Rice and Beans?

[dbmamaz]

I do use my pressure cooker for beans - i've only had my PC for a few months, but i'm IN LOVE!  I used to boil beans to death, because i love it when they fall apart, but dh only likes them whole, like they come out of a can.  The PC makes them tender and whole!  and so fast . .. i swear last time I made . . . oh no, i forgot to buy pintos!  anyways, last time i made refries, with pintos from the PC, they even tasted better lol

 

I have also noticed bean prices going up, but yeah, not more than meat did.  I wish I could get my youngest to eat beans of any sort, but no luck so far.  

[roanna]

Homemade tortillas definitely liven up beans! Homemade tortillas always make me feel rich no matter how cheap they are to make. Life is good when you have homemade tortillas on your dinner plate.

 

Do you use lard to make them?  Mostly I use corn because my husband can't eat gluten but still buy wheat for my kids.  

[Χά�ων]

Homemade tortillas definitely liven up beans! Homemade tortillas always make me feel rich no matter how cheap they are to make. Life is good when you have homemade tortillas on your dinner plate.

I need a recipe for homemade tortillas. While I have managed to make a lot of things from scratch, this escapes me.

[OK Family]

Do you use lard to make them? Mostly I use corn because my husband can't eat gluten but still buy wheat for my kids.

We make whole wheat tortillas with flour, a dash of salt and butter (or sometimes coconut oil instead).

 

Adding... We eat alot of rice and beans. I like to cook a big batch of brown rice ahead of time in my pressure cooker. Then separate into quart size bags and freeze. Then on a night when I don't have time, I put a bag in the micro for a few minutes and done!

 

I also cook Big batches of beans and freeze in batches in quart size bags too. There are tons of recipes online!

[LucyStoner]

I need a recipe for homemade tortillas. While I have managed to make a lot of things from scratch, this escapes me.

 

For wheat the general ratio is:

 

2 cups flour

anywhere from a dash to 1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1-2 tablespoons lard

3/4 cup lukewarm water

 

Combine all dry ingredients, work in the lard with your fingers until the lard is all worked in and the mixture is like cornmeal, then add water and combine.  

 

I usually make 6-8 cups of flour worth of these and refrigerate the little dough balls until the meal that I need them for.  The higher range of lard or even a little more for ww flour to make it more pliable/tender.  

 

For corn tortillas, I just use the same recipe as is printed on the bag of masa.  

 

2 cups masa

1 and 1/4 cup water

salt.  I think about 1/4-1/2 tsp.  

[LucyStoner]

Do you use lard to make them?  Mostly I use corn because my husband can't eat gluten but still buy wheat for my kids.  

 

Yes.  I do use lard.  It's not a huge amount and I consider it to be a good form of fat when used sparingly.  I use real lard and not that ConAgra shelf stable hydrogenated junk.  I find lard gives me far better results with tortillas than butter or any other fat.  

[goldberry]

So does no one have....um...gastric distress when eating alot of beans?

 

I love to make a mixture of beans, onions, tomatoes, garlic, and can eat it for a week in tortillas, on chips, with sourcream, etc.  But usually after about a week, we are having some "distress".  I usually have to go a couple of weeks again before beans will be accepted by the family.

[roanna]

I find the longer I eat beans the more my system gets used to it.  

 

((Colorado Perkins: Very funny....PDSD  

 

I am ex military and I know some people might poo poo that but I think it's funny.  ))

[Rosie_0801]

So does no one have....um...gastric distress when eating alot of beans?

 

I love to make a mixture of beans, onions, tomatoes, garlic, and can eat it for a week in tortillas, on chips, with sourcream, etc.  But usually after about a week, we are having some "distress".  I usually have to go a couple of weeks again before beans will be accepted by the family.

 

You have to start small and build up. And the more fibre you eat, the more water you need to drink. If you can't drink enough water to keep up, well, white rice was a good invention after all.

[joannqn]

So does no one have....um...gastric distress when eating alot of beans?

 

Do you soak and rinse your beans before making them?  We don't have problems with beans at all.

 

 

Speaking of beans and rice...I bought 25 pounds each of beans and calrose rice today.  My buckets are full again!  Guess what we are having for dinner.

