Beans and rice reading

[Wabbit]

Article talking about beans and rice.

http://www.happypreppers.com/rice-and-beans.html

 

[slynne]

I have a feeling that the price of beans is about to go down here in the USA.

 

[Wabbit]

Does anyone do the beans and rice thing and have some real world experience with them?

 

[firebob]

I cook up a pot of lentils and rice at least once a week. I carry a few different types of lentils and a few different types of rice.

I cook them together in one pot with a can of something and a lot of times i add in what ever meat i have chopped up. Sometimes i will chop up an onion and a pepper. I will also clean on the left overs and add it to the pot. Toss it all in the 8Q electric pressure cooker (1000 watts). I let it soak for about 30 minutes to an hour, then cook on high for 15 minutes, unplug, and let it sit for 30 minutes before opening it up. Most of the time i only make about 6Q with it just being me and a lot of the time i mix it up and hit the road; when the timer goes off i turn off the inverter switch and i have a hot meal when i stop. If you eat with your eyes you need to be very careful about what you add because of the color.

I have added everything from cream of mushroom soup to left over brussels sprouts.

 

[LeeRevell]

I grew up eating beans and rice, separately and together. I like them, as beans and rice can make a pretty complete meal. Also rice with lentils or green peas, neither of which need long soaking, just cook them all together.

 

[Wabbit]

Going to buy some lentils tomm and try them. Never had them before(that I know of). The lil reading I have done on them so far really sounds promising.

 

[steamjam1]

Does anyone do the beans and rice thing and have some real world experience with them?

Its super easy. Beans and rice.. Its fast, easy, and good for you (for the most part) The quickest and easiest is to make some uncle bens rice, then take a can of "Pork-n-beans" and add them together in a pot. pepper/salt to taste. munch.

What I tend to do is make basmati rice in a cheap K-mart rice cooker I bought for like $19 and when the cooker "clicks" from cook to warm, Ill add a can of pork-n-beans and let the whole thing heat up.. yum. If I am feeling especially hungry Ill cut up an apple sausage,  or garlic sausage and add it. YUM... Brings back memories of being a little kid in the woods... :-D

 

[Raven+Squid]

Go to Frenchys Soul Food in Houston for the best red beans and rice on the planet, get the jalapeño and biscuit too!

Im droolin' here!

Adding some good spicy sausage like steamjam said and a little onion....mmmmmmmm!

 

[MrNoodly]

I grew up eating beans and rice, separately and together.

A good portion of the global population has.

Good stuff.

 

[eDJ_]

I like my bean & rice dishes but my "nurse practitioner" counsels me on nutrition as she knows I like to cook   She is suggesting whole grain Basmati Rice oppose to any white rice in general.   She doesn't have many issues with beans,  but she suggest I avoid "refried beans" and as far as rice,  "Spanish Rice".

I see her about once a year and my Doctor goes over my charts with me at the end of the physical.   I get
real good checkup's and they want to keep it that way.  

She says the Basmati whole grain has the lowest glycaemic index.   At one time in my 20's I could have eaten cup after cup of cooked white rice dosed liberally with Soy Sauce.  But I don't do that these days. 

I like to make 3 flavors rice using my Wok and brown rice when I get hungry for it.  Red Beans and Rice is a
real favorite of mine but I try to only eat it once or twice a month.  

I just finished making a stock pot of "Bob's Red Mills "bountiful" Black bean soup.  We have a winter weather advisory starting in a few hours from now so I'll have some food laid by if we get the snow they think we may get. 

A friend of mine became diabetic and he was telling me that his two favorite foods had been Orange Juice and white rice.  Those were the first foods the Doctor took him off.

 

[MrNoodly]

I suspect some of the nutritional benefit of brown rice comes from calories burned by the extra thumb twiddling, toe tapping and clock watching while it cooks. I do prefer the taste, though.

 

[LeeRevell]

Being borderline Type 2 diabetic, I use brown rice these days.
Had a roomate in my Navy days, living my final year offbase. He was from Oklahoma, and hated rice and beans of any kind. Wouldn't even eat chili with beans.

 

[grimmal]

We eat a lot of beans of different kinds and rice.  Rice with refried beans and hot sauce , lettuce , tomato and shredded cheese on top is at least once a week. Beans in a small pressure cooker are done in no time.  Chili made with lots of beans goes a lot farther and with cornbread made with a little unrefined coconut oil in it is served with it. We carry a lot of spices to cook it all different ways. Upside of beans and rice is if you try a different recipe and you don't care for it you are only out about 50 cents.

 

[GypsyDogs]

I make a killer rice pudding- from leftover brown basmati rice. mmmmmmmmmm

 

[firebob]

Lentils are a whole grain and should help stabilize your blood sugar.

 

[ArtW]

Before I became diabetic, I had rice and beans as my 'go to' cheap meal, and lived on them in my broke youth for months at a time
Now beans are OK but rice spikes my good sugar, and whole grains have no magical blood sugar stabilization properties, they're all starches and will raise blood sugar
That said, lentils are a legume, not a whole grain, so are OK in moderation

 

[TrainChaser]

For any of you who are reading this and thinking "gas", there's a way to cook gas-free beans.  And it really does work!

For most beans, 2 cups of them (dry) equals about one pound.  Many recipes use this amount.  1 cup of dry beans will produce about 2.5 cups of cooked beans.

1. Pick through the beans, removing broken, wrinkled and discolored ones, remove any dirt or stones.  Rinse the beans well.
2. Add 5 cups of cold water to each cup of beans (10 cups for a pound). Skimping on the water doesn't produce great results.
3. Set on med-high heat, and watch for start of boil.   Boil for 2 or 3 minutes.
4. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit overnight or up to 24 hrs.  DO NOT DRAIN.  (I've done it w/o refrigeration and it seems okay -- they may start to ferment, but that's a good thing, gas-wise).
5. Drain the water from the soaked beans and discard.  (The gas source has been leached into the water.)  Rinse a bit.
6. Return beans to the pot and cover slightly with water.  Heat just to boiling, then reduce heat to LOW, put the lid on and cook for the recommended length of time for that kind of bean (it varies).  Check to keep the water level just over the beans.
7. Add seasonings to the beans while cooking, but don't add salt or acidic materials (like tomato) until near the end, or they will take longer to cook.

If you use a pressure cooker, follow steps above 1 through 4, then continue as your cooker directions instruct.

 

[TrainChaser]

Regarding brown rice....

The nutrition in rice is mostly in the hull, which is removed to make white rice. Unfortunately, brown rice tends to have more arsenic in it than white rice.

Here is some just-so-you-know info from Consumer Reports: "How much arsenic is in your rice?"
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2015/01/how-much-arsenic-is-in-your-rice/index.htm

 

[sushidog]

One thing I'll add to the excellent flatulence free bean recipe is that the water that you pour off the beans is full of nitrogen - an excellent fertilizer, so do a plant a favor and pour it on a plant and not down the sink.

Chip

 

[jimindenver]

I love fresh, hot beans with a bit of butter and salt. Refried with rice too.