I wanted to ask this for a long time but always forgot. What is the best procedure for soaking salt out of canned beans, and approximately what percentage of the quoted sodium content is removed using the process?

I make fresh beans, but sometimes I like using the canned. I do not like cold beans of any kind. I also prefer beans that are cooked to the point of almost falling apart. I actually don't mind the taste or consistency of the gunk canned beans come in. But if I'm going to put them in something that already has a nice thick consistency, then I would prefer getting the salt and other junk off the canned beans. Alright dammit, I'll admit it, sometimes I'm just too lazy to cook everything from absolute scratch.

So, if anybody knows anything about this I'm awaiting your response with a thanks going out beforehand. I'm thinking about braising a pork roast for two hours and then using the natural juices to put the rinsed beans into. Then each day I'd add some of the meat and maybe some diced already cooked potatoes or other veggie. Anyway, for all future references, if anyone knows the best desalting method and also the percentage of sodium eliminated using that method, I"d love to know it. Thanks.

TJ

Tommy Joe wrote:
> I wanted to ask this for a long time but always forgot. What is
> the best procedure for soaking salt out of canned beans, and
> approximately what percentage of the quoted sodium content is removed
> using the process?
>
> I make fresh beans, but sometimes I like using the canned. I do
> not like cold beans of any kind. I also prefer beans that are cooked
> to the point of almost falling apart. I actually don't mind the
> taste or consistency of the gunk canned beans come in. But if I'm
> going to put them in something that already has a nice thick
> consistency, then I would prefer getting the salt and other junk off
> the canned beans. Alright dammit, I'll admit it, sometimes I'm just
> too lazy to cook everything from absolute scratch.
>
> So, if anybody knows anything about this I'm awaiting your
> response with a thanks going out beforehand. I'm thinking about
> braising a pork roast for two hours and then using the natural juices
> to put the rinsed beans into. Then each day I'd add some of the meat
> and maybe some diced already cooked potatoes or other veggie.
> Anyway, for all future references, if anyone knows the best desalting
> method and also the percentage of sodium eliminated using that
> method, I"d love to know it. Thanks.
>
> TJ

Either buy the low sodium ones or rinse it out. Soaking won't help. Put
them in a colander and run cold water gently over them. Won't get rid of
all of the salt but some.

On Sun, 28 Jul 2013 01:08:28 -0700, "Julie Bove"
> wrote:

>Tommy Joe wrote:
>> I wanted to ask this for a long time but always forgot. What is
>> the best procedure for soaking salt out of canned beans, and
>> approximately what percentage of the quoted sodium content is removed
>> using the process?
>>
>> I make fresh beans, but sometimes I like using the canned. I do
>> not like cold beans of any kind. I also prefer beans that are cooked
>> to the point of almost falling apart. I actually don't mind the
>> taste or consistency of the gunk canned beans come in. But if I'm
>> going to put them in something that already has a nice thick
>> consistency, then I would prefer getting the salt and other junk off
>> the canned beans. Alright dammit, I'll admit it, sometimes I'm just
>> too lazy to cook everything from absolute scratch.
>>
>> So, if anybody knows anything about this I'm awaiting your
>> response with a thanks going out beforehand. I'm thinking about
>> braising a pork roast for two hours and then using the natural juices
>> to put the rinsed beans into. Then each day I'd add some of the meat
>> and maybe some diced already cooked potatoes or other veggie.
>> Anyway, for all future references, if anyone knows the best desalting
>> method and also the percentage of sodium eliminated using that
>> method, I"d love to know it. Thanks.
>>
>> TJ
>
>Either buy the low sodium ones or rinse it out. Soaking won't help. Put
>them in a colander and run cold water gently over them. Won't get rid of
>all of the salt but some.

