Beans: to salt or not to salt?

[Francesca_Knowl]

That is the question...and we're talking about dried beans here.

When cooking beans meant to be consumed whole (baked beans, chili etc.) I was taught not to add salt or anything else until they were already cooked through. Supposed reason being potential ill effect on the texture of the finished product.

My beans turn out just fine- got a pot of seasoned-after-cooking Great Northerns baking in the oven even as I type. (If I was in camp, they'd be slow bakin' in the firepit!) But I'm wondering about that "no salt until done boiling them up" thing.

What think you all?

[Mountain_Mama]

I salt toward the end also. Something else I do that my mama taught me is to add very hot water if more water is needed. Keeps the cooking temp more even & I think they turn out better! I keep a small kettle of water on low on another burner so I can easily add when needed. I usually salt when I stop adding water to let them cook down & thinken.

[ventrman]

SWMO wrote:
Once you pre soften BEANS with a 3 minute boil and an hour rest, the water you discard will will make you feel it's worth it. The unappetizing foam that generally comes off of them is enough for me.
This is the only way we do it. It's also a good way to use up some onion root ends, which we throw in and later discard.

Had eggs on the brain from an earlier post I assume. You just can't trust 75 year old brains!

LOL! I resemble that!

[SWMO]

Once you pre soften BEANS with a 3 minute boil and an hour rest, the water you discard will will make you feel it's worth it. The unappetizing foam that generally comes off of them is enough for me.
This is the only way we do it. It's also a good way to use up some onion root ends, which we throw in and later discard.

Had eggs on the brain from an earlier post I assume. You just can't trust 75 year old brains!

[ventrman]

SWMO wrote:
Once you pre soften eggs with a 3 minute boil and an hour rest, the water you discard will will make you feel it's worth it. The unappetizing foam that generally comes off of them is enough for me.
This is the only way we do it. It's also a good way to use up some onion root ends, which we throw in and later discard.

Am I missing something? What does cooking Eggs have to do with cooking Beans?

[SWMO]

Oops.

[littlemo]

Definitely salt.

Place in crock pot with lots of water and add salt and pepper. Turn on high for the whole day. (may add jalapeno, onion, ham hock, salt pork, and/or bacon any time during cooking).

or

Place in pressure cooker with salt and water and any other seasoning, (salt pork, bacon, ham hock,) and cook for however long you want.

or

Place in pan on stovetop and add all ingredients and boil fast for about 10-20 minutes then cover and simmer for 2-3 hours.

Results: Something wonderful to have with your cornbread.

[przao]

Now I always use an electric pressure cooker when doing dried beans. It literally takes 60 minutes or so from dry right out of the bag to butter tender ready to serve stage. Plus, you can add various meats as well to make a one-pot meal.

Formerly I did not spice (or salt), but my wife complained so much that I finally gave in and added all my salt right from the beginning - she loved it. I must admit that the salt seems to have infused the beans a bit better.

Nos I add salt (but not spices) at the beginning.

[down_home]

TexasShadow wrote:
de gassing the beans. I read about this and tried it and it seems to work pretty good.
bring the beans to a boil, add a heaping TBSP baking soda...it will foam up... let it boil about a half minute or minute, drain, rinse the beans good and start them again in cold water. Then cook them the way you cook your beans.
Much less gas for us.

I think it works too.

[ventrman]

The Altitude has a lot to do with how long it takes Beans to cook.

[Ron3rd]

My advice with salt is this: "you can always add, but you can't take away". I prefer to salt the finished product.

[Naio]

swtgran wrote:
More often than not, beans that take longer than the appropriate amount of time, are old beans. The older the beans, the longer the time.

Now how is that for "opening a whole other can of beans"?

Welcome Naio. terry r.

Thank you, terry!

I have only made the mistake (but maybe it is not a mistake) of salting beans once or twice. So, yes, it could be a coincidence -- maybe they were old AND salted!

Heck, maybe the two issues are even connected. Maybe I had not made beans in a long time, and that is why I put the salt in, and is also an indication that they had been in the cupboard since the last, long-ago, time.

[SWMO]

The reason for holding off on the slat until they are nearly done is all about the skins. Salt will toughen the skin on beans. If you hold off until they are close to done, 15-20 minutes left, the beans will hold together well but the skins will still be soft.
I can see a difference, it's subtle, but it's there. If you pre-boil I think you can add salt to the new water and it doesn't matter..

[NYCgrrl]

I soak my beans overnight, change the water, and salt them after the first boil but before turning the water down to a fast simmer. Whyyyyyyy do I do this? Err my grandmothers told me to.....:D;).
'Course being a rebel without a cause I tried out the fast method of soaking and found out for myself they were right as usual. Never questioned or 'sperimented with the salt method but apparently Serious Eats did:

Kenji Lopez-Alt, The Food Lab of Serious Eats website wrote:


Myth number 6. Salting Beans During Cooking Will Make Them Tough



Most of us have been told at some point in our culinary careers that salting beans will cause them to toughen. It's incredible that this little bit of culinary mis-wisdom still lingers, for it couldn't be further from the truth. A simple side-by-side test can prove to you conclusively that salting beans (both the water used to soak them in and the water used to cook them) actually tenderizes the skins.

It's got to do with magnesium and calcium, two ions found in the bean skins that help keep the structure of the beans' skin intact. When you soak the beans in salt water, sodium ions end up replacing some of the magnesium and calcium, effectively softening the skins. Your beans come out creamier, better seasoned, and have a much smaller likelihood of exploding while cooking.

I haven't checked to see if they fast or overnight soaked the beans but it is certainly something to consider in assessing the validity of this "de-bunking".

[down_home]

We were raised on pinto beans and others and cornbread.
I remember the new fangled aluminum pots and pans. The Peddlers claimed they added flavor. they did as the salt in the boiling beans put some aluminum, in the beans. Aluminum is bad on Alzeheimers etc, or at least that was the preachin.
Adding salt, early, in the cooking adds flavor to the beans as does the pork, lard, or bacon drippings.
Don't cook in metal. Use enamel pots to cool in.
Wife insisted on cooking in stainless steel for a time but I finally got her not too.
Lots of stainless and aluminum pots and ans are used but cooking with water and salt in them is not the wisest thing.
Harder to clean, if you scorch something and don't like as high a heat r porcelin ware is still the way to go or cast iron.. IMO