When I take the time to cook dried beans, Iâm never disappointed. But dried beans are finicky. You need to soak them to reduce the amount of time they take to cook. You have to cook them at a low simmer so they donât disintegrate. And there are certain factors that change the way they cook.
But beans are worth it, friends. So letâs talk about the factors that affect how beans cook:
If youâre interested in how to cook them, check out this past newsletter on cooking dried beans.
Alright, letâs talk about acidâs effect on your brain, I mean beans ð¬. Acid prevents the pectin in the beanâs cell wall from dissolving. And if pectin doesnât dissolve, beans wonât easily soften. So be careful cooking beans with acidic ingredients like tomatoes, wine, or citrus juice. Otherwise, your dried beans will take a long time to go from crunchy to creamy. This is HUGELY IMPORTANT (sorry got a little carried away there) when making any kind of bean soup. Because letâs be real. Whatâs a bean soup without tomatoes?!? ð.
But acid can also work for you, and you don’t even have to move to Berkeley! If your beans start to cook too quickly, add some acid. This will slow down the cooking process and make sure your beans are done on time.
Cooking dried beans from scratch can seem daunting. Many home cooks shy away from dried beans thinking they take too long to cook. But with a few simple tricks, you can easily reduce bean cooking time.
Soaking beans before cooking is the number one thing you can do to reduce cooking time. Here are the main soaking methods, from fastest to slowest:
Quick Soak
The quick soak also called the hot soak method is the fastest way to hydrate beans. It reduces cooking time by up to 75%.
Here’s how to quick soak beans:
- For every 1 pound (2 cups) of dried beans, add 6 cups of water to a large pot.
- Bring the beans and water to a boil.
- As soon as the water begins boiling, remove the pot from heat.
- Let the beans soak for 1 hour.
- Drain the soaking water and rinse the beans.
- Proceed with recipe as normal.
The quick soak softens the beans, allowing them to cook faster It also helps remove some of the indigestible sugars that cause gas
Hot Soak
Similar to the quick soak is the hot soak. This involves:
- Adding beans and water to a pot just as with the quick soak.
- Bringing the water to a boil.
- Removing from heat.
- Letting sit for 4 hours.
The longer soaking time makes hot soaking about as effective as quick soaking for reducing cooking time But quick soaking is faster.
Cold Soak
For cold soaking, simply combine beans and water in a bowl and let sit at room temperature overnight, or for at least 8 hours. This method doesn’t utilize any heat, but still softens the beans.
Cold soaking takes longer than hot soaking methods. But it requires no energy to boil water.
Soaking Tips
- Use a ratio of 3 cups water for every 1 cup beans. The beans should be fully submerged.
- Avoid hard water if possible. Soft water penetrates beans better.
- Discard soaking water, don’t cook beans in it. The indigestible sugars leach out into the water.
- Rinse beans after soaking before cooking.
Cook Soaked Beans Properly
Once your beans are soaked, make sure to cook them properly. Here are some tips:
- Don’t add acids like tomato, vinegar, or lemon juice until the beans are tender. Acid interferes with the softening process.
- Add aromatics like onion, garlic, and herbs at the beginning to infuse flavor.
- Make sure beans are fully submerged in cooking liquid.
- Don’t add salt until the beans start to soften, or else the skins will toughen.
- Cook beans gently, with a simmer rather than an aggressive boil.
Other Tips for Faster Cooking Beans
Beyond soaking, there are other tricks to reduce bean cooking time:
- Pick small beans. Tiny beans like lentils and split peas cook much faster than large beans. Prioritize them when you want fast cooking legumes.
- Remove skins. Gently squeezing beans between your fingers can help loosen skins. Then the soft interior cooks faster.
- Use a pressure cooker. A pressure cooker dramatically decreases cooking time. Beans cooked from dry can be ready in 30-40 minutes.
- Cook in an Instant Pot. This popular multicooker acts as a pressurized cooker. It can cook unsoaked beans in under an hour.
