It is no secret that before cooking legumes, it is necessary to carry out a number of necessary manipulations so that enzymes that affect increased gas formation are released from them. Therefore, it will be useful to learn how to quickly cook beans if you urgently need them as an ingredient for any dish.
Beans are considered one of the slowest foods to cook. But what to do if you urgently need it, and there is very little or no time for preparation? Then try cooking beans without soaking. Cooking methods vary slightly depending on its type.
Beans are one of the most popular members of the legume family.
There are also a few secrets to keeping beans tasty and attractive in appearance, if that's important to you.
- Fill the beans with water at the rate of 1:4. Add a tablespoon of sugar there. The most ordinary white sand, not brown, will do. On the stove, turn the heat to high, and then when the water boils, turn the heat down to medium. The beans will soften quickly: red beans will be ready in half an hour, and white or black beans in 40-50 minutes.
- To make the beans cook faster, place a small leaf of dried seaweed in the pan. Nori seaweed, used to make Japanese rolls, is also suitable. Bring the beans to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer the beans for half an hour.
- If you know you'll need to cook the beans but don't have time to soak them, there's another method you can use. Place the beans in bags and place them in the freezer. When it's time to cook, remove the beans from the refrigerator without defrosting them first. Immediately put it in cool water, bring to a boil and cook for half an hour over medium heat. Don't forget to check readiness half an hour after boiling.
Red beans
The red beans are washed and filled with water in a saucepan so that it covers the beans by a couple of centimeters. Bring to a boil and cook for 3 minutes. After this, the water is drained from the pan, and new water is added instead. The beans are brought to a boil again. Turn off the stove and soak the beans for half an hour, covered.
After the specified time has passed, change the water and boil the beans again over medium heat for fifty minutes. There is no need to overcook the beans, so cook the beans in unsalted water. After this, the beans are ready to serve or add to other dishes.
White beans
There are two ways to cook white beans. The first involves pouring cold water and cooking over medium heat. After the water boils, change it and bring it to a boil again. The procedure is repeated as many times as possible until the beans are fully cooked. This can be determined by its softness: if the beans pierce easily on a fork, then they are ready.
White beans have a higher protein content than any other type of product. The second method is even simpler. To achieve the desired result, add a pinch of soda to the water where the beans are boiled, and then at the very end a little lemon juice to neutralize the effect of the alkali. This is necessary so that the taste does not deteriorate.
Remember that beans should be salted only at the very end of cooking. Otherwise, cooking will slow down and you will waste time.
Microwave without soaking
Place the beans in any microwave-safe container. For example, this could be a deep glass bowl or plate. We rinse the beans under cold water, pour them in and cook the beans in the microwave for ten minutes at the highest power of the device.
After the specified time has passed, remove the bowl, stir the beans well and put them back in the microwave for 15-20 minutes. Then take out a plate, add salt and let the beans cook for another 5 minutes. Remember that salt tends to delay the cooking process. Therefore, you should not add salt to the beans before.
In a slow cooker
Undoubtedly, multicooker owners are luckier than others. Indeed, in this unique device you can prepare almost any dish. You can also cook beans in it without pre-soaking.
You can cook absolutely any beans in a slow cooker. This method is suitable for cooking both red and white beans. Calculate the correct amount of beans to prepare - 100 grams for each liter in the bowl. Pour in the beans, set the “Cooking” or “Stewing” mode for forty minutes. After this time, open the lid and check if the beans are ready. If not, then change the water and set the previous cooking mode again. The test can be done in two ways: bite through or crush the bean with your fingers. Ready beans will squash easily.
How to quickly cook beans in a pressure cooker?
A pressure cooker is another miracle of modern kitchen appliances, which allows you to significantly save time allotted for cooking. Rinse the beans with cold water and drain them in a colander. Remove all broken beans and unnecessary debris.
To prevent the skin from bursting during cooking, add one teaspoon of salt and 4 cups of water per cup of beans. The next steps will depend on what type of pressure cooker you are using.
- If this is a mechanical (stovetop) device, then pour the beans inside, fill with water and close the lid. Once the pan is under pressure, turn off the heat on the stove and let the beans sit for a couple of minutes. Then open the lid and pour cold water on it. At the same time, try to do this so that moisture does not get on the valve for steam release.
- The following method is suitable for cooking in an electric pressure cooker. Place the beans inside, fill them with water and set the valve to the “Pressure” position. Use any program that allows you to keep the beans in this state for two minutes. After completing the mode, immediately release the pressure using any method available in your device. Open the lid, drain the beans in a colander and rinse them with cold water. The beans are completely ready for further use, as with regular soaking for several hours.
