Remember to change the water the following day after you've soaked the beans over night, but I'm sure you already know that. And about the cooking time... Well, I suggest you boil them on semi low heat- checking every now and then in case you need to add more water- for at least a couple of hours. It's hard to say exactly with beans, so you will have to test them from time to time until they are soft. Good luck!
You can easily dispense with the overnight by bringing the beans to a boil and letting them in that hot brew for about 30 minutes. Rinse and drain, put them in a pot of water again and bring to a boil, then reduce heat. Cooking time can vary by bean density, but generally I let them simmer for about 3 hours (sometimes more, sometimes less), checking to insure the water level stays high enough to avoid burning, and for doneness. My mother always prepared them this way and now I do as well. Good luck.
I find that it varies a lot between batches of beans. I do the quick soak method mentioned below where you put them in water, bring to a boil, boil for a minute, cover and turn off the heat, and let them sit for an hour. Then I cook them. Often they are soft after only an hour or so of cooking. Sometimes old beans - that have been sitting for a while - take much longer. I find the whole process much easier in a crock pot since they never boil over that way....actually I just boil water on the stove, turn the crock pot on high, pour the boiling water over the [unsoaked] beans in the crock pot, and they're ready in two or three hours.
Thanks one and all! I'll definitely give one of the above methods a try this weekend and hopefully report back on Tuesday as to how well it all worked. : )
wow, the people who are cooking for two to three hours must have really hard beans.
after an overnight soak, I rarely have to cook my beans (at a simmer) for more than an hour, often times less for the smaller ones. much longer and they start to fall apart.
I just checked and The Joy of Cooking agrees with me.
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My mother always prepared them this way and now I do as well.
Good luck.
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after an overnight soak, I rarely have to cook my beans (at a simmer) for more than an hour, often times less for the smaller ones.
much longer and they start to fall apart.
I just checked and The Joy of Cooking agrees with me.
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