Cooking dried beans

(posyted because fayanora wanted a copy and I thought others might be able to use it)

A few years back a friend gave me a 2 pound bag of dried pinto beans. They were one of those USDA surplus food thingies that'd been in a food box he'd
gotten and he didn't like beans much.

The bag had several recipes on it, the most important being how to cook the beans.

Yes, every decent cookbook has an entry about that. And they all amount to "soak in lots of water overnight, they cook like this..." And I've had *lousy* luck with them. This recipe was different. I tried it. And it *worked*..

Cooked Dry Beans

2 cups dry beans
5 cups water
2 teaspoons salt

Wash and drain beans

Put beans and water in a large pan and bring to boiling. Boil 2 minutes.

Remove from heat.

Cover and let stand 1 hour.

Add salt. Cover and boil gently for 1.5 to 2 hours, or until tender.

Add more water during cooking if needed.

Makes about 5 cups cooked beans.

I usually make a double recipe because the rice & beans recipe from the bag calls for 2 cups of cooked beans and it's easier to not have to make a half batch.

The cooked beans keep well in the fridge for days. I just pull them out and dump the required amount into a pot when I make the rice & beans recipe.