The usefulness and nutritional value of beans have been known for a long time, and dishes made from them are included in the traditional menus of many countries around the globe. Boiled beans are a rich source of vegetable protein, used as a preventative against tartar, helps cure tuberculosis, is known as a good diuretic, is included in the diet menu for diabetes and obesity, and is also used as an anti-aging and wound-healing agent.
Why do you need to soak?
However, despite all these advantages, sometimes there are circumstances that do not allow you to fill the beans with water in advance. And then various tricks come to the aid of housewives to speed up its readiness without soaking.
Preparing for cooking
By eliminating soaking, you cannot completely abandon the preliminary preparation of grains. First of all, before cooking, they must be sorted out, freed from doubtful specimens and from contaminants. Then the beans need to be thoroughly rinsed with water.
Cooking methods
There are several ways to cook beans that avoid pre-soaking. Here are some of them.
Temperature difference
As the name suggests, this method uses the effect produced by temperature changes. For this method, choose a large deep pan and pour the beans, previously prepared for cooking, into it. Then you need to pour water so that its level is 3-5 cm above the level of the grains. After this, bring the water in the pan to a boil and cook for 15-20 minutes.
The next step is to drain the water and fill the contents of the pan with cold water again. Let it boil again, drain and fill with cold water a third time. After the water boils for the third time, you need to boil it for 30-40 minutes over low heat.
You can cool hot water by periodically adding cold water to the pan or adding ice. Thus, subject to constant temperature changes, the beans cook much faster, and after cooking they become soft and crumbly.
Sugar
Another way to speed up the cooking of beans without soaking is to add sugar. The beans are filled with water in the following proportion: to one part of the grains, take four parts of water. In the same pan you need to add one large spoon of sugar. First, turn on the stove to maximum heat, and then turn it down and leave it on low heat until the end of cooking. The beans will be ready in 30-45 minutes.
Kelp
Ordinary seaweed or nori seaweed, which are used to make rolls and sushi, will help you cook beans faster. This method also does not require pre-soaking. The beans are filled with water, into which a small piece of seaweed is thrown. Then the water is brought to a boil, and then the beans are cooked for half an hour over medium heat.
Freezing
In order for the beans to quickly cook and become soft, dry, clean and without impurities, they are laid out in portioned bags. These bags are then placed in the freezer. As needed, frozen bags are removed from the refrigerator, and their contents are placed in cold water without defrosting and brought to a boil for about half an hour.
Microwave
In the microwave, unsoaked beans are cooked for about half an hour. During the cooking process, it is necessary to use special dishes for the microwave oven, into which clean beans are poured and filled with water. After placing the dishes with grains in the oven, you need to set the timer for 10 minutes at maximum power. Then the beans are taken out, mixed and put into the microwave again, this time for 20 minutes.
According to the experience of housewives, it is better to choose glassware.
Pressure cooker
As with all other methods of cooking beans without soaking, they must first be washed and drained in a colander. In addition to the beans, you need to add water to the pressure cooker at the rate of 4 cups per 1 cup of clean beans. Cooking time from the beginning of boiling is 40 minutes. At the same time, it is not advisable to add salt to the beans.
Multicooker
You can cook beans without soaking in a slow cooker. To do this, you need to wash it, fill it with water and set the “Cooking” mode. Bean grains should not be salted immediately, as they will become tougher. After the water boils, the beans are boiled for another 10 minutes.
The next step is washing the cooked beans. They are drained in a colander and washed with cold water. Then the beans are placed back into the multicooker bowl and filled with water. It is recommended to repeat this procedure for three to four boils. You can add salt to the beans at the end of cooking.
Three types of beans are widely known: white, red and multi-colored. All of these types vary in bean size, density and cooking time.
Therefore, it is not recommended to mix them during cooking, as there is a risk that some of the legumes will boil or, conversely, some of the grains will remain hard.
White beans are often used for making purees, soups and as a side dish for meat dishes. The white grains have the correct shape and look beautiful when finished. They have a neutral taste and go perfectly with many foods. When cooked, white beans are soft and crumbly.
Red beans attract housewives with their bright color. Not only is it delicious, but it also looks great in salads. Red beans also show off their taste perfectly in stews and lobio. It is less crumbly than white, takes longer to cook and requires more soaking.
Multi-colored beans have a variegated shell pattern. Its excellent taste is noted, which, according to many gourmets, surpasses the taste of white and red beans. At the same time, multi-colored bean grains are considered the leader in long-term cooking.
You will learn more about how and how long to cook beans in the following video.
How to quickly cook beans:
method one
Pour the beans, after sorting them out and clearing them of debris, into a saucepan and pour boiling water over them for about thirty to forty minutes. After this time, drain the water and add salt and two or three tablespoons of sunflower oil (or any other vegetable oil that you have on hand). Pour boiling water over again until it covers all the beans. Place on the fire (small) and make sure there is enough water in the pan. When it boils, you can add liquid, but not much.
