A Week From the Bean Pot

Saturday, 30 October 2010 06:29 | Written by Karna |

Sometimes it's just nice to have the week's main dishes planned out so that you don't have to think too much about making dinner. Delectable Planet can help with the menu planning and recipes and we'll also give you tips and tricks to make it happen. All of the recipes come with short videos so you can watch as you cook (laptop or iPad on the kitchen counter anyone?). The weeks' menu is based on black beans. Each recipes serves 4-8 people - so you will either have left-overs for lunch the next day or you may need to increase the amount of beans you start with. The flavor theme is Tex-Mex but there's also dessert! So if you want to jump ahead and make dessert on Tuesday, go for it. First things first, though...use the following Shopping List to get what you need and then it's time to cook some beans!

The Shopping List

2 lbs black beans

1-2 onions

1 bunch green onions (scallions)

1 package tempeh (optional)

2-3 garlic cloves

1 small can tomato paste

spices: cumin, crushed red pepper flakes, chili powder

2-3 large cans of tomatoes

1-2 cans of minced green chilies - or 1-2 fresh

1 large bunch of cilantro or parsley

1 jar of salsa

1 1/2 cups quinoa

tortillas (wheat or corn)

1 cup corn

1 red bell pepper

2-3 lemons

balsamic vinegar (or your favorite)

olive and safflower oil

Baking supplies: whole wheat pastry flour, evaporated cane juice or turbiinado sugar, applesauce, vanilla extract, flax meal, baking powder

1/2 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup walnuts or pecans

salt and pepper

1-2 avocados

1-2 fresh tomatoes

OTHER

A tossed green salad goes well with several of these dishes so re-stock with some pre-washed lettuce, a cucumber, and a few more tomatoes.

And if you want to make the cornbread that is included with the Chili recipe, pick up some cornmeal, a second bell pepper and non-dairy milk as well.

Cooking the Beans

The next thing you have to decide is how you want to cook the beans. The options are: Pressure Cook, Slow Cook or Stove-top cook.

Have a look at the Bean Cooking Chart to gauge the time commitment for each.

You'll need the beans by "dinner time" on Sunday (which could mean lunch!) so count backwards so that you know when soak the beans.

The beans need to soak for 8-10 hours. Rinse them in a colander. Look through them to make sure there are no stones or badly formed beans. Just discard those. Then put the beans in a large bowl and cover them by 1-2 inches with water.

Here's a possible schedule:

Pressure Cooker

Put the cleaned and rinsed beans on to soak on Saturday night just before going to bed. In the morning, rinse them, place them in the Pressure Cooker, follow the time suggestions in the Bean Cooking Chart, let them cool, drain, store in a covered container in the refrigerator and you're ready to go. Oh, and DP has a tutorial on how to use a pressure cooker which you might find helpful.

Slow Cooker

Put the cleaned and rinsed beans on to soak on Saturday night just before going to bed. In the morning, drain and rinse, place in the Slow Cooker, cover with 1-2 inches of water, and cook on Low per the Bean Cooking Chart. Let them cool, drain, place in a covered container and store in the refrigerator.

Stove Top

Put the cleaned and rinsed beans on to soak on Saturday night just before going to bed. In the morning, drain and place in a large cooking pot. Cover with 1-2 inches of water, bring to a boil, lower the heat to simmer, and cook for the recommended time per the Bean Cooking Chart. When they're done, let them cool, drain, and store in a covered container in the refrigerator.

You now have about 11 cups of cooked Black Beans! The beans should keep in the refrigerator for the whole week, but if you think you may not make it through until Friday, then you could freeze them. Most recipes will use 1 1/2 cups (or multiples of that) per recipe, so measure the beans into freezer-proof containers or freezer bags, and pop them in the freezer until you're ready to make that dish. You'll have to think ahead a little to thaw them - but putting them in the refrigerator before going to work will usually thaw them by the time you get home. If not, dunk them in hot water as you're preparing the rest of the ingredients and you should be fine.

The Weeks' Recipes Meals From the Bean Pot

Spicy Black Beans and Tomatoes