Are you like me, and often find yourself saying, “I forgot to soak my beans!”? Today my friend, Susan, shares a VERY simple solution…
Beans, beans, the magical… Okay, I won’t go there. But let’s face it: beans are magical little things. Packed with antioxidants, fiber, protein, B vitamins, iron, potassium, and magnesium (with kidney, navy, lima and pinto beans having the highest levels of magnesium), these gems are a nutritional powerhouse. And almost everyone is deficient in Magnesium these days.
But their magic doesn’t end there: They are also economical, they make for filling meals, they're easy to store, and simple to make, too!
My dad was born in depression-era Arkansas and beans were a staple in his life. He loves them, so my mother often made many dishes with all sorts of beans and, of course, corn bread. (Kelly has a recipe here for gluten-free corn bread if you need one.) I have such wonderful memories of walking into the house after school on a chilly day, and knowing with one whiff that we were having beans for dinner.
So now that I have my own family, I always have beans in my house, both dry and canned. I prefer, of course, to make them from scratch by soaking them overnight and then cooking them the next day, but let’s face it: sometimes it gets to be 3 o’clock and you realize the thing you’re craving for dinner requires beans. It’s just handy to have them on hand.
But then as I open that can of beans, it is always with much hesitance. Soaking beans is so much better for us.
The soaking rids the beans of anti-nutrients and phytic acid, both of which are important to eliminate, otherwise they will inhibit your body from absorbing all those wonderful vitamins and minerals I mentioned earlier. Plus, unsoaked beans will bring on those toots as your body struggles to digest them. And as we all know, that’s where the magic ends.
But when you need a can of beans, what are you to do?
It’s so convenient to zip them through the can opener and toss together a quick dinner, but then I will spend the rest of dinner wishing I was feeding everyone soaked beans because I know they’d be so much healthier. For me, one of the greatest rewards of being a mom is feeding the family something that is not only tasty, but deeply nourishing as well. It just feels so good!
So one day, while jumping from one website to another (you know those times when you start off pricing tires for your car and three hours later you’ve read about fleas, conditioning a baseball glove, building your own barn, and bean dip recipes?), I saw someone comment on a recipe page I was perusing that they liked these organic beans because they’re pre-soaked.
Huh? Did I really just read that correctly? It seemed too good to be true! A company that actually takes the time to soak their beans?
I started looking into it and learned that all of their beans are soaked overnight before being cooked and canned. My heart skipped a beat with delight. I was also excited to see that their cans have been BPA-free since 1999. How cool is that? That nagging concern about BPA was always another thing that gave me pause whenever I opened a can. AND this same company has been resisting the FDA’s suggestion to irradiate the foods they manufacture since the 1980s, not to mention how they have been doing everything they can to fight GMOs since 1993. It looks like they fight for everything we real foodies believe in, and I am going to make every effort to support them by purchasing their products often. Knowing that I am purchasing a product where the company who manufactored it fights as hard for my health, as I do for my own family’s, is so cool that it's almost unfathomable.
These beans are just like we made it ourselves: grown organically, soaked, cooked, canned in BPA free cans, completely void of irradiation, and on the table in minutes.
Heck, even grandma couldn’t offer all that!
So, put your canned bean fears aside, and start stocking up to keep these on hand, because now they truly are the magical fruit!
Important note: The affiliate link shared above is for beans sold by the case and the price may seem quite high at first glance, but if you make lots of chili or soup, then the case price is a really a good value. Otherwise, you can probably find single cans of these beans at your favorite health food store.
Here are some of Kelly’s yummy recipes to get you started on your bean adventure:
- Who doesn’t love baked beans? You’ll want to read the entire post if you’d like more tips on soaking dried beans, why we should soak them, and how.
- Easy Black Bean Corn Salsa. I recently made Southwestern Chicken Wraps using a black bean salsa very similar to this, added some rice for bulk, layered in some leftover chicken, sour cream, avocado and jalapenos onto a sprouted tortilla, and dinner was on the table in no time.
- Black Bean Mango Salsa
- Anne’s Camp Chili
- Easy 4 Ingredient White Chicken Chili
- Simple Taco Soup
- Tasty Layered Taco Dip
- Chipotle Copycat Burrito Bowl
More posts you might like:
- Read Kelly's review of her friend Katie's book, The Everything Beans Book. It's packed with info on how to store them, cook them, and why they are so darn healthy for us.
- Check out more Meatless Meal Recipes.
- Read: Why I Returned My Instant Pot and What I Got Instead.
- Do you suffer from Sleep Paralysis? Read how I was finally able to put a stop to my episodes.
