All Things Holistic Blog

Wonderfully Fabulous Beans

Beans are simply wonderful—full of flavor and texture. Great sources of fiber, complex carbohydrates, and protein, too. An oh-so satisfying addition to a whole-foods based way of eating!

There are many varied opinions on how best to cook beans for digestibility—no one wants to eat beans that taste wonderfully, and then moments or hours later, result in tummy upset, gas or bloating. After personally trying many ways of preparing beans—soaking/not soaking, salt/no salt while cooking, adding vinegar, baking soda, doing a magic dance, etc.—I have landed on this, my favorite, way of cooking beans. To me, the Parsons method is the answer—resulting in delicious and digestible beans that are as no-fuss as they can be. Now, I really can make home-made beans that taste better than canned, and that are so, so easy.

Los Angeles Times Food editor Russ Parsons had this to say regarding the varied opinions on how best to prepare beans:

1. Unless they are very old, beans need not be presoaked. Presoaking only saves about 30 minutes or so of cooking time, and often at the cost of texture and flavor. So, no soaking, except for garbanzo beans, which will cook much faster if soaked overnight.

2. Reducing flatulence from eating beans is more a function of eating more beans (the more you eat, the better your digestive flora is able to handle them) than it is of a particular method of cooking them. That is, there is no magic formula for reducing gas from beans. Rather, a healthy digestive system will handle them just fine.

3. Salting beans at the beginning of cooking doesn’t affect the beans texture. It does, however, allow the salt to become well absorbed as the beans cook, adding dimension and flavor.

4. Cooking beans in an earthen ware pot adds nothing to their flavor. Use any pot you like.

5. Areas with hard water (high levels of calcium and magnesium) will mean longer cooking time because starches soften much more slowly in the presence of these mineral salts.

6. Always cook beans beginning with cold water, so the starches will swell more gradually and thoroughly.

7. Oven cooking is best, since the heat is more easily controlled and even.

8. If you want beans to be separated and light, cook them in lots of water.

9. Beans are done when they are tender through to the center. Another test—blow on the bean. If it wrinkles, it’s usually done (but taste to be sure.)

 
The Parsons Method of Cooking Beans

Heat oven to 300F.

Rinse and drain one pound of beans, and add to an oven-proof pot (cast iron, clay Dutch oven, etc are good choices.)

Cover beans with 3 inches of cool water; add 1 tsp sea salt, and any other seasoning you wish—onion, garlic, basil, bay leaf, cumin, curry, etc. Bring to a boil on the stove top. (Since I don't know if my ceramic pot is stovetop-safe, I bring all to a boil in a large saucepan or stock pot and then transfer to baking dish.)

Cover, transfer beans to the oven and bake, stirring occasionally, until done—usually 1.5 to 2 hours, depending on the type of bean.

Halve or double this recipe, adjusting salt and seasonings accordingly.

Want to know my favorite combination so far? Black beans seasoned with sea salt, bay leaf, cumin, and baked with chopped onion and garlic. Remove bay leaves once beans are done. Fabulous!

Inspired and adapted from How to Read a French Fry by Russ Parsons.