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Rinse the dried beans with water and pick through them, removing any pebbles or debris you find.
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Combine the beans and the water in a large saucepan, cover with a lid, and allow to sit at room temperature for 8 hours, or overnight.
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3
(Refer to Techniques for a quick-soak method.)
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Place the saucepan with the soaked beans and water over medium heat.
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Simmer the beans, uncovered, for 1 hour, or until tender.
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Test one bean by pinching it between your fingers.
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If it easily caves to pressure, the beans are ready.
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If the beans are still tough, continue simmering until they soften.
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This requires some judgement on your part; you ultimately decide how soft you want the beans to be.
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If you continue cooking, there is no need to add more liquid, just make sure to stir the pot often.
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Once the beans are tender, saute the onion and garlic.
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Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-low heat.
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Add the onion and garlic and cook them slowly over low heat, for about 10 minutes.
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You want to sweat the vegetablesnot brown them.
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When ready they will be very soft and translucent.
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To the simmering beans, add the onion mixture along with the salt, pepper, oregano, and bay leaf.
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Mix well and simmer, uncovered, for another 45 minutes.
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At this point, the liquid in the pan should barely be skimming the top layer of beans.
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Before serving, check for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed.
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TECHNIQUES
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Soaking the Beans
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Overnight Soak: The only hard part is remembering to do it.
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Just combine the dried beans and water in a saucepan, cover, and let sit overnight at room temperature.
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Quick Soak: If you forget to soak your beans overnight or if you decide at the last minute to make them, bring a covered pot filled with the beans and water to a boil, remove from the heat, and let sit for 3 hours.
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Then continue with the recipe from the Simmer the Beans point.
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INGREDIENTS
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Salt
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It is important not to add salt to the beans until they have softened.
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Adding salt too early in the process will increase the time it takes for the beans to tenderize.
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This will substantially add to the cooking time.
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31
ADVANCE PREPARATION
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The beans can be made up to 3 days in advance and will keep for up to a week in the refrigerator.
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You can also freeze the beans after they have been cooked.
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Frozen beans will keep for up to 2 months in an airtight container.
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Just remember to freeze in small useable portions; a large tub of beans will take a long time to defrost.