All one need do is rinse canned beans to remove salt, very little salt
passes into the bean interior because beans are seeds and as with all
seeds that membrane covering only allows water to pass through, same
as a reverse osmosis membrane... if there are a lot of beans with
split skins some small quantity of salt will enter but not intact
beans. Because seed membranes are impermeable to salt is why it is
silly to cook dry beans with salt, the salt will clog the membrane and
prevent water from entering, then the beans will end up with skins
tough like toenails. Salt your beans after they're cooked. That said
ALL foods naturally contain some salt, there is no such thing as salt
free foods, only reduced salt foods

In article >,
Brooklyn1 > wrote:

> On Sun, 28 Jul 2013 01:08:28 -0700, "Julie Bove"
> > wrote:
>
> >Tommy Joe wrote:
> >> I wanted to ask this for a long time but always forgot. What is
> >> the best procedure for soaking salt out of canned beans, and
> >> approximately what percentage of the quoted sodium content is removed
> >> using the process?
> >>
> >> I make fresh beans, but sometimes I like using the canned. I do
> >> not like cold beans of any kind. I also prefer beans that are cooked
> >> to the point of almost falling apart. I actually don't mind the
> >> taste or consistency of the gunk canned beans come in. But if I'm
> >> going to put them in something that already has a nice thick
> >> consistency, then I would prefer getting the salt and other junk off
> >> the canned beans. Alright dammit, I'll admit it, sometimes I'm just
> >> too lazy to cook everything from absolute scratch.
> >>
> >> So, if anybody knows anything about this I'm awaiting your
> >> response with a thanks going out beforehand. I'm thinking about
> >> braising a pork roast for two hours and then using the natural juices
> >> to put the rinsed beans into. Then each day I'd add some of the meat
> >> and maybe some diced already cooked potatoes or other veggie.
> >> Anyway, for all future references, if anyone knows the best desalting
> >> method and also the percentage of sodium eliminated using that
> >> method, I"d love to know it. Thanks.
> >>
> >> TJ
> >
> >Either buy the low sodium ones or rinse it out. Soaking won't help. Put
> >them in a colander and run cold water gently over them. Won't get rid of
> >all of the salt but some.
>
> All one need do is rinse canned beans to remove salt, very little salt
> passes into the bean interior because beans are seeds and as with all
> seeds that membrane covering only allows water to pass through, same
> as a reverse osmosis membrane... if there are a lot of beans with
> split skins some small quantity of salt will enter but not intact
> beans. Because seed membranes are impermeable to salt is why it is
> silly to cook dry beans with salt, the salt will clog the membrane

Salt does not clog the membrane. It does not make sense that a
substance as abundant as salt will poison biological systems.

The bean membrane is impermeable to sodium and permeable to
water. Now we are in the realm of thermodynamics and physical
chemistry. Albert Einstein contributed to this field along with
many of the finest minds in physics so it is subtle. I cannot
convey this stuff in a couple paragraphs but I hope to put across
a rudimentary notion of what happens.

First remember that matter is made up of molecules and the
molecules move (even in solids where they vibrate about a fixed
position.) This is the starting point for the kinetic theory of
matter.

Beans cooked in salted water do not absorb much, if any, water.
This is because there is an energy gradient. Salt dissolving in
water gives up energy and salt in water wants to be even more
dilute as there is energy to be released in the process of
dilution. When a bean is in salted water the sodium cannot get
into it; and the salted water wants to be even more dilute; so
water in the bean migrates _out_ of the bean. Now the bean itself
has a propensity to absorb water but the salted water has an even
greater propensity. We can still soak dried beans in salted water
and they will absorb water, but only up to the point where there
is no energy gradient across the bean membrane.

In fact, I soak dried beans in salted water just so I can prevent
them from absorbing too much water and bursting overnight. While
we are on the subject discard, the soaking water. I also scald
the beans in boiling water for a couple minutes and discard the
scalding water. Then I simmer the beans.

Ask me why salt gives up energy when dissolving in water and I
will be compelled to give an even worse account than this one.
This is where it gets really subtle. It has to do with statistical
mechanics and the structure of molecules.

You all can do a web search on

kinetic theory of matter
thermodynamics
statistical mechanics
physical chemistry.

Wikipedia is usually very good for acquainting people with these things.

