This is outstanding advice, because most people don’t eat nearly enough fiber. Ya. Its poverty food. It’s also magic that will make your guts work correctly and possibly save your life.

I boil up a batch of beans/rice/quinoa or some combination every week. I cook enough to be an ingredient or side for several meals. I don’t heavily flavor it, and cook to avoid much sauce, so its more flexible to use. There’s always a stock container of beans or rice in my fridge. It may take you a few batches to get good at cooking these things from scratch, but its pretty simple stuff.

Ya folks. Wash your food.
This most especially applies to brown and wild rice, which has natural arsenic. Rice may well be the primary or only source of arsenic in your life. Really, if you don’t already know, you should learn and stop eating arsenic.
And quinoa. If you eat quinoa, you probly already know this. But quinoa has a chemical called saponin until its washed.
But ANYTHING that comes from a factory and passed through innumerable hands, yes you should wash it before you eat it. Pesticides. Chemicals. Germs and dirt.

Washing beans, rice, quinoa is pretty easy. Put it in a bowl with water. Stir it. Let it sit a bit.
Stir it again, and pour the water off the top.
(I use a strainer, but that is not necessary if you get good at this.)
Do this seven times. If there was any clouding in the water, there won’t be by the seventh repeat.
I usually let it go on about an hour or so, I’m also soaking the product while washing it.

I was always kind of afraid of dealing with beans but it’s made out to be harder than it is. A can of beans is now approaching $1 US, and I use them quite frequently in soups and chili, etc. Well, a pound of dry beans also costs around $1 US (or $2 US, depending on make and model) - but a pound of dry beans makes roughly about 6 cans’ worth of beans. From a cost perspective, it’s a no-brainer.

Pictured: my favorite, Navy beans, which have an almost ham-like flavor to them - and they’re the cheapest, about $1.29/lb by me at the blue box, I’m sure you could get them cheaper at bulk stores.

Beans need to be kept in the fridge and will go bad if you don’t use them in less than a week unless you use salt, so I do. With salt, they keep for up to two weeks, maybe more, I couldn’t really say because I use them (also they taste better with salt, obviously).

Easy to make, too. They tell you to meticulously look for rocks, I just don’t have time for that. Never ran into one yet. I fill a medium pan with 3-4 cups of water, 1/2 Tbs kosher salt and 1/2 lb (~225g) beans sometime before I go to bed. In the morning, I turn the burner on high until it boils (~7 minutes - be careful, it will boil over) and then turn to lowest setting, put a lid on (slightly cocked) and let them simmer for 2 hours. After that, drain them in a colander and run cold water on them until they lose their heat, put them in a container and into the fridge until you need them in soup or chili or whatever.

Worried that beans can be toxic because you heard that somewhere? That’s only bigger beans like Kidney beans and in any case the cooking is what kills the toxicity (boiling for >30m). Small beans like navy beans and red beans you don’t have to sweat it at all. In theory you should also drain/replace the water after the soaking to eliminate flatulence-inducing saccharides. I just don’t and honestly can’t tell any difference, but you may be more or less sensitive than I am.

Enjoy your beans!

They don’t stock dried beans in my local Aldi, otherwise I would.

Ok here’s the thing, I fucking hate beans, BUT I’m wondering if that’s because “canned beans.”

What’s the texture on the fresh bois? Are they as mushy as canned or do they actually have some substance to them?

I hate eating flavored nothing, need some texture, and yes I’m aware I’m likely autistic lmao (goes well with the confirmed adhd too, wouldn’t be surprised haha.)

Check the bottom shelf of the Hispanic end cap. That’s where they are in the 3 Aldi stores nearby.

Hispanic end cap? I think we go to different Aldis. Although I did notice that they FINALLY stock dried chickpeas. Might start eating those again. Found them quite nice with some Nandos sauce in the past. I used to buy them from another shop but after I bought their entire stock they just didn’t restock them.

I was always kind of afraid of dealing with beans but it’s made out to be harder than it is. A can of beans is now approaching $1 US, and I use them quite frequently in soups and chili, etc. Well, a pound of dry beans also costs around $1 US (or $2 US, depending on make and model) - but a pound of dry beans makes roughly about 6 cans’ worth of beans. From a cost perspective, it’s a no-brainer.

Pictured: my favorite, Navy beans, which have an almost ham-like flavor to them - and they’re the cheapest, about $1.29/lb by me at the blue box, I’m sure you could get them cheaper at bulk stores.

Beans need to be kept in the fridge and will go bad if you don’t use them in less than a week unless you use salt, so I do. With salt, they keep for up to two weeks, maybe more, I couldn’t really say because I use them (also they taste better with salt, obviously).

Easy to make, too. They tell you to meticulously look for rocks, I just don’t have time for that. Never ran into one yet. I fill a medium pan with 3-4 cups of water, 1/2 Tbs kosher salt and 1/2 lb (~225g) beans sometime before I go to bed. In the morning, I turn the burner on high until it boils (~7 minutes - be careful, it will boil over) and then turn to lowest setting, put a lid on (slightly cocked) and let them simmer for 2 hours. After that, drain them in a colander and run cold water on them until they lose their heat, put them in a container and into the fridge until you need them in soup or chili or whatever.