 

This is my favorite tortilla recipe.  I don't like the flour tortillas that have baking powder in them; I prefer my tortillas flat and not poofy. http://lainesletters.com/recipe/flourtortilla.html

[dbmamaz]

i found that if i ate beans regularly at least 3 times a week, i had an easier time digesting them than if i just ate them occasionally.  

[MomOfOneFunOne]

i found that if i ate beans regularly at least 3 times a week, i had an easier time digesting them than if i just ate them occasionally.  

AMDG

 

Yeah, ,I do think that is true of beans and fiber in general.  We do not notice this problem but we eat beans often and always have.  I think if you're new to legumes or any kind of high fiber food, you must work your way up just as Rosie said.

[dbmamaz]

AMDG

i googled and still cant figure out what this means?

[roanna]

That did not work out as planned.  File was too big.  I made a month meal plan.

 

 

 

[Miss Peregrine]

Yes. I do use lard. It's not a huge amount and I consider it to be a good form of fat when used sparingly. I use real lard and not that ConAgra shelf stable hydrogenated junk. I find lard gives me far better results with tortillas than butter or any other fat.

I save my bacon grease for making refrieds. Do you think that would work instead of lard?

[kewb]

I could live on rice and beans and be perfectly content.  My ds has yet to meet a legume he likes (only eats them when I grind them into flour).  My dd loves rice and only eats white beans.  My dh is a diabetic so too much rice is a no-no for him.  He will eat beans if they are in something but not something he goes out of his way to eat.

 

There are times when I tell the kids to suck it up since rice is what was in the budget.

[MomOfOneFunOne]

i googled and still cant figure out what this means?

S

AMDG

 

AMDG is an acronym for Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam which means "for the greater glory of God."  Besides being (a slight abbreviation of) the motto of the Jesuits, many Catholics will type or write it first in a letter or document.  People do it for all kinds of reasons including reminding themselves to only say those things which are for the greater glory -- and not mean, snarky, sarcastic, et c.

 

Of course, I'm not saying that *I* need reminding . . .!  ;)

 

When I google it, I get tons of pertinent hits but maybe my Google remembers me and knows what to look for?   

[dbmamaz]

I guess I did see that in google search but could not figure out what that had to do with digesting beans, so I thought it must be something else.  I'm still baffled, but I guess I dont need to know.

[LucyStoner]

I save my bacon grease for making refrieds. Do you think that would work instead of lard?

It would have a pork/bacon flavor and not be quite as tender/airy but I don't see why you couldn't try it. I save my bacon grease for cooking and beans too.

[Penny_P]

So, are there any good cookbooks?

[roanna]

I looked around on amazon and saw quite a few but some of the recipes are just things my family would really protest on so I decided to start with things that I know they would accept.  Like my son likes bean and cheese store bought burritos so I used my homemade refried beans I made last night to make my own today.  He gave it a 4/5 and from a picky eater that's pretty good.

 

I also love sopes (http://www.mimaseca.com/en/recetas/detalle/sopes/83) so I am making those in a few days.  After we get used to all the beans then I'll branch out a little more.  

 

 

[J-rap]

Gosh, we've always eaten a lot of beans and rice!  When we were first married and my husband was in graduate school and then law school, that was definitely our staple.  We grew to love that meal, and continue to eat it a lot, in the form of soups, stews, burritos, casseroles.  There's lots you can do with beans and rice!  :) 

[Guest]

I was pretty horrified when it finally dawned on me that all my childhood favourites from Frances Moore Lappe's Diet for a Small Planet:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Diet-Small-Planet-20th-Anniversary-ebook/dp/B003F3PLBW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1388397810&sr=8-1&keywords=Diet+for+a+small+planet

 

with their exotic names and world traveller/cool ethnic hippie connotations were actually various ways of cooking beans and rice (and vegetables and different combinations of herbs and spices)

 

I've probably fed my kids nothing but various bean and rice dishes for weeks at a time. The end result was an Alex P. Keaton who feeds himself top ramen, pizza, and donuts and a raw foods/vegan whose weekly grocery bill is probably more than the gross national product of many third world countries.

 

They're both abnormally healthy 20somethings anyway, so I'm not complaining.

[DawnM]

Am I the only one who has family members who won't touch beans?  One of them in our family is my husband.  He will tolerate some pinto beans in a dish, but not as a main dish.  Only two of us like beans enough to eat them as a main dish, no matter how they are served.

 

I love lentils.  I could eat them a lot.  Dh can't stand them as anything more than a condiment and even then, won't take them unless he has to.

