This was my first time cooking dried Great Northern beans. I used the overnight soak method and cooked the beans in water without salt. I did not like them. I prefer canned Great Northern beans.
Do you know of a way to cook dried beans that will give them better flavor?
Container: Sistema Klip It to Go
Left Side: Trader Joe’s Teeny Tiny Potatoes with Great Northern beans and sauteed spinach. I added a little olive oil and salt.
Right Side: Trader Joes Mandarins, cheese sauce in Mini Dippers, snow peas
Linking to:
Eclectic Lamb 
try veggie broth??
On Tue, Mar 19, 2013 at 8:47 AM, eclecticlamb
Thanks, I can try that. I did not add salt to the water because the directions I read said it would make the beans tough.
The only way I know to make the flavor interesting is my mother’s method, and it is soooooo unhelathy! They are cooked Southern style, with ham hocks, for hours and hours, after soaking overnight. I think the bone marrow must add some flavor. And salt and pepper, of course. Onions and Garlic, to taste (which meant a lot, in our family!).
Thank you. As a vegetarian I can’t add the ham but I can try onions and garlic.
The small potatoes are not just pretty but very good in taste , and for packaging. Be Blessed, Mtetar
I was excited when I found the potatoes. My first thought was “bento”.
It worked nicely! Be Blessed, Mtetar
Such tiny potatoes! I’ve seen this container before so I can imagine those potatoes must be really small. Lovely lunch!
Thanks. Yes they were tiny and fun to eat.
Oh my goodness! These lunches are wonderful! And happy late St. Patrick’s day!
Thank you so much! And Happy St. Patrick’s day to you.
Darling! And can I put in my two-cents? Slow-cookers,(crock pots) are perfect for cooking beans. I learned that loving in Denver.Between the altitude that made making beans soft very difficult and the very dry air which made the beans VERY dry, it was a lifesaver and even though I am at a much lower altitude,I still use slow-cookers for all my dried beans and legumes.
Thank you! I will try a slow cooker next time.
I find that the best way to flavor beans is to add flavor to the cooking water, however you do it. You can use onions and garlic, as already suggested, but you can also use bay leaves, other dried herbs, bundles of fresh herbs, dried chiles, the classic carrots/celery/onions combination for broth making, and so on. Whatever you would use to flavor broth or soup, you can use to cook beans.
Also, although it is not recommended to add salt at the beginning of cooking, it is definitely a good idea toward the end, when the beans
Thank you so much! I will try your suggestions.
(dropped part of a sentence from the previous post — sorry)
when the beans are almost tender
you make the cutest bento boxes 🙂
I’ve been vegetarian for 25 years and I do fix beans a lot, although not the white northern beans. I generally sautee celery, onion & bell pepper first in a large kettle then add a nice big spoonful of Spike seasoning when the veggies are soft. Add the hydrated beans and water and 2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme and cook.
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another vegetarian flavor additive is the beefy flavored vegetarian broth powder by Frontier. I use it for making soups, but it would probably help make your beans extra tasty too 🙂
Thank you so much! I will try your suggestions.