Have You Given Dry Beans And Lentils A Place In Your Cooking?
Have you cooked with dry beans or lentils recently? If not, now is a great time to get started. They are quite tasty, cheap and a good source of protein. I also love the convenience factor. I can have an assortment of beans and other legumes sitting in my pantry just waiting to be cooked. Some of the smaller beans and lentils also don’t need to cook for hours, making them perfect for a quick side dish with dinner. Let’s take a look at four different reasons why you should consider cooking with beans and lentils.
They Are Cheap
Here’s my favorite reason to cook with beans… it is really inexpensive to do. I can buy enough beans to cook three meals for my family for under two dollars. I like to buy beans at my local costco or a mexican supermarket by the way. They are usually quite a bit cheaper and I get a larger variety than what my regular grocery store has to offer.
Beans are a good substitution for meat in a meal. You can use more beans and less (or no) meat in casseroles and chilies and even tacos and burritos. I also like to add them to pasta sauces. Of course there are also all kinds of beans and rice dishes which make great side dishes and even main courses. Cooking more beans and less meat will help you feed your family for less.
Beans Are Good For Your Health
Beans are good for you. They are an excellent source of protein and also include a lot of much needed fiber. One of the reasons the fiber in beans is so good for you is because it is a type of soluble fiber that will grab a hold of bad cholesterol and take it out of your body. That’s one of the reasons why beans are good for your heart.
There are also certain compounds found in beans that help prevent cancer and those of you with a history of diabetes will be delighted to hear that beans help your body create more insulin receptor sites.
They Are Delicious
You can make all kinds of different dishes with beans since they lend themselves to different flavors. You can make spicy chili dishes or mild beans and rice. Then there’s beans soups that taste almost sweet, smoky black beans with cumin and exotic dahl dishes made with middle eastern spices. Add some lentils or beans to your pasta sauce sometime for a yummy dish that’s also good for your waist line.
Beans make a great side dish. Just cook them and season them according to your taste. Black beans with cumin for example are a great side dish for any grilled meat dish. Almost any type of bean can also be turned into a dip. Just cook your beans and then throw them in a food processor. Add some seasonings and you have a healthy and low fat dip.
Perfect When You Need A Simple Or Fast Meal
Yes, you heard right I think cooking with beans is fast and simple. Here are some of the reasons why Sure, some beans have quite a long cooking time, but once you get them in the pot, they pretty much cook themselves. For an even easier approach, put your beans and plenty of liquid in the crockpot in the morning. By the time you’re ready for dinner they are done.
The other thing I love about beans is how easy they are to store. I put mine in freezer bags or tupperware type containers. You can keep them in your refrigerator for a few days or freeze them up to a month. Just thaw them on the counter, or put them in your microwave to thaw and heat them.
If you’re not a big bean fan yet, I hope this article has given you enough reasons to give these versatile veggies another try. Pick a couple of recipes and try them this week. I’m sure you’ll find a new dish you and your family will really like.
While they are not technically a bean, lentils are great legumes to cook. Here is an easy lentil stew recipe and of course my favorite lentil pottage recipe you may want to try.
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