 

I have to find other ways to save.

[Onceuponatime]

Am I the only one who has family members who won't touch beans?  One of them in our family is my husband.  He will tolerate some pinto beans in a dish, but not as a main dish.  Only two of us like beans enough to eat them as a main dish, no matter how they are served.

 

I love lentils.  I could eat them a lot.  Dh can't stand them as anything more than a condiment and even then, won't take them unless he has to.

 

I have to find other ways to save.

 

 

Yes. My biggest eater, 14yods, won't touch them. The only bean he will eat is green beans. He has been this way forever. If he absolutely has to eat them, he will swallow them with water, individually, like pills, without chewing.

 

I love rice and beans, bean soup, chili beans, and homemade boston baked beans. But not black eyed peas!

[DawnM]

I don't like black eyed peas either, or lima beans.  Blech.

 

My favorite beans are black beans and any type of lentil.  

 

But I will also eat red beans, pinto beans, chickpeas/garbanzo,  Kidney, and a list of others.

 

Dawn

 

Yes. My biggest eater, 14yods, won't touch them. The only bean he will eat is green beans. He has been this way forever. If he absolutely has to eat them, he will swallow them with water, individually, like pills, without chewing.

 

I love rice and beans, bean soup, chili beans, and homemade boston baked beans. But not black eyed peas!

 

[MomOfOneFunOne]

I don't like black eyed peas either, or lima beans. Blech.

 

My favorite beans are black beans and any type of lentil.

 

But I will also eat red beans, pinto beans, chickpeas/garbanzo, Kidney, and a list of others.

 

Dawn

AMDG

No, I'm not crazy about black eyed peas, either. I can and do eat rhem but if it weren't for my daughter who really likes them, I'd only have them on new years day.

 

Love lima beans, though, especially baby limas.

[roanna]

I do not like quinoa it seems ....except in a great patty recipe with parmesan cheese, garlic and eggs.  Then I can eat it all week.  I think texture and flavor is huge (obviously :) ).  

[alisoncooks]

What a timely thread.  We've been hit with some high $$ expenditures and have been looking at cutting back where we can.

Rice and beans it is!

[Scarlett]

I love rice and beans. My son isn't crazy about beans but he will eat them when served.

[TeacherZee]

I now have a craving for beans and rice (lentils and rice was a staple when I was in college but it has been a while) :D

[dbmamaz]

My older two kids always liked beans pretty well, but the one who's still at home wont eat tomatoes.  I tried a sweet potato and red lentil dish a few weeks ago, because he loves sweet potatoes, but he ate one serving and I ate the rest lol.  But he loves baked beans and refried beans.  Hubby only eats beans if they are solid (or hummus) so no refries, no bean soups cooked until they get all wonderful and thick, and chili can have beans but must also have meat - i think . . he was vegetarian at some point, but i think he lived off of tofu?  

 

and no, still have not gotten the 10 yo to eat any beans.  Except hummus, just this past year

[sunnyday]

So, are there any good cookbooks?

 

I like this website: http://www.ranchogordo.com/html/rg_cook_index.htm

 

When I was in college, the cheapest thing in the "flex points" cafeteria was beans and rice. A medium size bowl would be half filled with black beans, half with Mexican-style rice, and topped with a dollop of sour cream and of salsa. To this day it's comfort food for me! Delish!

 

My family also goes for hummus, bean and rice tacos (with or without refrying), bean and cheese quesadilla, quasi-Indian chickpeas (sort of a half-hearted chana masala) over rice, lentil dhal, white bean or 13 bean soup.

[roanna]

So in case anyone (like me) is wondering how this is actually working to eat beans and rice....

I have been making bean burritos for my 2 kids ..7 and 4 for the last few days and they really like it.  I made the refried beans on Saturday night and there will be enough to get us through for the week.  I just scoop out and reheat.  

 

Tonight I learned how to make homemade corn tortillas and boy are they good.  My son eats them without anything on them they are that good. It's a bit of a challenge so I think I may stick to sopes which are not fragile to make.  It fills the tummy up really well and there is 3g of protein and 2g of fiber per serving...add the beans and you're good to go.  A whole bag of masa (corn flour) is only $2.88.  

 

I make our own bread so tomorrow night we'll be eating french toast to add a little variety.  