--
Michael Press

On Monday, July 29, 2013 2:29:26 PM UTC-4, Michael Press wrote:

> When a bean is in salted water the sodium cannot get
>
> into it; and the salted water wants to be even more dilute; so
>
> water in the bean migrates _out_ of the bean. Now the bean itself
>
> has a propensity to absorb water but the salted water has an even
>
> greater propensity.


No offense, I am grateful for your interest and input, but I scanned your scientific post until I got to the part above and said, "Oh yeah baby, that's what I want to hear." So you're saying that getting all the water out of canned beans and giving them a good rinse removes a good portion of the salt? Could you take a stab at the percentage? I'm really curious. Same with olives. I imagine without salt, eating olives would be like eating tree bark. But I know there is a soaking method for getting a good deal of the salt out. Of course, an olive probably absorbs far more salt than a bean. Anyway, I'm not salt-o-phobic, but I don't like food swarming in it, so your reaffirming post has made me feel better about using the can opener more often for certain things. Thanks.

TJ

In article >,
Tommy Joe > wrote:

> On Monday, July 29, 2013 2:29:26 PM UTC-4, Michael Press wrote:
>
> > When a bean is in salted water the sodium cannot get
> >
> > into it; and the salted water wants to be even more dilute; so
> >
> > water in the bean migrates _out_ of the bean. Now the bean itself
> >
> > has a propensity to absorb water but the salted water has an even
> >
> > greater propensity.
>
>
> No offense, I am grateful for your interest and input, but I scanned your scientific post until I got to the part above and said, "Oh yeah baby, that's what I want to hear." So you're saying that getting all the water out of canned beans and giving them a good rinse removes a good portion of the salt? Could you take a stab at the percentage? I'm really curious. Same with olives. I imagine without salt, eating olives would be like eating tree bark. But I know there is a soaking method for getting a good deal of the salt out. Of course, an olive probably absorbs far more salt than a bean. Anyway, I'm not salt-o-phobic, but I don't like food swarming in it, so your reaffirming post has made me feel better about using the can opener more often for certain things. Thanks.

Your text has no line breaks in it making it is difficult to address
specific comments; and I am not going to take the trouble to
format it for you. I was talking about dried beans not canned.
I have no advice to offer regarding canned beans. Also it is
difficult to determine what you understand from what I wrote;
and again I am not going to take the trouble to ask you questions
aimed at figuring out what you understand and what you know and what you want.

--
Michael Press

On 7/29/2013 2:29 PM, Michael Press wrote:

> You all can do a web search on
>
> kinetic theory of matter
> thermodynamics
> statistical mechanics
> physical chemistry.
>
> Wikipedia is usually very good for acquainting people with these things.

Youtube, too.

--
CAPSLOCK€“Preventing Login Since 1980.

On 8/1/13 7:02 PM, Cheryl wrote:
> On 7/29/2013 2:29 PM, Michael Press wrote:
>
>> You all can do a web search on
>>
>> kinetic theory of matter
>> thermodynamics
>> statistical mechanics
>> physical chemistry.
>>
>> Wikipedia is usually very good for acquainting people with these things.
>
> Youtube, too.
>
The USDA site is very good for acquainting people with beans. Their
analytic chemists have found that beans cooked in salt water, then
rinsed, are full of salt.

Sqwertz wrote:
Brooklyn1 wrote:
Julie Bove wrote:

> More Katz-style Bullshit. You wouldn't know osmosis if it smacked you
>
> upside the head.



Bove, Sqwertz, Brooklyn, I appreciate the comments. I don't see myself as anti-salt fanatic, I just don't like unnecessarily large amounts of it. I use salt on some things. Even foods I love, tabouli for example, I have tried with no salt and it's just not happening. Some things cry for salt, but others, like beans made fresh, I don't put salt on them during cooking and don't feel much need for it even after cooked. I know there's got to be a certain percentage of salt that is removed using a certain method, in the same way that a certain percentage of fat is removed from broth after it congeals. Anyway, just wondering because sometimes I just get tired of cooking everything and want to take a few short cuts. I don't like rinsed beans all by themselves. They lack broth that way. But to toss them into something else, like juice from a roast or whatever, in that case I won't even know they've been rinsed. Thanks to all. I'd still like to know an approximate percentage of salt lost through soaking though.

