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From: wmartin@brl-tgr.ARPA (Will Martin )
Newsgroups: net.cooks
Subject: Draining soaked beans
Message-ID: <11450@brl-tgr.ARPA>
Date: Wed, 10-Jul-85 15:29:20 EDT
Article-I.D.: brl-tgr.11450
Posted: Wed Jul 10 15:29:20 1985
Date-Received: Mon, 15-Jul-85 06:39:19 EDT
Distribution: net
Organization: USAMC ALMSA
Lines: 24

The recent posting of the "Frugal Gourmet"'s red-beans-and-rice recipe
mentioned the concept of soaking dried beans overnight, and then
draining them and discarding the water they had soaked in, and then,
when cooking the beans, adding more fresh water. I have seen this in
other recipes, too. Does anyone know why this is done?

I always thoroughly wash (several rinsings until the poured-off water is
clear) dried beans before soaking. I then soak them overnight and use
both the beans and the water they soaked in as ingredients. (I have
lately taken to using this soaking period to add dried herbs and spices
to allow them to rehydrate along with the beans.) The result tastes
good, depending on how well (in terms of quality, not time) I cook the
beans. Can anyone advise me if there is some advantage, in terms of
flavor or texture, to discarding this soaking water and not using it to
cook with? I would think that there are nutrients leached into this
water which should not be wasted.

Is this discarding advice aimed at people who don't wash the beans
first? I could see it in that case; but if the beans are washed first,
I would think the soaking water would be worth using to cook them in.

Will Martin

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