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Dried beans

I am using dried beans for the first time. I didn't realize that they would expand when I soaked them overnight. They absorbed all the water and now I have 3 cups of beans that I won't be using right away.

Do I store them in tupperware? Do I put them in water? How long will they last?

10 Comments:

When do you plan to cook them?

I've already cooked about 3 cups of the beans. I still have another 3 cups. The batch I made today will last a few days which is why I'm wondering how long these other beans will last.

you can leave them in water, but not for too long a time, as the water and beans start to get a little funky after a few days. you should check the water and change it. i'd say don't leave them more than 3 days before cooking.

i recommend cooking them all up and then portioning and freezing....or invite some friends over for bean chili with cornbread topping....

I second the cooking recommendation. Cooked beans freeze nicely. I usually soak a whole pound of beans and go ahead and cook them all up, most of the time I am making re-fried beans. Once you have seasoned them up you can freeze them easily in the portions sizes that you will be using.

Remember, the flatter you freeze something the easier it will thaw.

Third the cooking recommendation! I agree with Pooch regarding leaving them in water, not only would they get funky, but I think the texture would change. Let us know!

I make a pot of beans twice a week and lately have been taking some and mashing them with flour to bind them and making bean cakes with them. Saute in a skillet and they have a nice crispy outside with a creamy bean center. My husband loves them!

@arm1970 What kind of beans? Does it matter? How do you serve them?

Drain them and freeze them.

They will sprout if you leave them in water much longer than a day or two. Usually you can get away with draining soaked beans and leaving them in the fridge for a couple of days, but they'll still start sprouting...and at that point they're not really good to eat anymore.

If you cook them, though, they will last in the fridge for about a week. Cook them and drain, saving the cooking water. Cool the beans and cooking water separately, then store the beans in cooking water to cover. Otherwise freezing sounds like a good bet.

Yes, cook them suckers. Then make bean salad, bean soup, bean spread (just tweak any hummus recipe), chili con or sin carne, or...anything from the "Beans" chapter of your favorite cookbook. (Here I'd like to insert yet another plug for Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything. Just had his version of Moros y Cristianos tonight. Great stuff.) Eat the bean salad fresh, especially if you include green beans; but everything else will freeze just fine.

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