TJ

Sqwertz wrote:
> On Sun, 28 Jul 2013 16:09:00 -0400, Brooklyn1 wrote:
>
>> All one need do is rinse canned beans to remove salt, very little salt
>> passes into the bean interior because beans are seeds and as with all
>> seeds that membrane covering only allows water to pass through,
>
> More Katz-style Bullshit. You wouldn't know osmosis if it smacked you
> upside the head.
>
> -sw
>

I'd relish the chance to tattoo yer melon, bring it!

On 7/28/2013 4:40 PM, Sqwertz wrote:
> On Sun, 28 Jul 2013 16:09:00 -0400, Brooklyn1 wrote:
>
>> All one need do is rinse canned beans to remove salt, very little salt
>> passes into the bean interior because beans are seeds and as with all
>> seeds that membrane covering only allows water to pass through,
>
> More Katz-style Bullshit. You wouldn't know osmosis if it smacked you
> upside the head.
>
> -sw
>
You seem not to be able to play well with others, Steven.

On 7/28/13 2:40 AM, Tommy Joe wrote:
>
> I wanted to ask this for a long time but always forgot.

What is the best procedure for soaking salt out of canned beans,

and approximately what percentage of the quoted sodium content

is removed using the process?
>
> I make fresh beans, but sometimes I like using the canned.

I do not like cold beans of any kind. I also prefer beans that

are cooked to the point of almost falling apart. I actually don't

mind the taste or consistency of the gunk canned beans come in.

But if I'm going to put them in something that already has a nice

thick consistency, then I would prefer getting the salt and other

junk off the canned beans. Alright dammit, I'll admit it, sometimes

I'm just too lazy to cook everything from absolute scratch.
>
> So, if anybody knows anything about this I'm awaiting your

response with a thanks going out beforehand. I'm thinking about

braising a pork roast for two hours and then using the natural juices

to put the rinsed beans into. Then each day I'd add some of the meat

and maybe some diced already cooked potatoes or other veggie. Anyway,

for all future references, if anyone knows the best desalting method and

also the percentage of sodium eliminated using that method, I"d love to
know it.

Thanks.
>
> TJ
>

I checked the USDA database.
Great northern beans boiled without salt have 2mg sodium per 100g.
Great northern beans boiled with salt have 238mg sodium per 100g.

They didn't list canned great northerns, but canned pintos, drained and
rinsed, have 212mg sodium per 100g.

So beans cooked in salty water are about 1/6 as salty as seawater.

I suppose consumers like the taste of beans cooked in salty water. I've
read that soaking in salt water changes the skin so the beans soak up
more water in cooking and don't split the skin. Unsalted water can be
used for the cooking.
http://www.ehow.com/how_8535684_brin...#ixzz1ZVqBa3FA

I use a pressure cooker. I put in a teaspoon of oil to prevent foaming.
I bring them up to pressure, turn off the burner, let them sit an
hour, and cook 3-6 minutes. No salt. It's easier than fooling with a can.

On Wed, 31 Jul 2013 05:44:43 -0400, j Burns >
wrote:

> I do not like cold beans of any kind.

You don't like bean salad???

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On 7/31/13 11:49 AM, sf wrote:
> On Wed, 31 Jul 2013 05:44:43 -0400, j Burns >
> wrote:
>
>> I do not like cold beans of any kind.
>
> You don't like bean salad???
>

That's what I get for quoting Tommy Joe and adding line breaks. I
_love_ cold beans, even if they won't melt butter.

My sister used to give me leftover three-bean salad, about a gallon at a
time. That was enough for me to have seconds!

On Wed, 31 Jul 2013 16:14:58 -0400, j Burns >
wrote:

> On 7/31/13 11:49 AM, sf wrote:
> > On Wed, 31 Jul 2013 05:44:43 -0400, j Burns >
> > wrote:
> >
> >> I do not like cold beans of any kind.
> >
> > You don't like bean salad???
> >
>
> That's what I get for quoting Tommy Joe and adding line breaks. I
> _love_ cold beans, even if they won't melt butter.

