Well, crap.

[Allison]

Beaker's bean and bacon soup sounds really good, and SB friendly - and Jason's willing to make it while I'm at school, but the beans have to soak overnight.

:mad:

[Natale]

You can quick soak them in an hour.

[Allison]

I just googled and found this, but tell me about quick soaking.

***

Cooking Without Soaking

Beans don’t have to be soaked before they are cooked. Soaking merely shortens cooking time. Because unsoaked beans have to cook longer, they require more energy from your stove.

To cook beans without soaking, use twice the amount of cooking water specified in the recipe. Combine the water and rinsed beans in the pot and bring to a boil. Some cooks like to bring the water to a boil first, then drop in the beans a few at a time so the boiling doesn’t stop. Either method will cook the beans satisfactorily. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to maintain a simmer. The beans rehydrate while cooking so you will have to watch them carefully and add more water whenever necessary to keep them covered.

Cooking time for unsoaked beans can vary up to 2 hours. Most beans will be tender in 2 to 3 hours.

[Allison]

Is this what you do? Sorry to be all "lcf poster who asks too many questions", but I don't even know the purpose of soaking...

Hot-Soak (Preferred) and Quick-Soak Methods

For each pound of California dry beans, any variety, add 10 cups hot water. Remember, beans will rehydrate to at least twice their dry size, so be sure to start with a large enough pot. (Note: Up to 2 teaspoons of salt per pound of beans may be added to help the beans absorb water more evenly.) Heat to boiling, let boil two to three minutes. Remove from heat, cover and set aside for at least one hour (Quick-Soak Method), but preferably four hours or more (Hot-Soak Method). The longer soak time is recommended to allow more sugars to dissolve, thus helping the beans to be more easily digested. Whether you soak the beans for an hour or several hours, discard the soak water.

[Niki]

I use a pressure cooker...that way I don't have to soak.at all. 20 minutes and you have cooked beans! Do you have one?

[Natale]

That's what BH&G says to do - boil 1 lb. of beans in 8 cups of water for 2 min., then soak for an hour.

I *think* soaking helps to break down the starches and makes the beans more tender and less gassy.

[Allison]

I use a pressure cooker...that way I don't have to soak.at all. 20 minutes and you have cooked beans! Do you have one?

No, but I'll just borrow yours. :D


Hmmmm..... *ponders tasty soup vs. gassy husband*

What a predicament.

If I go ahead and let him make it while i'm at school - then we'll have yummy food for before school tomorrow night, and I can take some to my mom this weekend.

[Natale]

I think *carefully chewing* beans is the key to less gas. [/lcf poster who acts like an authority on stuff she knows nothing about]

[Allison]

I think *carefully chewing* beans is the key to less gas. [/lcf poster who acts like an authority on stuff she knows nothing about]

Well in this recipe, everything goes thru the food processor. So will that evaporate the poot-makers?

[Natale]

Uh, sure. :dunno:

[taragunner]

I just took some out of the freezer. I will put it in an envelope and mail it to you.