Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Tough Beans

Photo credit: alocuba.com


I'm so excited! I was beginning to think that I was the only person who could not cook dried beans. I have tried many recipes "maybe I used the wrong spices", and all the methods I could find "maybe I read it wrong"; they always turn out tough, and dry inside. I just discovered the reason! The calcium in hard water doesn't let the beans cook through. Oh!

Well, at least it's not just me.

AND THEN I also found the cure... a heaping tablespoon of baking soda in the soaking water and in the cooking water!

The first time, I put only a pinch of soda in the bottom of my crockpot and cooked it on low for 11 hours. The bottom beans were sort of done. The top beans were not.

Second time, I put a heaping tablespoon of soda in the soaking water and stirred to distribute the soda evenly. After soaking, I drained the beans and added another heaping tablespoon for the whole crockpot of dried beans. Stirred again and then cooked it 11 hours on low and they were WAY overdone. Yea! Baking soda works!


As a side, a friend told me that she lets her beans soak 24 hours and it has eliminated any gas "after affect" problems. Worth a try!

2 comments:

  1. Wow I have never heard of such a thing! We cook beans a lot, but I never cook them in a crock pot. I think they feel funny and don't get creamy enough in a crock pot. I usually soak my beans for a few hours in the morning and cook them on the stove in a big pot for a few hours. What is hard water? I think our tap water is horrible even out here in the country, but I don't know if it's hard water. It tastes very chlorinated though. I cook with it, but I never drink it! Does this only happen in the crock pot or does it happen on the stove too? I know it takes the crock pot awhile to bring the beans to a boil. On the stove it only takes a few minutes to boil and then they boil for a few hours and are done!

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  2. Yes, I had tried cooking them on the stove before and they still never cooked through. Although, you may be right about the beans cooking nicer on the stove top. I suppose I should try it; somehow, the crockpot feels easier. :) These were creamy (gooey) since I cooked them so long. :)
    Hard water will (eventually) turn the inside of the soap dispenser in the clothes washer brown. I also can't get my dish water to suds no matter how much soap I dump in.
    I love the taste of the water, though! I hate the taste of softened water, which feels like soap. Each well has different water and minerals; You'd have to test it to know why it tastes so bad.

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