All praise the beans!

[jacob]

First intermittent fasting overtook six meals per day grazing as the healthier alternative. Now beans and lentils are recommended over meat and potatoes. What will they think of next?!

No wait, maybe all CFPs will suggest saving 50%+ to retire before 50 or at least reduce stress from money problems. Wouldn't that be neat?

[J_]

Haha, at last. An informed publication about healthy non expensive food! Also which food to avoid as real as the plague.

@jacob’s most short other ere-message save 50% to be able to retire [of stress] at your 50 birthday is priceless!

[Ego]

Bryan Johnson has been trying to steal from you the title King of the Lentil. He favors black beluga lentils because they have anthocyanins like those found in blueberries. The caviar of lentils. They cost a lot more than your plain old brown lentils.

[guitarplayer]

Bryan Johnson has been trying to steal from you the title King of the Lentil. He favors black beluga lentils because they have anthocyanins like those found in blueberries. The caviar of lentils. They cost a lot more than your plain old brown lentils.

I read a book once where the guy was arguing that if I scale down and stop the stuff race with my neighbours, I can then within my remit get the best stuff available and be alright!

Black beluga lentils are my favourite too, but I actually get them at a price just some few dozens pence more than (and sometimes equal to!) my 2.29 Pound Sterling per kilo brown lentil staple. The shop owner is Syrian - I hope he will stick around given what's going on these days.

[chris580]

My favorite dish on earth is chana masala, made with chickpeas/garbanzo beans. I recommend everyone try it at a variety of Indian restaurants for true cooking inspiration. It’s also like medicine for the digestive tract.

[Slevin]

My favorite dish on earth is chana masala, made with chickpeas/garbanzo beans. I recommend everyone try it at a variety of Indian restaurants for true cooking inspiration. It’s also like medicine for the digestive tract.

I'm also a huge fan of chana masala, and I keep a 500g spice mix for chana masala (I just use MDH which costs around $8-10 for 500g) in my pantry. I pressure cook some chickpeas, toss in a couple onions / tomatoes, some of the chana masala mix, and you have an incredible meal for a braindead amount of cooking. Making the mix myself cost way more money and way more effort, and its faster to make it at home than to order from a local restaurant these days (though we do have a killer Indian food restaurant within 15 mins walk). Highly recommend this approach, and chana masala.

[conwy]

First intermittent fasting overtook six meals per day grazing as the healthier alternative. Now beans and lentils are recommended over meat and potatoes. What will they think of next?!

No wait, maybe all CFPs will suggest saving 50%+ to retire before 50 or at least reduce stress from money problems. Wouldn't that be neat?

I heard the same advice on using legumes for protein from recent interviews with Walter Willett and Chris Gardner. I had already cut out red meat and even chicken years ago. Had been toggling between pasta and chickpeas daily, but after this advice, last 2 weeks, I've pretty much replaced the pasta with chickpeas.

Chickpeas are delicious, BTW. I like to throw a small tin-full into a pot, sauté them with a little vinegar then season with a little salt and pepper, maybe a bit of parsley. Serve with a side of spicy pasta sauce (onions, tomato paste, chilli powder), and sprinkle olive oil. Very mediterranean.

In addition to the plant-based diet, over the last couple of months I've started a mild calorie restriction, combined with regular HIIT and daily walks.

The results are showing..!

https://imgur.com/HasKdgW
https://imgur.com/2XPeiYH
https://imgur.com/F5RR5OF

[Dave]

My favorite dish on earth is chana masala, made with chickpeas/garbanzo beans. I recommend everyone try it at a variety of Indian restaurants for true cooking inspiration. It’s also like medicine for the digestive tract.

I'm also a huge fan of chana masala, and I keep a 500g spice mix for chana masala (I just use MDH which costs around $8-10 for 500g) in my pantry. I pressure cook some chickpeas, toss in a couple onions / tomatoes, some of the chana masala mix, and you have an incredible meal for a braindead amount of cooking. Making the mix myself cost way more money and way more effort, and its faster to make it at home than to order from a local restaurant these days (though we do have a killer Indian food restaurant within 15 mins walk). Highly recommend this approach, and chana masala.

+1, big fan of this dish!

Looking good @conwy.

[thef0x]

I'm also a huge fan of chana masala, and I keep a 500g spice mix for chana masala (I just use MDH which costs around $8-10 for 500g) in my pantry. I pressure cook some chickpeas, toss in a couple onions / tomatoes, some of the chana masala mix, and you have an incredible meal for a braindead amount of cooking. Making the mix myself cost way more money and way more effort, and its faster to make it at home than to order from a local restaurant these days (though we do have a killer Indian food restaurant within 15 mins walk). Highly recommend this approach, and chana masala.

Trying to find that deal online but this might be an in store, hunt down a good small shop kinda deal.

I've stolen enough of your bean-related posts that I'd like to formally request any and all open source bean material from you.

^^ One of the stranger things I've written to someone on the internet but you're a damn bean savant, and us humble noobeans are just trying to play catch up.

Seriously though, spill the beans.

Okay, I'll stop.

[NewBlood]

I am no bean savant like Slevin, but reposting this here:
https://thegreekvegan.com/?s=beans&submit=Search

Lots of very yummy recipes.

[thef0x]

I am no bean savant like Slevin, but reposting this here:
https://thegreekvegan.com/?s=beans&submit=Search

Lots of very yummy recipes.

!! Thank you NewBlood, this is a fantastic site. My wife has a couple of greek recipes up her sleeve but I'm a complete noob on this cuisine and ooof, I think I'm hungry I'm making this ASAP https://thegreekvegan.com/gigantes-plaki/

[NewBlood]

I'm making this ASAP https://thegreekvegan.com/gigantes-plaki/

Yay! do report back!

