• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

Add the peas and cook for about 5 minutes. The cabbage should be tender with just a little bit of snap to it. Taste for salt and serve immediately.

NUTRITION TIP

This recipe is a great example of the nutrient density of vegetables. In only 100 calories you get 5 grams of protein, 90 milligrams of calcium, and 2 grams iron—that’s no typo, each serving really does have 2 grams of iron. Some is from the cabbage and peas but a surprising source of iron is actually curry powder.

CHAPTER 4

Main Event Beans

BEANS ARE A STAPLE FOOD IN PRACTICALLY EVERY CULTURE, and can the entire world be wrong? Well, maybe, but not about beans! Protein, iron, fiber, calcium—beans are the gift that keep on giving.

And lucky for me that beans are so nutritionally perfect. As a young vegetarian in the ’80s, I had to learn new and fun ways to prepare them. Instead of using highly processed and way expensive meat substitutes, I would use beans as my protein. Good thing those fake meats were so expensive, because it gave me a chance to become a connoisseur—to really experience the nuance of each and every bean—taste, texture, and flavor. Every variety has its own unique personality. Rice and beans don’t mean deprivation!

Linguistically speaking, meat used to mean “beans.” And it’s not a wholly unfair comparison. Nutritionally speaking, beans are as high in protein as many meats. Beans actually do contain all of the essential amino acids, and if you’re eating a variety of plant-based foods, you’re set up to have them in the amounts you need. See the bowls section (page 265) to see how it’s done! And you know what beans do have that meat does not? Fiber and complex carbohydrates—your body’s preferred fuel. Most beans are very low in saturated fat and high in the healthy ones. Plus, the nutrients are so plentiful that it doesn’t take many to improve the nutrition of a meal.

This chapter celebrates the endless versatility of beans—lightly mashed, pureed, left whole and stewed, or formed into burgers, beans can be enjoyed every which way. They don’t have to be relegated to a side dish. Have your beans front and center as the main event!

Canned vs. Dried: Two Beans Enter, One Bean Leaves

You can’t beat canned beans when it comes to convenience and even canned beans are relatively inexpensive. But dried beans are cheaper, and there’s a certain amount of satisfaction that comes from doing it the old-fashioned way.

To get your beans cooked to perfection, it’s best to soak them a day ahead of the big simmer. This softens up the beans and ensures that they cook evenly. Put your dried beans in a pot with plenty of water (water should be 2 or 3 inches above the beans), cover, and stash in the fridge until the next day.

After beans have soaked, drain the water, then replace with fresh, cold water (roughly 3 cups of water to every cup of soaked beans, better too much than too little), and a teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower the heat to a simmer so as not to turn them to mush. Cook with the cover slightly ajar so that steam can escape. How long will depend on the bean but note that different factors, such as how old and how dry the bean is, will affect cooking times. Once the beans are nice and tender, drain and use them as called for in the recipe. One cup of dried beans will yield roughly 3 cups of cooked (results may vary).

Does salt really toughen the beans? Not that I have noticed! Go ahead and add the salt; it really benefits the flavor.

For best results, cook a pound of beans at a time, store in the fridge, and use throughout the week. Some people prefer to freeze beans and have them on hand ad infinitum, and that’s fine if you swing that way. I tend to forget items left in my freezer. Below are a few of the beans used throughout this section (and throughout the book) and their approximate cooking times.

Black Beans: 1½ hours

Black-Eyed Peas: 1 hour

Chickpeas (aka Garbanzos): 1½ hours

Great Northern Beans or Navy Beans (White beans): 1½ hours

Kidney Beans