/ck/ - Food & Cooking

[Anonymous No.5690782]

I'm going to cook some black beans. I'm going to sauté some onions in the bottom of the pot first. Can I add my spices (cumin and chile powder) before the beans and water? If I sauté the spices a bit with the onions, will the taste endure, or will it be destroyed after more than an hour of simmering? Should I just add my spices closer to the end?

Thank you in advance.

[Anonymous No.5690784]

Are you preparing dried beans?

[Anonymous No.5690787]

>>5690784
Yes. I soaked them overnight.

[Anonymous No.5690794]

I'll just go for it. Worst case scenario, I have to add more at the end.

[Anonymous No.5690803]

>>5690787
The flavors won't be what you're anticipating. Also, black beans are a bitch to cook by stovetop. If you have an oven safe pot like a dutch oven with a lid, I suggest cooking the beans in the oven with just plain water and adding your flavors afterwards.

Word of caution, adding salt makes beans hard and the skins will fall off.

[Anonymous No.5690819]

>>5690803
This isn't my first rodeo. I've made them before. I've just never tried cooking the seasoning with the onions before adding the onions and water. I've always stirred the seasoning directly into the simmering beans, much later in the process.

I followed a curry recipe the other day that instructed me to do this method of sautéing the spices before adding the liquid and other ingredients. It worked really well in that instance, so I thought I might apply it here.

Also, dutch oven, I fucking wish. Maybe around Christmastime I'll ask my parents for a bank-breaking Le Creuset to last me the rest of my life.

[Anonymous No.5690865]

>>5690782
add a small drop of white/rice vinegar and a pinch of cinnamon to the beans, changes the chemicals and makes it taste better at the end.

also you can add celery and carrots and red/yellow/green peppers to the onions and olive oil in the beginning.

I would add the spices and ANY salt at the end unless you want hard beans.


posting recipe wait.

I am Not a doctor. Ask your doctor before doing anything.

[Anonymous No.5690866]

>>5690865
you can go to wholefoods and get a bunch of different organic dried beans and lentils of different colors and shapes and sizes!

or you can just get the cheapest stuff you can possibly find, its your choice.

I take any of my beans and lentils and soak them overnight.

I dump out the water and rinse them off.
in the pot:
>olive oil
>carrots
>celery
>little pieces!
>onions
>garlic
>a little sea salt (or pink himalayan salt?)
>little splash rice vinegar
sautee that up a bit. but add NO MORE SALT till the end! you don't want firm beans!
add your beans and lentils and fill the thing up with water a whole bunch until they are deep.
>bring to boil, then lower to low-medium (simmering) for 3 hours.
>somewhere in that area, add a few dashes of black pepper, cinnamon, cumin, oregano, basil, turmeric, curry, masala, etc. whatever bro.
>at the end, try to boil it some more until you reduce it down and thicken it.
>when the goop on top gets wrinkly, its done.
>make a ton of it
>store in fridge
>lunch every day!

I am Not a doctor. Ask your doctor before doing anything.

[Anonymous No.5690966]

>>5690865
>white/rice vinegar and a pinch of cinnamon
I can't envision this at all, but somehow it sounds delicious. I'll definitely try this next time.

Thanks, Doc.

[Anonymous No.5690992]

>>5690819
>I've always stirred the seasoning directly into the simmering beans, much later in the process.

Good. The heat and the long cooking process tend to drive off the volatile flavor compounds.

[Anonymous No.5691084]

>>5690966
I'm not a doctor. np :)

[Anonymous No.5691117]

You actually want to toast your spices (but not herbs) in the pan. You can coat the sauteed onions with them (add garlic around this time if using, too) and just cook, stirring frequently, until everything gets aromatic and toasty.

Then add your other shit.

Dried herbs can come in once there's liquid (or at the very end of spice toasting).

Only apply any fresh herbs at the very end of cooking, while the food is still hot, but shortly before serving. Otherwise, too much heat kills the flavor.

[Anonymous No.5691135]

>>5690782
I literally just cooked black beans.

I caramelized some onions with a little garlic, while boiling the beans, added it all together with some salt and pepper. I cooked it until the water reduced to an acceptable amount and at them like that with rice, and I was happy with it.