About Susan: I live in Fallbrook, CA (Avocado Capital of the World!) with my handyman husband and our 2 dogs. I am the mother of one, but a mom to many. I love that my daughter’s friends come to me for advice, support, love and laughs. And when they do, I always try to feed them something nutritious or get some cod liver oil in them! Nothing makes me happier than when any of the kids I’ve preached to call me from the grocery store wanting to know which choice is better or what an ingredient to buy! I’ve worked as a medical assistant, an interior designer, and most recently, as a freelance writer for a local paper. I’ve also guided and mentored students through their college application essays. I love learning and reading about all things real food, nutrition, and natural healing, so it is a real blessing and treat to help Kelly around the Kitchen Kop site.
YGYMomCEO says
This is so exciting! I hate when I default to canned beans and this makes me very happy!
Susan says
YGYMomCEO- It is exciting news, huh? You know you are a real foodie when a can of properly prepared beans excites you!! 🙂
Susan says
Martha- That’s a good question and I’m going to reach out to them and see what they say. Their brochure on beans (available on their site) states they cook the beans with a bit of kombu sea vegetable which enhances the taste and makes the beans more digetable, but it doesn’t state specifically their process for soaking. I’ll let you know what I find out.
Susan says
Hi Martha-
Just received a reply to my inquiry and this is what I was told, “Beans are soaked for twelve hours in stainless steel soak tanks. As tanks drain, beans and water are carried through flumes where stones are removed by a series of cascading steps which trap heavier materials. We do not use apple cider vinegar or baking soda during soaking”.
I was kind of surprised that they only use water to soak because since becoming a real foodie myself, I’ve always added something to the soaking water. So I called my mom to see what my grandmothers had suggested to her about soaking beans, and my mom (76) had never heard of adding anything to the soaking stage! She said both her mother and her mother-in-law (both Southern raised women) told her of the importance of soaking, but neither one of them taught her to use apple cider vinegar, whey, baking soda or anything else for that matter.
Hmm. So then I started doing some research online and found many people use only water when soaking. But what I struggled to find was info on whether this was enough to break down the phytic acid. I did find an informative article written by Ramiel Nagel on the WAPF site where he shares that soaking the beans in water for 24 hours (and discarding the water halfway through) and then boiling them can reduce phytic acid by 50%. I also read in several articles elsewhere that the addition of kombu (which Eden does) while cooking can assist in digestion and absorption of nutrients. ****link to above article: https://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/living-with-phytic-acid/
If mineral absorption concerns you because this manufacturer does not use the traditional soaking methods described by the WAPF, another article from the WAPF site explains that better absorption of minerals from legumes happens when we eat beans as part of a complete meal, as described here:
“Absorption of minerals from legumes also depends to a large extent on the total composition of the meal. Balancing legume consumption with animal products as well as with foods containing vitamin D and ascorbic acid (such as fresh and fermented vegetables) can enhance mineral absorption and prevent deficiencies”. ****link to above article: https://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/putting-the-polish-on-those-humble-beans/
I wavered in all of this, but ultimately came to this decision: When I am making a meal with lots of beans, I will continue to soak them using methods suggested by WAPF, but in a pinch when making a recipe only needing a can or two, I will continue to use the Eden beans, but will also take measure to include the other things the above article suggests by having fermented veggies and sourdough bread with lots of grass fed butter, or a chunk of cheese for the Vitamin D. For good measure, I may have everyone take their cod liver oil with that meal, too.
Hope this helps!
KitchenKop says
Susan, you are the BEST for tracking down all this info!!!
Love, Kel
Martha says
Thank you so much for doing all the research and sharing! I very much appreciate it.
Martha says
Sorry! Please ignore my earlier comment. I was able to get on their website via my phone. It does say that they are soaked. I wonder if they use anything acidic during the soak.
Martha says
Where is the proof that they are soaked? It doesn’t say anything about it on the Amazon site. My internet stinks and trying to google Eden’s is getting me nowhere. 🙁
jmmatlock says
I love that I was reading this and clicked the link to discover the brand I already buy in cases through my food-buying club! On the other hand, I can’t believe I wasted all that time and energy feeling guilty when I didn’t need to. 😉
KitchenKop says
Perfect Jennifer! 🙂
Sarah says
Nice article. Note. If you have a pressure canner you can soak and can your own beans in glass. I make huges batches at a time as my pressure canner can handle 20 pints! I also can my bone broth and very veggie spaghetti sauce. I like quick meals! I even can chicken, beef and venison.
KitchenKop says
Great reminder Sarah!!