How to boil up Beans and Pulses ~ Mariella

It occurred to me the other day that many people don’t know how to cook pulses. I hadn't realized this until I went to a friend’s house who had been soaking beans for many a day wondering all the while why they weren't getting soft enough to fry up and eat! The beans, having been in water for some time, were now frothing and burbling and just about ready to get up and walk away of their own volition. So here’s a quick informational on how to turn a bag of dry beans/chick peas/lentils etc into an ingredient you can actually eat! Whenever I prepare pulses I do the entire pack, that way I save on electricity and time.

Step 1

Start off with organically grown dry goods if possible. Search through the bag for stones and other debris! You can do this by pouring out small quantities at a time into a flat white plate and then tipping them into the pot you intend to use. Trust me, you don’t want to skip this part, let’s just say, I was unpopular with a guest for a while but he didn’t send dentist bills! 

Then soak contents in water overnight. Remember that the pulses will swell up to to about double their size and you don’t want them rising above the water as they wont soak evenly so use a big enough pot and add enough water. Soaking beans reduces cooking time by up to 70%, it also preserves the most proteins, vitamins and minerals. Also, beans are dusty. 

Pulses all have different hardness’s, therefore they require different soaking times and are best boiled up separately. Split lentils don’t require soaking and whole lentils and mung beans can benefit from an hour. All the other beans like sugar beans, kidney beans, chickpeas would be best soaked overnight.

Step 2

Drain out the water, add new fresh water and bring to the boil over high heat. Once it starts boiling reduce, and allow to bubble away until the beans are soft all the way through. Make sure the beans are completely under water otherwise they won't cook evenly. This could take anywhere between 45 min to 1.5 hrs, depending on the beans. Soya beans take ages!

Key point: Do not add salt or sugar while boiling as adding them at this stage will make the pulses more difficult to digest and may cause bloating.

Once you’ve cooked them until soft, strain through a colander and allow to cool, don’t keep the water. Pour into single or double portion bags and freeze. Whenever you want to make beans for supper, just take a bag out in the morning or plop into hot water to defrost. When you make a dish with them you can then add the salt and other spices as needed.  

Voila simple and easy and you’re not buying cans of beans coated with enzyme mimicking plastics which are just baaaad for you!