In the summer we often have white beans simply dressed while warm with a high quality olive oil, fresh herbs, black pepper, salt, garlic and sometimes a splash of vinegar. They are perfect for a picnic.
my dad was born in Bakio, Bizkaia in 1930. He said during the civil war and WWII they lived on beans and potato's. He's mother would put a small piece of ham in there for 1/2 hour just to give a little flavor. Then take it out and reuse it the next day and probably the next day. Tough times but like he said we were all poor so you never knew it. I love beans. If my mom make bean im there. hell with that steak anyone can make that. hahahha
So I love to cook with tepary beans, an bean cultivated by the indigenous people of the American West. They are so versatile, but I like them just as a simple bean soup (which I'm going to make today in our DC style snow storm). You might get them at Rancho Gordo, but I love to buy mine direct from the source: https://store.ramonafarms.com/Tepary-Beans-Our-Heirloom-BAVI/products/5/
RG also offers a tiny garbanzo (ceci piccoli) and one that looks like broken pieces (cicerchia) which are wonderful and cook much faster than big whole ones. I cook them both in my rice cooker on the White Rice setting in good stock with a few aromatics and a jalapeno--dinner in 45 min! :)
Made a delightful solo lunch of Rancho Gordo green lentils cooked with onion, garlic, carrot, olive oil, and lemon rind today. I’m a lucky member of the bean club so I have a bunch of options for the snowy day we’ll be getting tomorrow. Thanks, Lisa, for the reminder of how good the Moro beans are; I’ll be following your lead on my next pot of those.
My favorite winter beans are the Moro beans from Rancho Gordo. I dissolve salt in a little hot water then soak the beans in this with bay leaves, black peppercorns, epazote, Mexican oregano, a cracked garlic clove or two, and tepid water to cover. When ready to cook I refresh the herbs, add a little more salt, and sometimes a dried chipotle for a hint of smokiness (I don’t like to add meat so use the chipotle for a little depth. I bring them to a boil, skim off any scum, then cover and put in a 375 degree oven. I check periodically for water level and doneness, and when ready let them cool with the lid ajar or serve. I usually cook a pound at a time and freeze half. We love these as is, combined with sofrito, refried, in a chili, soup, or stew, roughly mashed and made into fritters, etc.
I recently went for a stretch making Cholent. A dish begun on Friday evening and eaten Saturday. Made with a mixture of beans (I have used John Nathan’s recipe NYT) potatoes, carrots and stew meat, I rediscovered the fragrance and taste of food as part of my DNA even though my Mom never prepared this dish for us. Love beans and though you can purchase a mix by Gefen of beans packaged for Cholent which is delicious. I have prepared my own mix using delicacies from Rancho Gordo
Yes, beans can be as magical as caviar! I just made a delicious pot of RG Domingo Rojo beans this week. This time I put a few cloves of fermented garlic, olive oil, piece of kombu, red chili flakes, and Mexican oregano in a stock pot w/ some thinly sliced kale stems and a few diced carrots and sautéed briefly before adding beans (soaked overnight), covered in fresh water, and simmered—adding sel gris once beans started to soften. I ate my first bowl simply—drizzled with olive oil, a squeeze of lime, and a little black pepper. SO good! I've been a big RG fan for many moons. 🫘❤️
I loveee fabada asturiana, although just thinking of it makes me instantly feel full, lol. The portions are so huge in the north of Spain, but I'm here for it!
I love beans. In fact, you could probably say I never met a bean I didn't like. Lima beans are my favorite with garbanzo beans being a close second. One of the best childhood memories I have is going to a farm where you could pick whatever it was they were growing. This particular farm had lima beans and to this day I have never had a lima bean as good as those.
If you (or your roommate or your loved one) have a green thumb, you can always grow some runner beans too! My husband and I love being spoiled for choice from Baker's Creek rare for other veg and flowers too (https://www.rareseeds.com/search/Beans).
In the summer we often have white beans simply dressed while warm with a high quality olive oil, fresh herbs, black pepper, salt, garlic and sometimes a splash of vinegar. They are perfect for a picnic.
Add in some cooked farro for a delicious change.
