Soak or not? (it's supposed to work either way.)

Bob

On 2013-12-31, Sqwertz > wrote:

> Dried? Always soak if you have the time. You'll save energy and keep
> the beans from possibly splitting, cracking, and peeling.

Nonsense. I never soak dried beans. And often times, peeling skin is
to be desired. Soak a bean and the pulp cooks before the skin softens
up and you end up with tough skins, like on kidney and lima beans.
'Course, if you prefer tough skinned beans..... (shrug)

nb

On 2013-12-31, Sqwertz > wrote:

> wrong.

In yer dreams.

> Plenty more where that came from.

Proof positive that most ppl are stupid. I don't need other ppl's
opinions when I've known exactly what I'm doing for over 40 yrs. BTW,
gotta pot of unsoaked red kidney beans in the pot this very instant at
a nice rolling boil. They will end up with a soft delicate skin that
takes nothing away from the bean pulp, perfect for red beans sans
rice.

nb

zxcvbob wrote:
>
> Soak or not? (it's supposed to work either way.)
>
> Bob

Soak overnight. It's the safe way to go.

G.

notbob wrote:
>
> On 2013-12-31, Sqwertz > wrote:
>
> > Dried? Always soak if you have the time. You'll save energy and keep
> > the beans from possibly splitting, cracking, and peeling.
>
> Nonsense. I never soak dried beans.

Then why did you ask?

G.

On 2013-12-31 22:57:48 +0000, Gary said:

> notbob wrote:
>>
>> On 2013-12-31, Sqwertz > wrote:
>>
>>> Dried? Always soak if you have the time. You'll save energy and keep
>>> the beans from possibly splitting, cracking, and peeling.
>>
>> Nonsense. I never soak dried beans.
>
> Then why did you ask?

That was another one of the bobs.

"zxcvbob" > wrote in message
...
> Soak or not? (it's supposed to work either way.)

Soak.

"notbob" > wrote in message
...
> On 2013-12-31, Sqwertz > wrote:
>
>> Dried? Always soak if you have the time. You'll save energy and keep
>> the beans from possibly splitting, cracking, and peeling.
>
> Nonsense. I never soak dried beans. And often times, peeling skin is
> to be desired. Soak a bean and the pulp cooks before the skin softens
> up and you end up with tough skins, like on kidney and lima beans.
> 'Course, if you prefer tough skinned beans..... (shrug)

I always do the quick soak now. After seeing Jacques Pepin said that
soaking too long can cause fermenting. I believe the theory behind the
soaking and dumping out the soaking water is that it helps prevent gas.

"Sqwertz" > wrote in message
...
> On 31 Dec 2013 18:51:09 GMT, notbob wrote:
>
>> On 2013-12-31, Sqwertz > wrote:
>>
>>> Dried? Always soak if you have the time. You'll save energy and keep
>>> the beans from possibly splitting, cracking, and peeling.
>>
>> Nonsense. I never soak dried beans. And often times, peeling skin is
>> to be desired. Soak a bean and the pulp cooks before the skin softens
>> up and you end up with tough skins, like on kidney and lima beans.
>> 'Course, if you prefer tough skinned beans..... (shrug)
>
> Nonsense. But you're entitled to your own opinions, even if they are
> wrong.
>
> http://www.wisegeek.org/do-i-need-to....htm#slideshow
> http://www.bonappetit.com/test-kitch...ns-for-cooking
> http://www.ciaprochef.com/northarvest/basics.html
> http://missvickie.com/howto/beans/howtosoak.html
>
> Plenty more where that came from.

It is nonsense. The only time I had tough skins was back in the 70's. I am
pretty sure that I did soak but I also added salt as they cooked and I'll be
willing to bet they were quite old.

"Gary" > wrote in message ...
> notbob wrote:
>>
>> On 2013-12-31, Sqwertz > wrote:
>>
>> > Dried? Always soak if you have the time. You'll save energy and keep
>> > the beans from possibly splitting, cracking, and peeling.
>>
>> Nonsense. I never soak dried beans.
>
> Then why did you ask?