How to cook beans quickly:
method two
Use the tools and devices available in every kitchen today. For example, a pressure cooker, microwave oven, convection oven and other electrical appliances that are useful and necessary for every housewife, making our lives much easier. Information on how to properly cook beans in such devices can be gleaned from the instructions for them, as well as from the World Wide Web.
Third way quick cooking of beans
With this option, baking soda is used. You just need to take it literally a pinch or on the tip of a knife. If you overdo it with the amount of soda, you can end up with mush rather than beautifully cooked beans. If a lot of soda is added to the water, the beans simply burst and become boiled.
How quickly cook beans: method four
In this method of cooking legumes, beans are poured into water and brought to a boil. Then the water is quickly drained, and the beans are again filled with cold water and cooked until fully cooked. This method allows you to cut the cooking time in half.
How to quickly cook beans: the fifth method,
method six
Preparation:
1. Soak the beans overnight.
I was taught (taught by a Georgian, and who better than them would know how to cook legumes correctly) how to quickly cook beans without soaking (and without consequences in the process of digesting them!!!): Pour the beans in cold water, cook, let it boil, cook 2 more -5 minutes, depending on the mass of the food being prepared. Drain the water, wash the beans in cold water, pour cold water into the pan with the beans and set to cook again, this time until tender with salt and spices. This method is really very fast and no one has ever complained about the consequences for the digestive system! It is suitable for cooking any legumes, and I also cook rice VERY quickly.
Let's reveal a few secrets of quickly cooking vegetables and legumes.
How to quickly cook beets
We share our secrets on how to cook beets faster, rather than spending 1.5 or 2 hours cooking them. And at the same time preserve color, nutrients and taste?
Prepare the beets for cooking - wash them well. Do not trim the tails, do not cut out the eyes, and try not to disturb the integrity of the root crop, otherwise the beets will lose color and taste.
Option 1.
Cook the beets in the microwave quickly in a bag for 10 minutes.
To do this, put the beets in a plastic bag, twist them tightly to ensure a tight seal and put them in the microwave. Turn on for 8 - 10 minutes (depending on the size of the tuber). Done.
Option 2.
Place beets in a saucepan with cold water and add 1 tbsp. l. vinegar (to preserve color), bring to a boil, cook for 30 - 40 minutes. After this, remove from heat, drain the boiling water and place under cold water until the tuber is completely cooled. As a result of the temperature difference, the beets reach readiness.
Option 3.
You can quickly cook beets in another way. Pour cold water (with 1 tbsp vinegar) over the beets and let it boil. Boil a little and add cold water. And so several times during cooking until the root vegetable is cooked. This takes 30 - 40 minutes.
Advice! When cooking, always add 1 tbsp. vegetable oil. This will speed up the cooking process.
How to cook beans faster
First, decide what color beans you are going to cook. The fact is that colored beans take less time to cook than white beans. Also, if possible, soak it overnight. This will speed up the cooking process.
Method 1.
Place the beans in the pan and add water - just enough to cover the top of the beans. Place on the fire and let the beans simmer a little (5 - 10 minutes). Then add cold water. And we repeat this several times. The temperature difference causes the beans to cook much faster. This cooking method is also suitable for cooking colored beans.
Method 2.
While cooking, add a little baking soda to the water. On the tip of a knife, no more, otherwise your beans will boil. You can also reduce the cooking time for white beans in the same way.
Method 3.
When the water with the beans boils, pour all the boiling water from the pan and pour in cold water. Let it boil and repeat the procedure.
Advice.
The beans are salted at the end of cooking, otherwise they will be hard;
During cooking, do not cover tightly with a lid, otherwise the beans will darken.
How to cook peas faster
Peas are a legume crop and are cooked like beans.
- It is advisable to soak it overnight.
- The temperature difference will cook it much faster.
- Add a little soda (0.5 tsp per 3 liters of water).
- You can add 1 tbsp to the water. sunflower oil - a protective film will appear on top and this will help cook the legumes faster.
- You need to salt the peas at the beginning of cooking.
- And yet, peas in halves swell and do not cook as slowly as whole ones. The chopped one is cooked for 40 - 60 minutes, and the whole one - from 1 hour. 20 min to 1 hour. 40 minutes.
Use ours, which will tell you how long to cook a particular product.
How to cook potatoes correctly
Speed-cooking potatoes also has its own little secrets!
To quickly cook potatoes for salad, you need to peel them, cut them into small cubes and cook. When the water boils, add vinegar or citric acid. And the potatoes will cook for about 7 or 10 minutes. But this is if you need chopped potatoes.
To cook whole tubers, add a spoonful of oil (any kind) to the water and close the lid tightly. It will cook faster.
If you have your own cooking secrets, share them in the comments.
