Eating Healthier in Today's World

Using Beans, Legumes and Pulses in our Daily Diet

Our last post talked about the nutritional benefits we all could receive by adding beans, legumes or pulses (all the same thing) to our diets.  I want to address some of the objections and offer some solutions, to show you that this is an easy thing to do and not only will it increase our daily nutrition but will taste good too!

The Gas They Produce:  We are going to start with the biggest objection: Gas.  To get rid of gas, soak the whole peas or beans for 3 hours, discard the liquid.  Cook 30 min. and discard the liquid again.  For lentils and split peas, bring them to a boil in water, boil 2 min.   Discard the water and proceed with the recipe.  I have also found that freezing the legumes after they are cooked will also take away the gas, which is produced by an enzyme in the bean that are bodies cannot break down easily when we digest them. 

They Take Too Long:  Not really..while they ae cooking we can be doing other things because they need no attention.  I cook my beans in one of our pressure cookers and it takes approximately 1/3 the time and you don't have to soak them ahead of time.  You can also mill dried beans or legumes in your Nutrimill grain mill and make a bean flour which we like to turn into quick soups and dips etc.  Check out some of the recipes in our New Recipes section of our website, under Soups and Misc.

To Prepare Pulses Easily Just:

• Soak whole peas or beans overnight, throw out the liquid and put the ingredients in a crock pot.  Go off to work and come home for supper which is all ready.
• A full crock pot will make more than one meal, so freeze the remainder for another time.
• Cook lentils, peas, beans, until tender, freeze them loosely so you can add a few here or there to salads, casseroles, pizza, tacos, tortillas, stir fries or crepes.  In just seconds they can be thawed in the microwave oven.
• Make lentil puree in 45 min. (previous post) and keep it in a measured amounts in the fridge for a few days or in the freezer for longer.  This can be defrosted in just minutes and added to salsa, pizza, hambuger, bread, muffins, or cookies.

PULSES ARE A LIFESAVER-A TIMESAVER-AND A MONEY SAVER

Preparing Pulses or Beans for Future Use:

When cooked, legumes can be stored in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.  If you prefer, freeze them loosely on a cookie sheet.  After they are frozen, toss them into a plastic bag for future use. 

Lentils:  Rinse, drain and place into a pot.  Add 2 1/2 times as much water as lentils.  Cover and bring them to a boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer until done (35 to 40 min.)  To make lentil puree just add the lentils and the cooking water to a processor and process until smooth.  Freeze for future use.

Split Peas:  Rinse, drain and place into a pot.  Add twice as much water as peas.  Cover and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer until done.  (45 min.)

Beans and Whole Peas:  Rinse cleaned beans or peas.  Soak overnight.  Drain.  (To soak quickly, boil for 2 to 3 minutes and allow to stand for 1 hour before draining.)  To cook, add 2 1/2 to 3 cups of water for each cup of beans or peas.  Cover and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer until tender ( 1 to 1/2 hr.)  If you will be cooking beans or peas in the crock pot, follow instructions provided with your recipe.

NOTE:  When cooking pulses, adding a spoonful of oil reduces the amount of foaming

ONE MORE NOTE:  We use the same directions for cooking pulses in the pressure cookers but we just cut the times by approx. 1/3 when process on the highest pressure.