I love big meaty gigantes beans with sausage and dark greens - especially on a cold day!
my dad was born in Bakio, Bizkaia in 1930. He said during the civil war and WWII they lived on beans and potato's. He's mother would put a small piece of ham in there for 1/2 hour just to give a little flavor. Then take it out and reuse it the next day and probably the next day. Tough times but like he said we were all poor so you never knew it. I love beans. If my mom make bean im there. hell with that steak anyone can make that. hahahha
I would rather have beans or lentils flavored with a little bit of pork than any meat-centric meal, any time. Your mom's must be epic!
So I love to cook with tepary beans, an bean cultivated by the indigenous people of the American West. They are so versatile, but I like them just as a simple bean soup (which I'm going to make today in our DC style snow storm). You might get them at Rancho Gordo, but I love to buy mine direct from the source: https://store.ramonafarms.com/Tepary-Beans-Our-Heirloom-BAVI/products/5/
I came to mention them for the three different tepary beans. I love their garbanzos too!
RG also offers a tiny garbanzo (ceci piccoli) and one that looks like broken pieces (cicerchia) which are wonderful and cook much faster than big whole ones. I cook them both in my rice cooker on the White Rice setting in good stock with a few aromatics and a jalapeno--dinner in 45 min! :)
Made a delightful solo lunch of Rancho Gordo green lentils cooked with onion, garlic, carrot, olive oil, and lemon rind today. I’m a lucky member of the bean club so I have a bunch of options for the snowy day we’ll be getting tomorrow. Thanks, Lisa, for the reminder of how good the Moro beans are; I’ll be following your lead on my next pot of those.
I loved the episode of Jose & family in Asturias! We love beans in my family, too. Heading over to Rancho Gordo to pick up some beans today!
My favorite winter beans are the Moro beans from Rancho Gordo. I dissolve salt in a little hot water then soak the beans in this with bay leaves, black peppercorns, epazote, Mexican oregano, a cracked garlic clove or two, and tepid water to cover. When ready to cook I refresh the herbs, add a little more salt, and sometimes a dried chipotle for a hint of smokiness (I don’t like to add meat so use the chipotle for a little depth. I bring them to a boil, skim off any scum, then cover and put in a 375 degree oven. I check periodically for water level and doneness, and when ready let them cool with the lid ajar or serve. I usually cook a pound at a time and freeze half. We love these as is, combined with sofrito, refried, in a chili, soup, or stew, roughly mashed and made into fritters, etc.
Butter beans cooked with an onion and smoked ham hock.
I love the soft, mealy texture of beans and add them to lots of dishes in preference to other starchy ingredients.
I recently went for a stretch making Cholent. A dish begun on Friday evening and eaten Saturday. Made with a mixture of beans (I have used John Nathan’s recipe NYT) potatoes, carrots and stew meat, I rediscovered the fragrance and taste of food as part of my DNA even though my Mom never prepared this dish for us. Love beans and though you can purchase a mix by Gefen of beans packaged for Cholent which is delicious. I have prepared my own mix using delicacies from Rancho Gordo
And onions which disintegrate I cook at 225
Yes, beans can be as magical as caviar! I just made a delicious pot of RG Domingo Rojo beans this week. This time I put a few cloves of fermented garlic, olive oil, piece of kombu, red chili flakes, and Mexican oregano in a stock pot w/ some thinly sliced kale stems and a few diced carrots and sautéed briefly before adding beans (soaked overnight), covered in fresh water, and simmered—adding sel gris once beans started to soften. I ate my first bowl simply—drizzled with olive oil, a squeeze of lime, and a little black pepper. SO good! I've been a big RG fan for many moons. 🫘❤️
I look forward to your garbanzo bean recipe. I was just at Rancho Gordo and got some.
I loveee fabada asturiana, although just thinking of it makes me instantly feel full, lol. The portions are so huge in the north of Spain, but I'm here for it!
I love beans. In fact, you could probably say I never met a bean I didn't like. Lima beans are my favorite with garbanzo beans being a close second. One of the best childhood memories I have is going to a farm where you could pick whatever it was they were growing. This particular farm had lima beans and to this day I have never had a lima bean as good as those.
If you (or your roommate or your loved one) have a green thumb, you can always grow some runner beans too! My husband and I love being spoiled for choice from Baker's Creek rare for other veg and flowers too (https://www.rareseeds.com/search/Beans).