I thought it sounded a bit odd for you!

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On Wednesday, July 31, 2013 8:50:24 PM UTC-4, sf wrote:
On Wed, 31 Jul 2013 16:14:58 -0400, j Burns >

>


> > That's what I get for quoting Tommy Joe and adding line breaks. I
>
> > _love_ cold beans, even if they won't melt butter.




> I thought it sounded a bit odd for you!


Oh, so now it's odd to not like cold beans because Tommy Joe doesn't like them that way? I am now the new barometer for oddness?

TJ

On Wednesday, July 31, 2013 4:14:58 PM UTC-4, j Burns wrote:

> That's what I get for quoting Tommy Joe and adding line breaks. I
>
> _love_ cold beans, even if they won't melt butter.
>
>
>
> My sister used to give me leftover three-bean salad, about a gallon at a
>
> time. That was enough for me to have seconds!


What is a "line break"? Somebody else in here told me yesterday that my posts are unreadable. Not the content, he was talking about the format. Does it look messed up to you too? I'm serious. I have an old computer with old programs and I'm lucky they still work. My posts look neat to me. But maybe they don't show up that way. Please let me know. By the way, you should quote me more often, the people of earth need to hear my message.

TJ

"Tommy Joe" > wrote in message
...
> On Wednesday, July 31, 2013 4:14:58 PM UTC-4, j Burns wrote:
>
>> That's what I get for quoting Tommy Joe and adding line breaks. I
>>
>> _love_ cold beans, even if they won't melt butter.
>>
>>
>>
>> My sister used to give me leftover three-bean salad, about a gallon at a
>>
>> time. That was enough for me to have seconds!
>
>
> What is a "line break"? Somebody else in here told me yesterday that my
> posts are unreadable. Not the content, he was talking about the format.
> Does it look messed up to you too? I'm serious. I have an old computer
> with old programs and I'm lucky they still work. My posts look neat to
> me. But maybe they don't show up that way. Please let me know. By the
> way, you should quote me more often, the people of earth need to hear my
> message.

Looks ok to me.
--
--
http://www.helpforheroes.org.uk/shop/

On 8/1/13 6:34 AM, Tommy Joe wrote:
> On Wednesday, July 31, 2013 4:14:58 PM UTC-4, j Burns wrote:
>
>> That's what I get for quoting Tommy Joe and adding line breaks. I
>>
>> _love_ cold beans, even if they won't melt butter.
>>
>>
>>
>> My sister used to give me leftover three-bean salad, about a gallon at a
>>
>> time. That was enough for me to have seconds!
>
>
> What is a "line break"? Somebody else in here told me yesterday that my posts are unreadable. Not the content, he was talking about the format. Does it look messed up to you too? I'm serious. I have an old computer with old programs and I'm lucky they still work. My posts look neat to me. But maybe they don't show up that way. Please let me know. By the way, you should quote me more often, the people of earth need to hear my message.
>
> TJ
>
I don't understand how it works, but I know what happens. Usually,
messages appear with text wrapping. I'm using Thunderbird. If it's set
for lines to be 80 characters long, when I quote a message, the text
will wrap with lines 80 characters long.

When I quote yours, the lines don't break, so I have to scroll right to
read each line. So when I quote you, I use the return key to break the
lines at 80 characters or so. If I were more savvy, I could probably
handle it better.

On Wednesday, July 31, 2013 5:44:43 AM UTC-4, j Burns wrote:

> I use a pressure cooker. I put in a teaspoon of oil to prevent foaming.
>
> I bring them up to pressure, turn off the burner, let them sit an
>
> hour, and cook 3-6 minutes. No salt. It's easier than fooling with a can.

