Beans can seem a little intimidating. That plastic bag of funny-looking pebbles at the back of the cupboard, bought in a fit of good intentions, seems to defy food logic. But really it’s quite simple. Here’s how you can initiate yourself into the leguminati.
“We don’t soak our beans, because they’re so fresh they don’t need it,” says Steve Sando, the founder of the California-based bean company, Rancho Gordo.
Sando has been working for years to promote enthusiasm and love for pulses which can – he believes – save the world (or at least make us all healthier and reduce the amount of carbon emissions our food systems produce. For many he is the godfather of the jokily nicknamed leguminati.)
But the beans in your cupboard might be another story. They don’t really have a use-by date, but if they are two years old to you, say, then they probably really are four to five, or – depending on where you bought them – could even be eight to 10.
Which is to say they probably need a good soaking, for at least about four to six hours. “And then I wouldn’t change the water,” says Sando. It’s going to be full of beany goodness.
Next, get a heavy-bottomed saucepan, pour in a little oil and sauté an onion and some garlic, and maybe a bayleaf. Then add the beans in their soaking water.
“And then bring it to a really hard boil for 15 minutes,” says Sando. “Really rapid, because you want the beans to be your bitch, at that point. I mean that in a loving sort of way.”
Simmer then, as low as it will go, with the lid ajar to allow for some evaporation to concentrate that bean broth (and yes, you can eat that, unlike the yucky stuff from the tin).
“And then let them go,” Sando says. “And unfortunately the timing is going to be tough, because I don’t know how hard your water is, we don’t know how old the beans are, but I would budget three hours, but it probably would be more like an hour and a half.
“And then you’re done.”
Of course, pulses include beans, but they also include lentils and chickpeas, all the dried seeds of the legume family of plants, which also counts among its members oil-seeds, such as peanuts and soya beans, and varieties more commonly eaten fresh (when they are known as legumes), such as broad beans, green peas and snap peas.
And some other favourite legume recipes from the environment team:
-
Nigella’s Cuban beans is a perennial favourite that one of our writers made pretty much every week while she was at university.
-
While we’re talking about Nigella (Lawson of course), her courgette and chickpea filo pie is also a lovely classic.
-
Dishoom’s house black dal is one of the greatest, most comforting dinners of all time. The secret turns out to be lots of butter and lots of cream. Make vast amounts so you’ll have it for the rest of the week.
-
Harissa baked beans with chorizo, eggs and feta (just as good without chorizo if you prefer) is a great standby.
-
And for a sweet treat, try these surprising black bean fudge brownies – absolutely delicious.