[2Birds1Stone]

Dank beans, making me hungry

[bos]

I just realized we have a dedicated bean thread! I posted the recipe earlier in my journal, but cross posting here, because I think it fits here perfectly.


Following up on the bean recipe from DW:

Recipe
- Red bean soup: it is a popular winter desert. In traditional Chinese medicine, red beans are believed to promote good circulation and expel dampness from the body. This aligns with the need to stay warm and balanced during winter, when the weather can feel chilly and damp.
- Adzuki bean/ Kidney bean : Black rice = 2:1
- Water *5 cups
- Sugary beans *3/4 cup
- Pressure cook 45 min
- (optional) Gojiberry
- For example:
- 1 cup of adzuki bean/ kidney bean (kidney is a cheapo replacement for adzuki)
- 1/2 cup of black rice
- 6.5 cups of water (1.5 *5)
- 3/4 cup of sugar (You can reduce sugar if you have adzuki, because it contains more then kidney)

- Mung bean soup: it is a popular summertime dish. According to Chinese medicine mung beans are believed to have cooling properties that help reduce heat and detoxify the body. This makes it a perfect choice for hot and humid summer days, helping people feel refreshed and balanced.
- Mung bean : Barley = 2:1
- Water *5 cups
- Sugar beans *3/4 cup
- Pressure cook 30 min
- For example:
- 1 cup of mung bean
- 1/2 cup of barley
- 6.5 cups of water (1.5 *5)
- 2/4 cup of sugar

Sometimes I serve the mung bean soup with soy milk, as it gets quick thick when it's cold.
Remember to add sugar after cooking. Adding sugar before the beans are fully cooked can make them harder to soften

This one had added sesame balls from the asian store

[Oey]

Pressure cookers are highly recommended in this forum, I know. I had one which I used a lot to cook beans. Then it broke and I found the new ones were crap quality, usually with some plastic part that would break long before the metal parts did. Anyway without being overly flatulent in my words, I wanted to say that I don't need one now, as I discovered that simply slow cooking on a very low flame works just as well. I put them in unsoaked at breakfast and have them cooked at noon; sometimes I shut the gas off for an hour, then start the flame again till finished. That way I can make use of my good quality stainless steel pot which was made in USA long ago, and I believe is higher quality that imported. THank you Jacob, as always.

[Lemur]

Lately I've cooked a bulk batch of brown/green lentils (those $1.59 small bags you get at Walmart) with spicy curry seasoning for about 20 minutes. (lentils were pre-soaked overnight). I just eat about 3/4 cup of them wrapped in one of those high fiber tortillas with a few tablespoons of greek yogurt. Lasts about a week. Regular tortillas are much cheaper.

Mujaddara is lentil curry cooked with browned onions and sometimes served on top of greek yogurt which is where I got the idea from to mix lentils and greek yogurt. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mujaddara . Recipe has almost a sweet taste.

But that recipe takes a bit of work and time for the onions to brown. Seeing lentils mixed with greek yogurt though was a weird combination I thought...but surprisingly tasty after I gave it a shot. And now I found something super easy to cook, cheap, and tasty which is one of those trifectas that are hard to find.

[jacob]

Anyway without being overly flatulent in my words, I wanted to say that I don't need one now, as I discovered that simply slow cooking on a very low flame works just as well. I put them in unsoaked at breakfast and have them cooked at noon; sometimes I shut the gas off for an hour, then start the flame again till finished.

I've switched all my bean cooking to our [electric table top] slowcooker. I find that it's easier to get just the right amount of chewiness that way. Also, while pressure cooked beans only last <4 days in the fridge before they go bad, slowcooked beans last a bit longer (dunno how much longer).

For black beans, the slowcooker water:bean ratio is between 1:3 (watery) and 1:2.5 (careful of they'll burn). How long it depends depends on the speed of the particular slowcooker. They vary widely. Figure 3-7 hours on "high" though.

[IlliniDave]

Also, while pressure cooked beans only last <4 days in the fridge before they go bad, slowcooked beans last a bit longer (dunno how much longer).

Interesting. I still opt for pressure cooked (my pressure cooker is small so they're always gone in 24-36 hours). My first thought with your 4-day observation is I would want to cook out whatever in them is killing bacteria in the leftover state to protect the bacteria that will be participating in their digestion inside me. Maybe that's why I find pressure cooked beans and lentils a little less rumbly--my little gut buddies are able to more quickly and efficiently gobble up the fiber and polyphenols without the residual lectins (or other antibiotic things) floating around. At the same time, the somewhat higher temps under pressure probably degrade the polyphenols a little more than regular cooking. That's for-fun speculation, not a statement of fact, of course. Pressure cooked do sit easier in my gut though. And beans/lentils are only a complementary part of my diet, not a daily staple.

[guitarplayer]

I am still amazed by the method built on @Jean’s suggestion:

preheat a thermos flask by keeping boiling water in it for a while
Empty the still hot water into a kettle to reboil
Take red split lentils and optionally head them up dry in a microwave for a couple minutes
Put the heated up red lentils in the thermos
Pour the boiling water into the thermos
Close and leave to cook.

It’s such an energy efficient way of cooking red split lentils, I love it.

[theanimal]

That sounds just like a thermal cooker. You can do the same for stews, soups, legumes, grains, meats, and so on. Really anything. There's a good essay on Low Tech Magazine about it.
https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2014/ ... king-pots/

There are also options available for preparing larger meals. For example:
https://www.amazon.com/THERMOS-Insulati ... B00EI63VDK
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09CLRTDBQ/