On 8/1/13 6:29 AM, Tommy Joe wrote:
> On Wednesday, July 31, 2013 5:44:43 AM UTC-4, j Burns wrote:
>
>> I use a pressure cooker. I put in a teaspoon of oil to prevent
>> foaming.
>>
>> I bring them up to pressure, turn off the burner, let them sit an
>>
>> hour, and cook 3-6 minutes. No salt. It's easier than fooling
>> with a can.
>
>
>
> Without a doubt. I rarely use canned beans. I was just curious
> about how much salt gets lost in a good soaking. I have never used
> salt with beans from scratch. Here's a really simple one my
> grandparents used to make. It's Arab, by way of Brazil. Very
> simple.
>
> One pound sirloin or chuck roast (the wide and not so tall type), to
> one pound of light colored kidney beans. I don't soak, but that's
> me. Put the roast in a pot and cover with beans and 6 cups water.
> Amount of meat to beans can be adjusted to taste of course.
>
> When the beans are falling apart along with the meat (you can take it
> out if you wish), put the pot on an unlit burner. Now take a bunch
> of minced garlic (I use half a bulb or more) and put it in 1/2 stick
> of melted butter. Cook for maybe 5 minutes without letting the
> garlic get brown. Then, take the butter and garlic mix and pour it
> into the beans and meat along with a palmful of dried mint crushed
> up. And that's it. On rice, whatever. There's only 5 ingredients
> in there.
>
> TJ
>

Ha! I've found it! When I reply to you, I just have to hit "rewrap" in
the Edit menu! No more messing up your messages by adding returns!

The USDA figures refute assertions that beans don't absorb salt, but
that doesn't answer your question. I'll bet if you changed the water
you could remove nearly all the salt by soaking. I need to get some
canned beans in case a power failure prevents cooking.

Sirloin, falling-apart kidney beans, garlic, butter, mint! Sounds good!

On Thursday, August 1, 2013 4:34:59 PM Burns wrote:

> Ha! I've found it! When I reply to you, I just have to hit "rewrap" in
>
> the Edit menu! No more messing up your messages by adding returns!
>
>
> The USDA figures refute assertions that beans don't absorb salt, but
>
> that doesn't answer your question.
> Sirloin, falling-apart kidney beans, garlic, butter, mint! Sounds good!


Thanks, nice of you to show such concern, but the truth is you shouldn't have to go through that ritual just to answer a post from me. I'm glad you found it though, makes things easier, because as bad as I felt about my annoying post format appearance, I was not about to stop posting just for you. But I did feel bad about it. So give me a few points for that at least..

I think science is great. But I tend to think in a more intuitive way. For example, I assume that any hard substance from hard beans to a rock will absorb some water if it sits in it long enough. I even assume that rice can be cooked just by soaking. I don't know how long it would take, but I bet it would happen. Ok, I won't bet. Just a gentleman's guess.

Thanks for yum yumming the bean dish. I use sirloin roast, but my grandparents always used lamb. They used it for almost everything. But even my old school Arab relatives, all of whom are good cooks, at least with the stuff they make consistently - even they now use beef almost exclusively and have even resorted to buying commercial yogurt rather than making it themselves which as the way of all of them when I was a kid. I made yogurt a few times when I was younger. Later I tried it and it wouldn't take. I talked with some of my relatives about that and even they said they had occasional problems with yogurt taking, problems they didn't have a few years ago. Anyway, the bean dish is exactly the same except my grandmother used clarified butter and lamb. Her version was great.

TJ

On 8/2/13 6:58 AM, Tommy Joe wrote:
> I think science is great. But I tend to think in a more intuitive
> way. For example, I assume that any hard substance from hard beans
> to a rock will absorb some water if it sits in it long enough. I
> even assume that rice can be cooked just by soaking. I don't know
> how long it would take, but I bet it would happen. Ok, I won't bet.
> Just a gentleman's guess.

According to the web page I found about brining beans, in warm weather
they'll sprout in brine. Who would've thunk it!

I'm sure soaking would make rice chewy, but I don't think it would be
cooked. Cooking helps a human get nutrition from vegetable matter,
including starch.

The other evening I was invited to dinner. The main course was beef, on
the grill long enough to turn pinkish tan on the outside but still ice
cold and dark red inside. The cook said she hadn't intended it to be
that rare, but she knew it was safe because it had been in the freezer
two weeks.

I prefer my meat cooked for safety and sometimes chewability. However,
I believe humans can get lots of nutrition from raw meat.