As you may remember, here at Rancho Gordo we are in the middle of an amazing series of presentations by some of my favorite cooks. Both Lorna Sass and Deborah Madison were gracious and entertaining. Plan to come by and meet Paula Wolfert and Judy Wits-Francini and you won't be disappointed.
I've never been a huge fan of the pressure cooker for beans. Lorna's recipe for risotto in the pressure cooker changed my thinking on it forever, but beans I find are a different technique. Lorna was generous enough to leave behind her streamlined and beautiful demo pressure cooker by WMF. I can't believe things can get any better in a pressure cooker than this model. It's beautiful, silent and easy to clean. I have experimented with beans and I have to say, unsoaked beans cooked for 20 minutes under pressure are pretty fine. The only drag is the bean broth is dull and lifeless. I continued cooking for another hour without the lid and eventually there was delicious pot liquor but it took almost as long as it would have if I'd cooked them by a conventional method.
The jury is still out but I have to admit I'm intrigued and almost determined to take advantage of all the good things that a pressure cooker can do. Any ideas for beans? I'm all ears.
I use a pressure cooker. I always soak the beans b/c unless they are really really fresh, they will not cook in 20 minutes. Then I cook uncovered for another 20 min max, and the pot liquor is fabulous. 40 min = less time than conventional methods. And yes — I know the beans are often mushier when cooked in a pressure cooker, but they taste just fine & that’s really all that matters to me!
Hi Steve; Have you tried cooking the beans with your garlic,Carrots, celery,onions in the bean water under pressure? I have a Juice-man
juicer, when I do beans I save about a tablespoon of the pulp, of the carrots and celery add a clove of garlic and cook the beans under pressure. It works for me. But I never had beans that you made.
My family has always cooked their beans in a pressure cooker with great results. My grandma had to cook 2 big pots a day, so the pressure cooker method was pretty much a necessity. It’s always been straight up supermarket pintos for us. We use no aromatics in the pot…just a ton of salt and a little fat (animal or vegetable). Once out of the pot, they’re served with white onion and sauerkraut (optional but delicious). Have you tried pintos and homemade kraut together? Borderline amazing.
I’m not sure how to correct your technique because I don’t know exactly what you’re doing wrong, but learning to cook beans in the pressure cooker does have a learning curve. Something to consider that you already know-they need salt. Lots and lots of salt. When cooking them conventionally, you can add salt as you go, but in the pressure cooker you have to add it all at the beginning. If you don’t get it right then, it’s almost impossible to correct it later. Also, the water level is crucial. Since it doesn’t evaporate, any extra isn’t going to go away—it’s just going to dilute the flavor of the final product. Oh, and one other thing, which is kinda weird but I seem to remember my mom mentioning. Older pintos take longer to cook, but make a stronger, darker broth. I’ll have to ask her when I talk to her next, but I think that’s the way it goes.