Three-Bean Soup Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Why do you add vinegar to bean soup? ›

Wait until the beans are tender but not quite done to add a splash of apple cider vinegar and a couple teaspoons of salt to the pot. The apple cider vinegar breaks down indigestible sugars to help digestion and also brightens the flavor of the beans without the need for excess salt.

They are an excellent source of fiber, plant-based protein, and other essential nutrients, such as folate and potassium. Despite the potential for contamination, canned beans are generally safe to consume and prove to be a convenient and nutritious alternative to dried beans.

These are two different things. Soup beans are simmered for hours and are served as an entrée with corn bread, greens, and often fried potatoes, and they are thick with beans and ham stock derived from hocks or other bones. Soup beans are not soup.

But that's exactly why you don't want to simply transfer your pot of soaked beans to the stove and start cooking them: By cooking the legumes in their soaking water, you'll ultimately still be ingesting the raffinose that transferred to the water.

While not every recipe calls for soaking beans before cooking them, if beans give you gas, soaking can help. Soaking overnight and then discarding the soaking water leaches out sugars in beans that are responsible for gas production.

A few great choices are thyme, bay leaf, parsley, and rosemary. 4. Try adding some acidity. A splash of lemon juice or a tablespoon of white wine vinegar can brighten the flavors of the soup.

Can you overcook beans in soup? Absolutely. If you cook the soup for too long, the beans will become mushy and potentially even lose their shape. If this happens, this is the biggest indicator that the beans have been overcooked.

Does simmering soup longer make it taste better? If you're simmering a thing for hours, you will intensify the flavor by cooking off some of the liquid. This might make it taste better, but if cooked too long, it may end up too salty or otherwise be over-seasoned.

Absolutely, bean soup can be a fantastic addition to your daily diet, but like everything, it should be consumed in moderation and as part of a balanced diet. Rich in Fiber: Beans are a stellar source of dietary fiber, which aids in digestion and helps maintain healthy cholesterol levels.

What is the healthiest bean to eat? ›

Yes! "Eating beans, including canned beans, every day is one of the best things you can do to help increase nutrients [that you may fall short on] and substantially improve the quality of your diet," says Papanikolaou.

Unless the recipe tells you to keep the canned beans in their liquid, you should drain your can and give the beans a good rinse before using. This will improve the flavor and texture of your finished dish. Open your cans of beans using a can opener. There may be sharp edges from opening the can.

"It's fine to add the bean liquid to many recipes, but if you want to reduce the amount of sodium, it's best to drain and rinse canned beans," the website states. "A 2009 study conducted at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, showed that draining beans removes, on average, 36 percent of the sodium in canned beans.

Not Adding Acid

If a soup is tasting bland in the bowl, consider adding acid rather than salt. A squeeze of lemon or lime, or a dash of yogurt or sour cream can add brightness to the bowl.

Acids such as vinegar make hemicelluloses more stable and less soluble, which might slow down the softening of beans. So to make sure your red beans are at their creamiest, add the vinegar later in the cooking process, or just use it to season them at the table.

Vinegar, much like salt, is a flavor enhancer — it not only imparts its own taste and acidity to a soup, but in small quantities, it helps to bring out the brightness of other ingredients as well.

Adding a vinegar, like apple cider vinegar, also ‌might‌ help curtail gas production by breaking down the indigestible carbs, says Taub-Dix.

Peterson said, "When you're tasting and it appears that the flavors in a recipe are refusing to focus, a little vinegar will often do the trick." The Kitchn concurs that vinegar is a "one ingredient" fix when your soup does not meet your taste bud's expectations. But don't overdo it.