We've been cooking dried beans more this winter, in part due to fzxdoc (Kathryn's) advice on how to cook them in the instant pot. Kathryn -- I seem to recall you're cooking your beans for 45 minutes in the instant pot. And then natural release? Is that timing true for all varieties? (I need to get this written down, so I keep it straight.)
I like how Rancho Gordo sells named varieties. And their beans are always fresh and tasty. In a household of 2, it's hard to justify buying enough beans to reach that $50 mark, however. And I have to travel a couple of hours one way to get to urban groceries that are more likely to carry Rancho Gordo products. The only grocery I know of for sure is in Madison, WI, about 2 1/2 hours away where I've found RG black beans and cranberry beans.
We've tried some Bob's Red Mill beans and bean blends as well. BRM beans are generic which isn't quite so sexy, but they do cook up nicely and are flavorful. They're also a little easier to find in grocery stores, so if the pocketbook isn't deep enough to justify an order to Rancho Gordo, these beans might be a close alternative.
Hubby cooked up some BRM "Whole Grains and Beans" soup mix last weekend. He just added water and salt and cooked the beans per the package directions (35 min in the instant pot, natural release). I was super, SUPER skeptical about how this would taste -- just plain beans cooked in water???? I was dead wrong -- the beans and grains were tender, the "gravy" was thick and rich tasting. They were really good like this. A slice of homemade bread and home canned applesauce was all the meal needed to round it out.
I like how Rancho Gordo sells named varieties. And their beans are always fresh and tasty. In a household of 2, it's hard to justify buying enough beans to reach that $50 mark, however. And I have to travel a couple of hours one way to get to urban groceries that are more likely to carry Rancho Gordo products. The only grocery I know of for sure is in Madison, WI, about 2 1/2 hours away where I've found RG black beans and cranberry beans.
We've tried some Bob's Red Mill beans and bean blends as well. BRM beans are generic which isn't quite so sexy, but they do cook up nicely and are flavorful. They're also a little easier to find in grocery stores, so if the pocketbook isn't deep enough to justify an order to Rancho Gordo, these beans might be a close alternative.
Hubby cooked up some BRM "Whole Grains and Beans" soup mix last weekend. He just added water and salt and cooked the beans per the package directions (35 min in the instant pot, natural release). I was super, SUPER skeptical about how this would taste -- just plain beans cooked in water???? I was dead wrong -- the beans and grains were tender, the "gravy" was thick and rich tasting. They were really good like this. A slice of homemade bread and home canned applesauce was all the meal needed to round it out.
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