Hi all you chefs

I'm trying to incorporate more beans into my diet.... so I soaked some aduki beans for 24 hours and then put them in a slow cooker with loads of chopped veg.

After most of the day cooking, the veg are overdone and the beans still hard or possibly firm, but not how I like beans to be.

Have I overcooked them too, or should I have boiled them before adding veg.

Any advice would be gratefully received.

Joyce

I always pre-cook beans before using in recipes.

Speedy Ruthiegirl

Thankyou!

I also soak my beans overnight and change the water.  I've been told not to add an acid to the water until the beans are soft.  (vinegar, possibly lemon) Seems that doing so will keep the beans hard. Not sure about that, but I don't.

agree with Deb....don't add salt of acid while they are cooking....or they will never soften. othere than that, I can;t see why they woudn't softennin the pot with veg....it's ok if veggies cook down to nothing, but, well....occasionally a batch of beans just won;t cook and it might be they are too old....or whatever....

I didn't add acid or salt, which I'd also heard could cause beans to stay hard.
Just herbs, carrot, swede, butternut squash, celery.  Can't tolerate onion unfortunately.
Everything did boil in the slow cooker, but I think maybe I'll try soaking and boiling beans separately next time.  
I don't much like beans at the best of times, [except for peanuts] but must become a bit more compliant!!

Quoted from jayneeo

..it's ok if veggies cook down to nothing,

I think I'll switch the cooker on again and turn it off when I go to bed then.

One of the herbs, or maybe the celery, must have inhibited cooking. Next time, cook beans in a two-step process. Well, 3 step. Soak, then drain and rinse and put in fresh water, then cook, then drain and add to recipes.

I normally cook beans overnight, then drain and freeze in small portions. When I cook, I thaw out one bag and use it in the recipe.

Lentils don't need to be pre-cooked, as they cook up in about an hour (even with veggies added) and don't need to be pre-soaked. Some people prefer to soak lentils anyway to make them easier to digest, but I don't need to do that.

Try adding spices, turmeric, paprika, mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds.  the seeds need to be added in the beginning and just in case you don't know some herbs become bitter if over cooked so add during the end. I never add my veggies until the beans are soft. I also like my veggie crunchy. Or else I'll have them cooked away so that they become part of the sauce. I really dislike mushy veggies

I've made Adzuki beans in my slow cooker and, like Ruthie, I blanch them first.

I soak the beans overnight in water with a square of kombu seaweed, rinse well, put in a pot with fresh water and bring to the boil, simmer for 5 mins, rinse and add to the slow cooker.  The came out great that way - nice and soft.

Good luck

Andy

Quoted from ruthiegirl

I normally cook beans overnight, then drain and freeze in small portions. When I cook, I thaw out one bag and use it in the recipe.

Thanks for the useful advice, Ruthiegirl.
Do you presoak the beans or just put them in a slow cooker all night? - setting on high or low?

Soak, drain, rinse. Then cook in fresh water, usually on high for half the day or low overnight. Then I drain and rinse again and use in recipes.

Thankyou everyone - if I get it wrong again I won't dare to admit it

Some old beans are not going to soften, no matter what you do. They have just been lying around in a store too long. It is a pain to get stuck with them! Especially the way you did.

I bought the beans from a Tesco supermarket, thinking as a big chain they would have a good turnover.
Now a few more beans are soaking ready for another go tomorrow
If these don't soften then I'll get a new supply from elsewhere.

The addition of some things, such as an acid or salt, can prevent beans from softening. There might have been something with similar properties in one of the veggies or herbs you added. Cooking them in plain water may solve the problem. Don't stop cooking them until they're fully softened the way you like them.

Even if the beans are less fresh than you thought they were, they may still soften up nicely with a longer cooking time in plain water, or in water with kombu added.

Yes I will cook in plain water tomorrow, many thanks Ruthie and all.

When people sprout these beans, sprout half and inch maybe? - can they then be eaten raw?

Hmmm hard to say I never cooked adukis in a slow cooker.  I cooked them on a stove top with wakame.  Maybe try that.  I liked to cook them till most of the water was absorbed, yum.  Very filling and delicious.

I usually soak for a few hours, boil for 10 mins, then add to slow cooker.

Quoted from ruthiegirl

The addition of some things, such as an acid or salt, can prevent beans from softening.

My mother never added salt to any of her vegetables until they were almost done because she said it would keep them from becoming tender.

I have never tried that kind of bean, but before I cook any other kind of dried bean, I always soak them overnight in a large pot with plenty of water. I start with warm water, put in the beans, cover the pot, and let them soak. Then, before cooking, I pour off the soak water and rinse them off a couple of times before cooking, whether in a pot on the stove or in my slow cooker. I find the stove method works better. I wait until the beans have cooked a while before adding anything else that cooks faster.  

Update!

I soaked the beans for over 24 hours with a change of water and rinse, boiled them in plain water for what seemed like ages, still seemed a bit hard, so threw them in the slow cooker with some frozen chicken joints until the chicken was cooked - and the beans were still hard-ish.

Reckon they must be old, as suggested above, so have ordered some new ones online.

Watch this space  

Quoted from Joyce

Update!I soaked the beans for over 24 hours with a change of water and rinse, boiled them in plain water for what seemed like ages, still seemed a bit hard, so threw them in the slow cooker with some frozen chicken joints until the chicken was cooked - and the beans were still hard-ish.Reckon they must be old, as suggested above, so have ordered some new ones online.Watch this space  

Glad you updated us on the beans. I was wondering how you came out with them. Hopefully, these you've ordered will make you smile! I have gotten so disgusted with dried beans, peas, etc., until I realized that part of the problem was just old stuff! This my ongoing problem with grocery stores. Nothing I've ordered online for the last several months has been remotely stale. And every single item has been consistently less expensive.

I just put mine in the slow cooker for a few hrs, when it's soft I add pandanus leave and agave . I use it as a desert