I guess he just wants to argue!

gtr wrote:
> On 2013-12-31 22:57:48 +0000, Gary said:
>
>> notbob wrote:
>>>
>>> On 2013-12-31, Sqwertz > wrote:
>>>
>>>> Dried? Always soak if you have the time. You'll save energy and keep
>>>> the beans from possibly splitting, cracking, and peeling.
>>>
>>> Nonsense. I never soak dried beans.
>>
>> Then why did you ask?
>
> That was another one of the bobs.

actually one of the nonbobs

"tert in seattle" > wrote in message
...
> gtr wrote:
>> On 2013-12-31 22:57:48 +0000, Gary said:
>>
>>> notbob wrote:
>>>>
>>>> On 2013-12-31, Sqwertz > wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Dried? Always soak if you have the time. You'll save energy and keep
>>>>> the beans from possibly splitting, cracking, and peeling.
>>>>
>>>> Nonsense. I never soak dried beans.
>>>
>>> Then why did you ask?
>>
>> That was another one of the bobs.
>
> actually one of the nonbobs

LOL so it was)

--
http://www.helpforheroes.org.uk/shop/

On 12/31/2013 1:01 PM, Sqwertz wrote:
> On 31 Dec 2013 18:51:09 GMT, notbob wrote:
>
>> On 2013-12-31, > wrote:
>>
>>> Dried? Always soak if you have the time. You'll save energy and keep
>>> the beans from possibly splitting, cracking, and peeling.
>>
>> Nonsense. I never soak dried beans. And often times, peeling skin is
>> to be desired. Soak a bean and the pulp cooks before the skin softens
>> up and you end up with tough skins, like on kidney and lima beans.
>> 'Course, if you prefer tough skinned beans..... (shrug)
>
> Nonsense. But you're entitled to your own opinions, even if they are
> wrong.
>
> http://www.wisegeek.org/do-i-need-to....htm#slideshow
> http://www.bonappetit.com/test-kitch...ns-for-cooking
> http://www.ciaprochef.com/northarvest/basics.html
> http://missvickie.com/howto/beans/howtosoak.html
>
> Plenty more where that came from.
>
> -sw




Bob

On 12/31/2013 12:33 PM, zxcvbob wrote:
> Soak or not? (it's supposed to work either way.)
>
> Bob


I think I'll soak them for just an hour or two in /hot/ water, just til
they are wrinkled and starting to swell. Drain, then cook them.

They're just blackeyed peas, it's not like I could ruin them. (That'd
be almost like ruining beets. Almost.) :P I guess maybe I could burn
them...

Bob

On 2014-01-01 05:48:53 +0000, zxcvbob said:

> On 12/31/2013 12:33 PM, zxcvbob wrote:
>> Soak or not? (it's supposed to work either way.)
>>
>> Bob
>
>
> I think I'll soak them for just an hour or two in /hot/ water, just til
> they are wrinkled and starting to swell. Drain, then cook them.
>
> They're just blackeyed peas, it's not like I could ruin them. (That'd
> be almost like ruining beets. Almost.) :P I guess maybe I could burn
> them...

You can't ruin them if stiff jackets isn't ruined.

On 2014-01-01, Sqwertz > wrote:
>
> That's when they used to make prophylactics out of lamb intestines.

A good analogy. Ever try a lambskin prophy? I usta use Trojan
Lambskin prophies before I got married and pre-aids. Made in
Australia. Almost like no prophy at all. Totally unlike a latex
prophy, which is unmistakable and quite undesirable.

nb

On 2013-12-31 19:01:05 +0000, Sqwertz said:

> On 31 Dec 2013 18:51:09 GMT, notbob wrote:
>
>> On 2013-12-31, Sqwertz > wrote:
>>
>>> Dried? Always soak if you have the time. You'll save energy and keep
>>> the beans from possibly splitting, cracking, and peeling.
>>
>> Nonsense. I never soak dried beans. And often times, peeling skin is
>> to be desired. Soak a bean and the pulp cooks before the skin softens
>> up and you end up with tough skins, like on kidney and lima beans.
>> 'Course, if you prefer tough skinned beans..... (shrug)
>
> Nonsense. But you're entitled to your own opinions, even if they are
> wrong.

And in this case frequently repeated, if memory serves.

We have a great old brochure we picked up at Wild Oats back in ye olden
times. It's dated 1996. In it there is this reference to cooking
beans:

Â*---===---

How to Prepare Dried Beans

1. Sort & Rinse

Spread beans out on a clean kitchen towel or in a cake pan and remove
shriveled beans and pebbles. Rinse in cold water. Remove pebbles and
floaters.