 

Anyhow, this is very doable.  With all the yummy spices and fresh garlic it goes down a lot better than you might think.  

[Rosie_0801]

I wish I could make corn tortillas. I got them perfect once and once only.  :glare:

[Amira]

I wish I could make corn tortillas. I got them perfect once and once only. :glare:

You just have to come here. You could either buy hot corn tortillas anywhere, or buy fresh masa that's easy to work with a cook your own anytime. And, even better, you can get hot tortillas with cactus in them.

[roanna]

We have fresh hot corn tortillas in our grocery store because we are only 10 miles from Mexico but they are double the cost.  

 

If you like the taste of tortillas try making sopes.  It is exactly the same ingredients but just formed into a patty with a well to throw on some refried beans or whatever you like.

[Rosie_0801]

You just have to come here. You could either buy hot corn tortillas anywhere, or buy fresh masa that's easy to work with a cook your own anytime. And, even better, you can get hot tortillas with cactus in them.

 

:svengo: Fresh, not out of a tin, cactus is on my bucket list. I'll come visit as soon as I find a rich husband, k?

[Desert Strawberry]

AMDG

 

As pretty frugal vegetarians, we eat rice and beans at least once per week and often as many as three times or more.  I often make a pot of beans on Tuesday to use in several different ways over the course of the week.  For example:

Tuesday, beans with cornbread and greens

something else on Wednesday

Thursday, rice and beans (maybe chickpeas on rice topped with isreali salad and labneh, or black beans/rice topped with lettuce/cilantro/tomato/lime dressing and avocado, et c)

Friday, something else

Saturday, Soup with beans as an ingredient.

 

It depends on the week and the beans we made.  Also, sometimes we don't have the soup on Saturday but for lunches . . . whatever.

 

Black beans makes quesadillas, beans and rice like above, black bean soup, a bean salad to top polenta, et c.

Chick peas makes beans and rice like above, chick pea stew (with tomatoes, spinach, dill, sometimes rice, lemon squeezed on at the end), hummus with tomato/cuke/lemon salad on pita, et c

Pinto makes rice and beans with some kind of salad on top, zuppa de pasta e fagioli (Itallian pasta and bean soup), beans/cornbread/greens, 

 

There are tons more combinations . . . anything you can think of.

For vegetarians, a beans and rice type diet is fairly standard.

But, yes. We have lived a month at a time, here and there, with nothing more than beans and rice, a little pasta, maybe, an onion, if we could afford it, and the spices from my cabinet. It wasn't fun, but we survived.

I do take Dave Ramsey at his word. $20 will buy 40 pounds of beans and rice, and feed even a large family for months.

[Desert Strawberry]

I am glad somebody thought I was serious.  Thank you for all the helps.  I'd love to hear more.  

 

I especially would like to know how your family dealt with the family complaining, if they did.  

My children were very young when we were doing a lot of this. I was very clear with them that there was NOTHING else. That we were very lucky to have food at all, and that there was plenty, and they would not be hungry. But don't ask for apples, because there were none, and wouldn't be for a long time. 

We were stepping down from a much more affluent lifestyle. It was an adjustment for all of us.

[MomOfOneFunOne]

:svengo: Fresh, not out of a tin, cactus is on my bucket list. I'll come visit as soon as I find a rich husband, k?

AMDG

 

Rosie!  You guys don't have cactus down there? I never thought about it before but there are so many deserty dry looking areas (in the movies) that I guess I would assumed you had the cactus to go with it.  No?

 

Well, I just googled it and, Surprise!, no native cactus in Oz.  I never knew.

[Desert Strawberry]

Does anybody else use a pressure cooker for their beans? It makes it so much easier - you can have beans with dinner even if you forgot to soak. (Although they turn out better & cook faster if you do remember to soak them most of the day).

 

And has anybody else noticed that the price of dried beans has almost doubled in the last few years? The little one-pound bags are now $1.69 in my area! Even bulk prices are $1. I can't order from Azure right now (lost my convenient pickup point) so the best price on anything is the 10# bag of pintos at Costco for $8. I need blackeyed peas for New Years Day and had to pay the $1.69; ouch.

I use a pressure cooker for beans almost exclusively.Perfect every time in 20 minutes or less. 

I am stunned by the price of beans! I can sometimes find them at the dollar store. I think I will have to buy them in bulk at the produce market. I haven't checked recently, but I should be able to get a good price on local beans. Local rice is super cheap.

