Black Beans

 I'll be honest beans take a lot of time to make, but not very much actual work. I feel that eating anything out of a can or a box is disgusting and so while it might feel like it's easier to just open of a can of black beans  I'm here to show you that it's easy and simple to just make your own. Beans are high in protein and cheap, and you can make a lot at once and freeze them. The health benefits from beans make them so worth your while and use of them are endless. They are low in fat and when you eat them with rice they are a complete protein.

1/4 cooked cup of beans are 

• 140 calories
•  9 calories from fat
•  7 grams of protein (14% daily value)
•  6 grams of fiber (24% daily value) 

According to  the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry indicates that black beans are as rich in antioxidant compounds called anthocyanins as grapes and cranberries, fruits long considered antioxidant superstars.

When researchers analyzed different types of beans, they found that, the darker the bean's seed coat, the higher its level of antioxidant activity. Gram for gram, black beans were found to have the most antioxidant activity, followed in descending order by red, brown, yellow, and white beans.

Overall, the level of antioxidants found in black beans in this study is approximately 10 times that found in an equivalent amount of oranges, and comparable to that found in an equivalent amount of grapes or cranberries.

Along with all of the other benefits something to understand is this: Are you sensitive to Sulfites? 

Black Beans May Help

Black beans are an excellent source of the trace mineral, molybdenum, an integral component of the enzyme sulfite oxidase, which is responsible for detoxifying sulfites. Sulfites are a type of preservative commonly added to prepared foods like delicatessen salads and salad bars. Persons who are sensitive to sulfites in these foods may experience rapid heartbeat, headache or disorientation if sulfites are unwittingly consumed. If you have ever reacted to sulfites, it may be because your molybdenum stores are insufficient to detoxify them. A cup of black beans will give you 172.0% of the daily value for this helpful trace mineral. 

For additional information check out these links:

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=2

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-black-beans.htm

Now for making them

1 cup of dried beans equals 3 cups cooked and I say if you are going to take the time to make them make as much as you can. They freeze well.

Like I said this is the basic recipe:

Choose to make as many beans as you want sort them out looking for rocks and debris. Then rinse them very well in water. Stir them up and keep rinsing them. After a few times through the rinse fill the container up with water remembering that when beans soak they almost double in size so make sure the container is big enough. I use the stock pot that I am going to cook them in personally. So fill the pot up- covering the beans with at least 3+ inches of water and let them soak over night. The next day when you are ready- rinse them well. This is why...... everyone knows what beans are good at... ;) makes you sound like a car running out of gas* :))) 

Now after you have rinsed them well its time to cook them. So fill them up again with clean water again at least 3+ inches above the beans..... it takes about 4-6 hours to cook (you might need to add additional water) When you first heat them up they will come to a boil...... everything that makes it to the surface...skim it off..... thats part of the sugars ..... now cover them ( I usually leave the lid a little off center) and set them to simmer... once they have reached the done stage. You can do what ever you want to them. You can spice them, you can freeze them for later use, you can turn them into what ever you want them to be.

*This is why:

Why do beans cause gas? 
Beans (legumes) cause gas because they contain a sugar, oligosaccharide, that the human body can not break down. Oligosaccharides are large molecules and are not broken down and absorbed by the lining of the small intestine as other sugars are. This is because the human body does not produce the enzyme that breaks down oligosaccharides.
Oligosaccharides make it all the way through the GI tract to the large intestine still intact. The bacteria that live in the small intestine break down the oligosaccharides. This produces the gas that must eventually come out of the rectum.

Now we have all heard of beano.... (which I say is a no-no) Diabetics should never use beano because it can make the blood sugar rise to fast. (and people allergic to mold)

So the secret to making beans.... ummm less noisy is this: Rinse them and if you have a Mexican market near you look for Epazote and as funny as this may be... Epazote smells like gas.....AND not that kind of gas.... I mean like car gas... and its poisonous in large amounts lol..... and yes its the secret to beans making them less ...shall we say....harmonious

Epazote (wormseed) chenopodium ambrosioides:

This hardy perennial, with its resinous fragrance and serrated, tapering leaves, grows wild in many parts of Mexico and the United States, especially California. Considered indispensable in cooking black beans, epazote is also unsurpassed in quesadillas and in many mushroom dishes. Widely used as a remedy for intestinal disorders, including parasites, it is also mixed with tabacco leaves and employed as a poultice on poisonous insect bites. Epazote may be dried for culinary use during winter in cold climates. 

Here is an additional link to learn more about Epazote

http://mexicanfood.about.com/od/spanishterms/g/Epazote.htm