- Cheat with canned. Canned beans are precooked, so you skip lengthy stovetop simmering. Rinse before using.
- Toast beans. A quick toast in the oven or pan helps start the cooking process. Then they take less time to finish simmering.
Sample Cooking Times for Common Dried Beans
Here are estimated stovetop cooking times for some popular beans:
- Black beans:
- Unsoaked: 1 1⁄2 hours
- Soaked: 45 mins – 1 hour
- Garbanzo chickpeas:
- Unsoaked: 1 1⁄2 hours
- Soaked: 1 – 1 1⁄4 hours
- Kidney beans:
- Unsoaked: 1 – 1 1⁄2 hours
- Soaked: 45 mins – 1 hour
- Lentils (small red):
- Unsoaked: 20-30 mins
- Soaked: 15-20 mins
- Split peas:
- Unsoaked: 30-40 mins
- Soaked: 15-20 mins
As you can see, soaking makes a dramatic impact on cooking time. Smaller beans like lentils and split peas cook faster no matter what.
Don’t Let Long Cook Times Deter You
While dry beans have a reputation for taking “too long” to prepare, there are many easy ways to reduce cooking times. A quick soak or the use of specialized equipment like a pressure cooker can make beans an easy and fast addition to your meal rotation. Don’t be afraid to incorporate more dried beans into your menu!
ð Turning Up the Base
We might remember from chemistry class that a base is the opposite of an acid. No not that bass ð. The alkaline one. Baking soda is the most common form of a base in the kitchen. Donât worry, if you skipped chemistry class like I did, we wonât get too technical here. Itâs all pretty basic. See what I did there. ð.
Hereâs what we need to know about bases and beans. The pectin in beans breaks down when they are in an alkaline environment, which is made by adding baking soda to water. This makes the beans cook faster!.
What does this mean for cooking beans? To speed up cooking time and make sure your beans fully soften, add baking soda to your cooking water. Cooks Illustrated did an experiment. When they cooked beans in plain water, they found it took 60 minutes for the beans to turn tender. And only 45 minutes for the beans cooked with baking soda in the water! For the last batch, they added citric acid to the water. That pot took a whopping 1 hour and 45 minutes to get tender! ð® See! And you didnât believe me about acid making beans take longer to cook.
Even though I don’t think you need baking soda to cook beans, it’s a handy trick to have on hand. For example, I always add baking soda when making bean purées like hummus. This makes sure you get an extra creamy consistency.
Just keep this in mind. Add too much baking soda, and youâll get a soapy, bitter taste. About ½ teaspoon per cup of dried beans is all you need!.
Preparing Beans // Quick Soak Method
FAQ
How to make dry beans cook faster?
How do you cook dried beans quickly without soaking?
How do you cook beans and make it soft quickly?
How do you quick soak dried beans?
Here’s how it’s done. To quick-soak dried beans, simply bring a pot of beans and water to a boil and let them sit for an hour. It takes only about 5 minutes of your attention and works for any type of bean. Step one: Sort and rinse. Pour the beans out onto a sheet pan or somewhere else you can spread them out easily.
How do you cook dried pinto beans?
Place 1 lb. dried pinto beans in a large pot. Add cold water until it’s about 2 inches above the top of the beans. It’s important for beans to remain submerged in a few inches of water throughout the cooking process so they don’t dry out. Cover pot, bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and then remove from heat. Let rest 1 hour.
How long do dried beans take to cook?
The dried beans sit in hot briny water for just an hour. The total cook time slashes down to just a few hours. Now you don’t have to wait all day to prepare wholesome dishes like a big batch of baked beans or black bean soup. Rinse the beans in a colander using cold water before soaking for about 1 to 2 minutes.
How long do you soak beans before cooking?
Boil the beans: Boil the beans for 1 minute. Soak for 1 hour: Cover with a lid and let the beans to soak for 1 hour. Drain the beans: Drain and rinse the beans in a colander. Pour the beans into a colander and rinse them under cool running water. Check and discard any stones or other debris. Drain.