Beans and Ham

In yesterday’s blog I talked about what I was doing right then, which was making beans.   More than a few people said that they don’t have much luck with dried beans, so, let me expound…

I don’t hold much with the quick way to soak beans.  Just rinse them, put them in a really big pot or bowl, cover with a LOT of water, and let them soak for 10-12 hours.  If you don’t know how old the beans are (i.e. if they’ve been in your pantry forever), give them the longer time.  Don’t add salt or baking soda.

I rinse the beans well before cooking them.  They will have given up some starch and the water looks a bit cloudy.  Some people use this water – I don’t.   It’s less about flatulence vs. nutrients and more about the ick factor of that old water.

Since I had ham broth – this was my cooking liquid of choice (low sodium chicken broth is my usual).  Don’t add acidic ingredients at the beginning of cooking because it toughens them.  There is no exact time that the beans will be done.  I usually plan for forty-five minutes to an hour, and check often.   If I’m making soup I keep the liquid level high, if it’s just beans, I let it simmer down considerably.  After an hour, if the beans are not clearly softer, they were too old and it is hopeless.  It’s a pain, but at least you know before you wasted the rest of the ingredients!  Once they are almost done, I add whatever other ingredients I’m using. 

The plan for these particular beans was soup, so I separated the batch into two pots.   In the first pot I decided to make beans how I was taught to make them using ketchup, mustard, molasses, and, if you feel like it, brown sugar.   Amounts are totally subjective!  You make a face in the pot.  Pour molasses for the hair (a good amount), a big ketchup mouth, and mustard eyes.  Brown sugar freckles if you want it sweet (please do not get my Aunts started on this).  Mix it all together, then taste to see if anything needs to be adjusted.  Cook for a bit longer.  I added the ham from my broth making.  These were so good that I gave up on the soup in favor of a huge pot of beans.  This turned out to be lunch (2 bowls for my youngest son).  Okay, and my breakfast this morning…I don’t like cereal!

I took potential waste, added  water,  stuff I had in the kitchen anyhow, less than $2 in beans, and turned it into a hearty meal.  Some meals you scrimp – some you splurge; it’s all about balance.