For me, beans make a brilliant substitute for meat. I’m not vegan or vegetarian. Yes I do enjoy meat but occasionally I like to swap it out for beans, chickpeas or lentils. When I first started to eat more vegan or vegetarian foods I would often use tinned beans. I was always afraid of dried foods being to hard to eat after cooking them.
Then I discovered the hack/tip of adding baking powder to the pan and I have been a fan of cooking them ever since. The baking powder acts as a softer and helps to cook the beans quicker. I understand that it does take longer but as long as I’m organised I can cook them without any fuss. Plus beans taste great in lots of different dishes too.
Do you like beans and if so what’s your favourite type of bean, cannellini, kidney, harricot, etc? Let me know in the comments below and please don’t forget to like and follow me.
Equipment
- Large bowl
- Colander
- Saucepan
- Teaspoon
Ingredients
- Beans or chickpeas x as per the recipe
- Water x enough to cover the bean and then a couple inches
- Baking powder x 1 tsp
- Salt to your taste
Method
- Measure the amount of beans or chickpeas you will need for your recipe.
- Put them into the large bowl, if you haven’t already then cover in enough water and then a couple of inches above.
- Soak the beans in the fridge overnight.
- You may want to use a bowl with a lid.
- The next day remove the beans from the fridge and pour any excess water through the colander.
- Rinse under the tap.
- Put the beans into the large saucepan.
- Again pour enough water to cover the beans plus a two inches above.
- Add in the baking powder and salt to your taste.
- Turn the hob onto high and bring to the boil.
- When the pan starts to boil turn the heat down to low.
- Leave to simmer until most of the water has disappeared.
- Then drain through the colander and rinse under the tap.
- Add to the dish of your choice.
- Finally serve and enjoy.
It may seem that cooking beans from scratch can be a chore but I find that as long as I’m organised it’s easy. I make sure the night before to check what we are having for dinner the next day. Then I can organise if I need to for that meal. Beans can be a brilliant replacement for meat in a variety of dishes. I use them in lots of different dishes. However we decided to eat this dish, as always, please enjoy. Thank you xxx
Googies Kitchen Life 