2. Soak

Beans should be soaked. This is the vital step in bean digestibility.
(Exceptions include short-cook beans: lentils, split peas, mung beans
and split garbanzos.) Add water: about 3 inches above beans, or 4-5
cups water per cup beans. (Note: in warm weather, soak beans in the
fridge to avoid fermentation.)

a. Short Soak/Boil Method
Boil beans in water for 3 minutes in a heavy-bottomed pot.
Cover and set aside for 2 to 4 hours. (Soaking longer doesn't help or hurt.)
Drain and discard water. Rinse beans. Proceed with cooking.
(This method reduces hard-to-digest complex sugars by 80%.)

b. Long Soak Method
Soak beans for 8 hours or overnight.
Drain and discard water. Rinse beans. Proceed with cooking.
(This method is better than no soaking at all. However, it does not
remove the complex sugars as well as the short soak/boil method above.)

No no no..peas are never soaked. It dont work either way. Only dumb portugese yankees from Falls River Mass soak peas.

bigwheel wrote:
>
> No no no..peas are never soaked. It dont work either way. Only dumb
> portugese yankees from Falls River Mass soak peas.

You are correct...you don't have to presoak peas. I went to a nice New
Year's Eve party in Fall River, Mass the night it turned into 1971.
All the roads were snow and ice that night. It was a scary ride home
at 2am.

G.

On 2014-01-03 21:01:15 +0000, Gary said:

> bigwheel wrote:
>>
>> No no no..peas are never soaked. It dont work either way. Only dumb
>> portugese yankees from Falls River Mass soak peas.
>
> You are correct...you don't have to presoak peas.

So what--you cook them for 6 hours?

This year, for the first time, I made the black-eyed peas. I added
andouille sausage, some left-over pork loin, a cat of chopped tomatoes
with garlic or something (it had lingered too long in the pantry), some
celery and I forget what else. It was really good!

It was also a good way to kick off an auspicious year--the wife sitting
on her duff while i rattled around in the lab.

On Fri, 3 Jan 2014 18:19:44 -0800, gtr > wrote:

> On 2014-01-03 21:01:15 +0000, Gary said:
>
> > bigwheel wrote:
> >>
> >> No no no..peas are never soaked. It dont work either way. Only dumb
> >> portugese yankees from Falls River Mass soak peas.
> >
> > You are correct...you don't have to presoak peas.
>
> So what--you cook them for 6 hours?
>
> This year, for the first time, I made the black-eyed peas. I added
> andouille sausage, some left-over pork loin, a cat of chopped tomatoes
> with garlic or something (it had lingered too long in the pantry), some
> celery and I forget what else. It was really good!
>
> It was also a good way to kick off an auspicious year--the wife sitting
> on her duff while i rattled around in the lab.

I bought fresh black eyed peas before Christmas to use for New Years,
but it's not a tradition in my family and they brought so much other
food - I didn't even try... so it's still there. I should open it up
and see it it's still edible. Saw a recipe for BEP hummus that looked
interesting, so maybe I'll try it.

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

On 1/3/2014 8:19 PM, gtr wrote:
> On 2014-01-03 21:01:15 +0000, Gary said:
>
>> bigwheel wrote:
>>>
>>> No no no..peas are never soaked. It dont work either way. Only dumb
>>> portugese yankees from Falls River Mass soak peas.
>>
>> You are correct...you don't have to presoak peas.
>
> So what--you cook them for 6 hours?
>
> This year, for the first time, I made the black-eyed peas. I added
> andouille sausage, some left-over pork loin, a cat of chopped tomatoes
> with garlic or something (it had lingered too long in the pantry), some
> celery and I forget what else. It was really good!
>
> It was also a good way to kick off an auspicious year--the wife sitting
> on her duff while i rattled around in the lab.
>


Not all beans take the same amount of time to soak. (I think soybeans
take the longest)

I soaked the BEP's for maybe an hour, and they were already plump and
the skins were soft. So i drained them, and cooked them. They were
done in less than an hour but I cooked 'em longer than that because I
wanted them falling apart in the soup.

Someone in this thread mentioned hummus. BEP's make good falafel if you
soak them and grind them up raw to make the dough.

Bob

On 2014-01-04 15:37:00 +0000, zxcvbob said:

> Not all beans take the same amount of time to soak. (I think soybeans
> take the longest)

I did the Wild Oats recommendation: Boiled for 3 minutes, soaked for 2
hours. Then cooked them for 1/5 hours. Then about another 2 hours
because they still weren't tender.

Eating beans like that without soaking--preposterous.

> I soaked the BEP's for maybe an hour, and they were already plump and
> the skins were soft. So i drained them, and cooked them. They were
> done in less than an hour but I cooked 'em longer than that because I
> wanted them falling apart in the soup.
>
> Someone in this thread mentioned hummus. BEP's make good falafel if
> you soak them and grind them up raw to make the dough.

Seems like a lot of trouble...