Worried that beans can be toxic because you heard that somewhere? That’s only bigger beans like Kidney beans and in any case the cooking is what kills the toxicity (boiling for >30m). Small beans like navy beans and red beans you don’t have to sweat it at all. In theory you should also drain/replace the water after the soaking to eliminate flatulence-inducing saccharides. I just don’t and honestly can’t tell any difference, but you may be more or less sensitive than I am.

Enjoy your beans!

I don’t know how to factor in the water and energy costs to cook and cleanup, but at this scale I think it’s significant.

Beans have a huge variety of texture. Some might be mushy, but most probably won’t be quite as mushy as canned AND cooking yourself means you can control the texture as well.

I’m no good with varieties but there are waxier beans out there that maintain texture when cooked. Lots of beans cook up more similar to garbanzo’s in texture but are shaped and taste more like a typical bean. Definitely worth experimenting.

Otherwise, embrace the mush, had me some amazing huevos rancheros this AM. A slightly runny yolk (I like mine over medium), some refried beans and red chili sauce. Was amazing on toast.

I would probably like your beans, but that’s a lot of salt. Maybe too much.

I don’t know how to factor in the water and energy costs to cook and cleanup, but at this scale I think it’s significant.

I really really don’t think the amount of salt you are using is going to do anything for preservation. You need to use a LOT of salt. Like an inedible amount of salt that you wash off before eating.

I’ve never used salt for soaking/boiling them - when do you add it, and how much do you use?

Ok here’s the thing, I fucking hate beans, BUT I’m wondering if that’s because “canned beans.”

What’s the texture on the fresh bois? Are they as mushy as canned or do they actually have some substance to them?

I hate eating flavored nothing, need some texture, and yes I’m aware I’m likely autistic lmao (goes well with the confirmed adhd too, wouldn’t be surprised haha.)

Here in Greece we use to cook beans a lot as a soup. I have tried canned beans, I like them, but nothing close to the cooked one.

The ones I make have onion, garlic, tomatoes and of course beans. The only thing is I have to put them in water overnight.

It does make a difference. It’s not preservation, the beans will still go bad, but soaking and cooking in salt water reduces the water available to microbes and inhibits their growth. The result is (and I have observed this directly) the beans last about twice as long in the fridge before they start to have that “I’m not gonna eat that” appearance and smell.

Damn. Avoid brown rice? That sucks!

That article makes me want to avoid rice altogether, despite loving it so much.

It doesn’t say anything about soaking rice in cold water for a while and then washing it before cooking in fresh water. Does cold water not have any ability to absorb the arsenic? I wonder if distilled water could help….

The great thing is you are in control. My navy beans, for example (and you should try them, they have such a great flavor when cooked in salted water as described) - if you don’t want mush, just cook them for 1 hour (instead of 2) after the soak. They will be discrete and the skins will be intact and they will be absolutely al dente. I bet you’ll dig them.

I was always kind of afraid of dealing with beans but it’s made out to be harder than it is. A can of beans is now approaching $1 US, and I use them quite frequently in soups and chili, etc. Well, a pound of dry beans also costs around $1 US (or $2 US, depending on make and model) - but a pound of dry beans makes roughly about 6 cans’ worth of beans. From a cost perspective, it’s a no-brainer.

Pictured: my favorite, Navy beans, which have an almost ham-like flavor to them - and they’re the cheapest, about $1.29/lb by me at the blue box, I’m sure you could get them cheaper at bulk stores.

Beans need to be kept in the fridge and will go bad if you don’t use them in less than a week unless you use salt, so I do. With salt, they keep for up to two weeks, maybe more, I couldn’t really say because I use them (also they taste better with salt, obviously).

Easy to make, too. They tell you to meticulously look for rocks, I just don’t have time for that. Never ran into one yet. I fill a medium pan with 3-4 cups of water, 1/2 Tbs kosher salt and 1/2 lb (~225g) beans sometime before I go to bed. In the morning, I turn the burner on high until it boils (~7 minutes - be careful, it will boil over) and then turn to lowest setting, put a lid on (slightly cocked) and let them simmer for 2 hours. After that, drain them in a colander and run cold water on them until they lose their heat, put them in a container and into the fridge until you need them in soup or chili or whatever.

Worried that beans can be toxic because you heard that somewhere? That’s only bigger beans like Kidney beans and in any case the cooking is what kills the toxicity (boiling for >30m). Small beans like navy beans and red beans you don’t have to sweat it at all. In theory you should also drain/replace the water after the soaking to eliminate flatulence-inducing saccharides. I just don’t and honestly can’t tell any difference, but you may be more or less sensitive than I am.

Enjoy your beans!

Instant Pot is a game changer. No need to soak overnight anymore. Just drop em in for the recommended pressure cooking settings, give it time to dissipate the pressure naturally (for easier cleanup), and you’re good to go.

I like to match beans and grains that have the same or close to the same cooking time, and make a bunch at once. Bam, easy base for a wide variety of meals for up to a week. This was a life saver when I was doing 10 hour shift factory work. My getting ready for bed routine involved making a coffee/tea mix because I like my caffeine to be ready to drink as soon as I wake up. I would also load a 36 oz leak-proof lunch container with soy curls on the bottom, add some spices and water, pile some Instant Pot gains and beans on top of that, a layer of fozen veggies, and then top it all with whatever sauces or condiments I was craving. Then just heat it up in the microwave at work.

Each batch would last about a week, so including other meals, I would only have to do any cooking 1-3 times a week. Both more easy and convenient, and far less expensive than eating out all the time.