The Fundamentals of Quick Soak Stovetop White Beans
These Quick Soak Stovetop Beans consist of baby lima beans, although most white beans will also substitute. They take about 3 hours to make. Which, might sound like a long time! But, when compared to an overnight soak? This really does cut the time down exponentially.
Equipment
- Large Pot w/ Lid
- Stovetop
Ingredients
- 1 lbs. white beans dried (~2 cups)
- 8 c. water
- 6 c. water
Instructions
Quick Soak Beans
- There is much debate over whether or not you should soak beans ahead of time before cooking! I ordinarily recommend it with hardier beans, like black beans and pinto beans. With softer beans, like white beans, I find that it makes less of a difference.You can soak the white beans in cold water for at least 12 hours. This will cut about an hour off of the cooking process and results in slightly softer beans. If you're making hummus or something that requires a smoother consistency, there's an argument to be made for going with the longer soak!However, I skipped it this time and just went for a quick soak. I didn't have the foresight to soak the beans ahead of time. I also knew that I was going to purée them in with walnuts, so they were going to have a little bit coarser consistency, anyway.
- Add white beans to a pot and fill with 8 cups of water. Bring, uncovered, to a boil.
- Once the water comes to a rolling boil, add the lid and remove from heat. Let sit for an hour.
Cook Beans
- After the beans have soaked, drain and rinse.
- Return the beans to the pot and cover with another 6 cups of water.
- Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer.
- Simmer for 1½-2 hours, or until tender. You may need to adjust the temperature to keep them from boiling as they cook down.They should still keep their shape and not turn to mush. But theoretically putting a fork in them would split them in half.
- Drain the beans immediately after cooking. Serve or refrigerate.
Tips, Tricks, & Notes
- This works with a variety of white beans. White beans make a great quick soak bean because they tend to already be fairly soft. You can do this with just about any bean, though. Just adjust the cook time from 1½-2 hours to as long as it takes for the beans to soften. For something like chickpeas, this can take 2-4 hours to cook. Whereas a lima bean might take as little as 30-60 minutes. It's important just to check on the beans at least every half hour or so to stir, adjust the temperature if it begins to boil rather than simmer, and add more water if it simmers out too quickly.