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35 votes
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Can beans be overcooked?

Beans can absolutely be overcooked. Coffee beans aren't really beans--they're seeds from a fruit--but they are very temperature sensitive when roasted. There is a wide range of roasts, but dark roast ...
AMtwo's user avatar
  • 9,092
27 votes

Why are beans I soak myself always smaller than canned?

Dried beans swell when soaked, and swell further when cooked. Your question implies that you are only soaking, not cooking the dried beans - which would both mean they would not get as large as the ...
Ecnerwal's user avatar
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25 votes
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Are red beans supposed to look pruney when soaking?

It's normal for beans to sometimes do that during the first stages of soaking, particularly if you soak them in boiling water. They should plump up and become normal after 40min to an hour.
FuzzyChef's user avatar
  • 65.6k
22 votes
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Substituting black beans for ground beef in a meat pie

I often use beans instead of meat, and I think you'd get away with it, but your concerns are certainly valid - it might come out a little dry. It partly depends on the proportions, especially of the ...
Chris H's user avatar
  • 45.8k
18 votes

Why are canned beans softer than the ones I soak myself?

Since it sounds like your goal is just to make creamy/smooth hummus, not necessarily to exactly duplicate canned beans, I'd suggest soaking with salt and baking soda (15g salt and 5g baking soda per ...
Cascabel's user avatar
  • 58.6k
17 votes

Why are canned beans softer than the ones I soak myself?

Canned beans are pressure cooked for quite a while. A fairly stock bit of advice on boiling beans for hummus is to go longer than a typical time you might find on the bag as a recommendation for ...
Ecnerwal's user avatar
  • 19.6k
16 votes
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How to cook dried red beans faster?

If you want to reduce total preparation time, you can skip the soak. Then you can just boil for about 4-6 hours, instead of soaking overnight. This is not a tradeoff most cooks are willing to make, ...
rumtscho's user avatar
  • 141k
16 votes
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Are these Red Beans or Red Kidney beans?

Though people seem to consider them 'the same thing' they are actually not. There is a 'red bean' distinct from a kidney bean. What you have there, though, are kidney beans. I found a couple of ...
Tetsujin's user avatar
  • 29.9k
13 votes
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Do I need to soak fresh beans?

No, you don't need to soak fresh shell beans. Unlike their dried counterparts, shelling beans don't need a soak before using. Most fresh shelling beans require from 20 to 30 minutes to cook The ...
Juhasz's user avatar
  • 2,545
13 votes

Can fresh (frozen) beans be added directly to stew?

It worked phenomenally! I quick-released my stew ~5 minutes earlier than usual, added the frozen beans (no extra water needed- the beans were just covered by the liquid) pressure cooked on high for 7 ...
Tjaden Hess's user avatar
13 votes

Reheating beans makes them mushy and unpeeled

You aren't re-heating them, you are cooking them longer, and they are becoming overcooked. If you want to reheat them over the stove use a more gentle heat and keep them on the heat just until they ...
GdD's user avatar
  • 78k
12 votes

Why is it so rare in the US to get kidney bean poisoning?

As the question you linked to says, canned beans are cooked thoroughly, so there's no issue. Pretty much the point of canned food is that it's ready to eat; if something required further cooking it ...
Cascabel's user avatar
  • 58.6k
12 votes
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Can fresh (frozen) beans be added directly to stew?

I see instructions for pressure cooked frozen butter beans, which call for 4 minutes at high pressure, followed by about 10 minutes of natural pressure release. So, I would certainly add them at the ...
moscafj's user avatar
  • 77.9k
12 votes

Why are beans I soak myself always smaller than canned?

There’s different varieties of chickpeas (garbanzo beans). Canned chickpeas I’ve seen have all been Kabuli, a large and light-colored variety. Dried chickpeas in bags are an even split between Kabuli ...
Sneftel's user avatar
  • 32.2k
12 votes

Substituting black beans for ground beef in a meat pie

Beans make for a good pie, but not one that tastes or feels much like beef. From your question, particularly the last line, it sounds as if you might actually be looking to imitate the flavor and ...
Obie 2.0's user avatar
  • 227
10 votes

Why do most (all?) recipes call for cooked rather than dry beans?

Because the amount of liquid, time, and environment needed to cook dried beans will affect the finished result. Beans absorb and require a very high proportion of water. A lot of people either presoak ...
cc11's user avatar
  • 101
9 votes

Does chilli get milder with cooking?

From long cooking, the capsaicin could distribute throughout the food in a way that will make it more palatable, but the capsaicin content will not drastically change. If this does not suffice: In a ...
rackandboneman's user avatar
9 votes
Accepted

Cooking kidney beans that just started to sprout a little

This is totally safe to eat as long as you cook them. The taste and the texture would be a little bit different than what you use to though. Here is an article about the safety of eating sprouted ...
A.D.'s user avatar
  • 1,091
9 votes
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Can I make "falafel" with different beans?

Yes, you can, however if you want to use red kidney beans, or white kidney beans (cannellini), please boil them at least 30 minutes at 100 °C, otherwise you might suffer from food poisoning. Source: ...
addam's user avatar
  • 216
8 votes
Accepted

Is there a use for bean juice - the cooking liquid of beans?

It can be used as an egg substitute in various baking applications; search with the keyword "aquafaba" to learn more about this. Also, it is used as a thickener in some bean-based dishes (eg common ...
rackandboneman's user avatar
8 votes

Canned beans contain no liquid?

You were right to throw them out, no liquid was a sign that something went wrong in processing and therefore a safety concern. When it doubt, throw it out!
GdD's user avatar
  • 78k
8 votes
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Modifying Pressure Cooker Timing for Beans

The beans/water ratio is not particularly important as long as there's enough water. You want the beans covered throughout cooking, keeping in mind that they'll expand and the water level will drop. ...
Sneftel's user avatar
  • 32.2k
7 votes

Are these worms in my black eyed peas/beans?

I am about to be 63 years old, and those years have been Georgia born and bred years ! Living on a farm, I cannot begin to count the amount of beans and peas I have eaten in my life. Your pot of ...
Gloria's user avatar
  • 71
7 votes

How to cook dried red beans faster?

What is the dish you are trying to make? If you are looking to soften the beans quickly you can use a pressure cooker.
weets's user avatar
  • 101
7 votes
Accepted

Can I eat beans that have had weeevils in it?

Per Alan Munn, Quora, and Iowa State, grain weevils are medically harmless and carry no human diseases. That said, most people find the thought of eating weevil larvae in their beans disgusting, and ...
FuzzyChef's user avatar
  • 65.6k
6 votes

Why is it so rare in the US to get kidney bean poisoning?

As Jefromi said, canned beans -- whether in the US or UK or probably just about anywhere -- are NOT going to contain this toxin, which will be destroyed with about 10 minutes of temperatures at a full ...
Athanasius's user avatar
  • 33.3k
6 votes
Accepted

Do split beans need to be thrown away?

Nope, it's fine to leave split beans in to cook with the rest of the beans. Split beans are common, and I've never heard of anyone removing them. They will probably overcook while the rest of the ...
Jolenealaska's user avatar
  • 58.7k
6 votes

How long to warm taco bar dishes in a roaster

Well, if anybody gives you a solid figure on how long it's going to take, they almost certainly don't know what they're talking about. Even if they did know how hot your appliance gets and how quickly;...
ChefAndy's user avatar
  • 3,063
6 votes

Why do beans squeak?

From my experience, this is more likely to happen if the beans are cooked in a dry manner (eg as part of a pie filling, in a very thick sauce, or by sauteeing or baking) than when they are boiled - so ...
rackandboneman's user avatar

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