Bean Bonanza

Vegetarian. Sophisticated. Hearty. Easy.

When COVID started, I got REALLY into beans. They were a low-effort project, something I could control, and they had endless variation. I would start every week with a big pot, that I’d then eat throughout the week in different ways. I tried lots of approaches: pre-soak and no soak, different spice blends, different aromatics, elaborate and simple. So here is the distilled wisdom from ~3 years of dedicated bean experimentation + my go-to bean recipe + some great bean combos + some suggestions for what to do with them (now that you have half a pound of cooked beans) + where to buy fun varieties.

Notes from the early days of bean experimentation

Most Important Bean Lessons:

1. Don’t pre-soak your beans. Yes, they’re hydrating, and yes, it does shorten cook time. But they’re also just soaking in water, rather than absorbing flavor from all the other things in the pot when you just cook them longer. So, if you have the time, just cook them for longer – the flavor is better.

2. Use low heat – low and slow. Higher heat agitates the beans, breaking open the skins and leaving you with mush rather than a gentle bite into a creamy center.

3. Save the bean broth, but DON’T store your beans in it. Store it separately. Please. It will smell so bad so fast if you don’t. The wetter the beans, the faster they go bad. So drain them well before storing them and they’ll last you all week. Store the liquid separately (no waste!) and use all that flavor as a base for soup, or for cooking rice/quinoa/farro/your grain of choice, and to serve a little with the beans and some good olive oil to mop up with crusty bread.

4. Avoid over-complicated spice combos. I love spices. I love variety. But beans are better simple. They can go with more things. As a bonus, NEVER add a star anise pod to your beans, it has a TERRIBLE woody flavor (not the depth I was going for).

5. Oversalt your cooking water. It should taste AT LEAST as salty as the ocean, but your beans are thirsty and they need that salt. They’ll still taste normal when then water is salty.

Scarlet runner beans, simmering (recipe below)

My Go-To Bean Recipe

I make them like this every time. They’re so good. You’ll need a cheesecloth or giant tea ball or the patience to pick out peppercorns one at a time.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups of your fav bean, or combo of beans

•  1/2 onion

• 1 leek top (the green part you don’t normally eat), washed clean and chopped roughly

• 1 tbsp peppercorns

• 3-5 bay leaves

• 1 whole dried chili (I promise this doesn’t make it too spicy!)

• Olive oil

• A glug of white wine or dry vermouth

• 3-4 cups boiling water

• Lots of salt (1-2 palmfuls? idk I just add until it tastes right)

Instructions:

1. Preheat a large saucepot or dutch oven on the stove on medium heat.

2. Dice your onion. Pack the peppercorns, leek top pieces, and bay leaves into your tea ball, or wrap them in cheesecloth.

3. Once the pan is hot, saute your onion in a generous amount of olive oil. It’s ok if it feels a little too oily – more flavor for the beans! Once they’re soft and translucent, pour in your glug of wine or vermouth to deglaze the bottom of the pan.

4. Once the wine or vermouth has cooked out fully, add your dried chili to the pot and let it sizzle. Add the beans. (If you’re not using a cheesecloth or tea ball, add everything from step 2 to the pot now and let it sizzle for a minute).

5. Pour the boiling water into the pot, and drop in your tea ball or cheesecloth. Salt heavily.

6. Cover the pot, leaving the lid just a little big ajar to let the steam out, and turn the heat down to low. Simmer for 3-4 hours on low heat, stirring occasionally and checking to make sure the water is cooking out, adding more boiling water if the beans are too dry. It’s CRUCIAL to cook the beans on the lowest simmer you can manage, otherwise the skins break open you end up with bean mush.

7. The beans are done when the skins are soft but not broken, and the insides of the beans are creamy and tender.

My Favorite Beans and Bean Combinations

I love to make single beans AND mix and match. In no particular order, here are some good bean combinations I’ve tried:

• White bean combination. A mix of large white lima beans, cassoulet beans, and cicerchia beans is really delightful – they’re all different sizes and textures when cooked, which really makes it feel more interesting to eat them.

• Small bean combo. Flageolet beans plus any small white bean are really delightful.

• Black-and-white speckled bean combo. Vaquero bean and orca bean together – very similar but slightly different textures.

• Brown-striped bean combo. Cranberry beans and pinto beans. A sturdy bean combo for soups.

• Yellow-speckled bean combo. Yellow-eye bean and snowcap bean. Delicate with a good bite.

• Red-brown bean combo. San Francisco bean, moro bean, and Domingo Rojo bean. All small and firm, but with very creamy centers.

• Scarlet Runner Beans: my favorite single bean. Meaty and creamy and hearty.

• Royal Corona Bean: a HUGE delicious white bean, yet somehow the only bean in this whole set that has ever resulted in gas. So they’re great, but only eat them with people who already love you.

• Red-speckled bean combo. Jacobs Trout cattle bean and Anasazi bean. VERY similar beans, can barely tell them apart, honestly, but so fun to say together.

Scarlet runner bean, cassoulet bean, and flageolet bean combo

What to Do With All These Beans?

So you’ve followed the instructions and now you have a potentially overwhelming amount of beans to eat. But don’t worry! It’s easy! They go in everything!

• Put them in grain bowls with chopped veggies and fresh herbs and your fav dressing

• Put them on top of your favorite salad

• Use them for vegetarian tacos, burritos, quesadillas, or enchiladas

• Add to soups (minestrone, vegetable) and chilis

• Include inside a pot pie

• Wrap puff pastry around them for a hand-pie

• Serve warm with a little bit of the cooking liquid, a hefty drizzle of olive oil, cracked black pepper, and mop up with bread (picture below)

• Mash them onto a piece of toast and top with a fried egg for breakfast

• Submerge in a cream sauce with caramelized onions and leeks

• Add to pastas and pasta bakes

• Braise them with winter vegetables (root veggies and fennel!)

• Stuff a pepper (poblano or bell!) or squash (acorn or delicata!) of your choice

• Snack on them by the handful standing in front of your open fridge wondering what you’re going to eat next

White bean combo with cooking liquid, olive oil, and pepper

Wow This Sounds Fun; Where Do I Buy These Incredibly Niche Beans?

Rancho Gordo is the most famous heirloom bean purveyor, and I am a member of the Rancho Gordo Bean Club – it took 2 years to get off the waitlist but I now receive 6 new beans every quarter so totally worth it! I’ve also had good luck getting beans from the North Bay Trading Company, and heard good things about Zursun Idaho Heirloom Beans.

Good luck! Enjoy!

-Hana