[Rosie_0801]

AMDG

 

Rosie!  You guys don't have cactus down there? I never thought about it before but there are so many deserty dry looking areas (in the movies) that I guess I would assumed you had the cactus to go with it.  No?

 

Well, I just googled it and, Surprise!, no native cactus in Oz.  I never knew.

 

Oh, there are plenty around. Lots of people collect them and prickly pear is a weed. It happens the good Mexican restaurant in the city sells cactus, but it's out of tins and I'd love to try the same dishes made with fresh cactus. He tried sourcing locally, but it was too dry, he said. Not surprising, I suppose. No one waters prickly pear.

[Amira]

Oh, there are plenty around. Lots of people collect them and prickly pear is a weed. It happens the good Mexican restaurant in the city sells cactus, but it's out of tins and I'd love to try the same dishes made with fresh cactus. He tried sourcing locally, but it was too dry, he said. Not surprising, I suppose. No one waters prickly pear.

So if you just water your prickly pears, you can eat the cactus paddles? Go for it!

[coffeegal]

 

I do take Dave Ramsey at his word. $20 will buy 40 pounds of beans and rice, and feed even a large family for months.

 

Uhhh, 40 lbs of beans is only 20 days worth of eating for a large family with teenage sons. And beans and rice cost a bit more than $0.50 a pound. Right now I can purchase 25 lbs of beans for $21-$25 and 25 lbs of brown rice for $18.  It would be nice if $40 bought enough beans and rice for several months.... :blush:

 

[Desert Strawberry]

We have fresh hot corn tortillas in our grocery store because we are only 10 miles from Mexico but they are double the cost.  

 

If you like the taste of tortillas try making sopes.  It is exactly the same ingredients but just formed into a patty with a well to throw on some refried beans or whatever you like.

I make pupusas, which are just fried masa patties. So hearty and yummy. My kids LOVE them. 

 

I wanted to add, after reading all the responses, that we eat lots grains, a great variety of legumes, tons of veggies, and not necessarily everything together. I had quinoa, barley, mushrooms and green beans for lunch. We will be having potato, sweet potato, and pepper enchiladas, and sweet potato curry over rice this week. Endless variety.

[Desert Strawberry]

Uhhh, 40 lbs of beans is only 20 days worth of eating for a large family with teenage sons. And beans and rice cost a bit more than $0.50 a pound. Right now I can purchase 25 lbs of beans for $21-$25 and 25 lbs of brown rice for $18.  It would be nice if $40 bought enough beans and rice for several months.... :blush:

 

I buy local. Our rice is $10 for 50 pounds. None of my kids are teens yet, so I don't know how that would work out. I know I only use about 2 cups of dry per meal.

[roanna]

My children were very young when we were doing a lot of this. I was very clear with them that there was NOTHING else. That we were very lucky to have food at all, and that there was plenty, and they would not be hungry. But don't ask for apples, because there were none, and wouldn't be for a long time. 

We were stepping down from a much more affluent lifestyle. It was an adjustment for all of us.

 

I am just beginning to understand that the kids don't NEED fruit everyday.  Like I said I have never been in a position like this.  When I started having kids I told myself that I'd give them a good balanced diet but at $1.50 lb for apples it's just not doable.  I have begun to limit us to .48 lb bananas and a jar of unsweetened applesauce here and there.  I am honestly just now learning how to eat very simply.  It's going to take some time to adjust to what I thought we had to have. Not being able to have gluten in our diet does limit a lot of the yucky cheap stuff.  

[Rosie_0801]

So if you just water your prickly pears, you can eat the cactus paddles? Go for it!

 

If I did that, I wouldn't have any left. Mine only has 3 lobes so far. Maybe it knows I'm eyeing it off like the witch from Hansel and Gretel. ;)

 

 

$1.50 /lb for apples! That'd be a bargain here! The world is a funny place. :)

[coffeegal]

I buy local. Our rice is $10 for 50 pounds. None of my kids are teens yet, so I don't know how that would work out. I know I only use about 2 cups of dry per meal.

 

I use about 7-8 cups dry per meal, but my dh and kids adore beans and rice. :glare: I cook it plain and let them flavor it to their liking. Now I will admit we end up with leftovers. I usually end up with enough rice for rice pudding and a cup or two of beans for minestrone soup.