what is it now?" (told to me, repeatedly, by a dear old friend who was a writer for groucho).

i'm a big fan of bean broth, obviously, but one thing i've never tried: clarifying it? has anyone done this? i've got this fantasy picture of a bean consome with some beautiful cooked beans in the bottom of the bowl and a clear broth on top. i remember years ago john sedlar did a similar thing with posole and it totally rocked.

on another matter: i found that cooking beans with the lid off GREATLY increased the cooking time, by a factor of 2 or 3, in fact. furthermore, i found the beans didn't cook as evenly. i strongly recommend covering the pot while cooking them.

[Jensen]

bloviatrix, on Mar 19 2004, 08:30 AM, said:

Rancho -- is there any way we can convince you to do mail-order your egullet family? Please???? We'll ask nicely?

Not to discourage RG from expanding his business to "family" but ...

in case such an expansion really isn't feasible at this point in time, there is a NorCal mail-order source for heirloom beans at The Bean Bag.

I first encountered these beans at Whole Foods here in Sacramento. I loved them so much but every time I went back for more, there were none to be had. Just as I was about to break down and order some through their website, they made a trip to my local farmer's market.

[mnebergall]

Thanks for that link. I have added it to my bookmarks.

[jodicalhoun]

I have an oar to stick in the Anasazi Bean stream. My favorite beans for many years when I lived in Western Colorado, I was afraid when I moved to Washington State I would never eat another Anasazi Bean. But, thank heaven for mothers! My mom sends me a five pound bag of Anasazi Beans directly from the source. Here is what I know. "The Source" is "Adobe Mills Beans" in a small town near Cortez, Colorado. Check directory assistance for number. They sell black and pinto beans as well as Anasazi. They are a fairly small producer and I have never had a freshness issue. What a mom! Other moms send their daughters sweaters, mine sends beans!! Gotta love her.

[klc14]

Tried it in a toaster oven using a medium-heavy made-in-Japan no-name stoneware casserole with lid from the Goodwill store. Results still good. The Parsons Method is not brand-sensitive but benefits from quality.

Working with ExtraMSG's template and Russ' advice about salting before cooking to salt the beans and not just the broth, 1/2 pound pinto beans, 5 cloves of garlic, 2 teaspoons of thyme, 1 teaspoon of kosher salt, 5 cups boiling water, hour and a half, temp 275. A bit hotter than recommended but beans were done. LOTS of bean juice. Could have gotten away with 4 cups of water.

I also had a meal of a nice big bowl of beans and also expected to have a wind problem, even had the candles lit to burn off the methane , but....nothing. I don't eat beans that much either.

Overall: MUCH easier than the rinsing, soaking, draining, soaking, draining, boiling, draining, simmering on burner I tried before. Those scorched on the bottom a bit. No such problem with the oven-baked beans. I will be more likely to cook them with this method, which can only help the US bean industry!

Also: Much less water used than with all that soaking.

I am going to try rancho_gordo's method next. Never hurts to have a plan B.