All About Black Beans

Black beans, one out of hundreds of varieties of beans, are a very easy, healthy, and economical legume to cook with. They can be used in many ways and in all kinds of recipes.

The scientific name of black beans is Phasenlus Vulgaris , which means common bean.Black beans can also be known by the names black turtle beans, black Spanish beans, Venezuelan beans, and tampico beans.

Black beans came from South America. They grow on vines, where they are allowed to dry before harvesting. The vines, and any beans left on them after harvesting, are tilled back into the soil because they are nitrogen fixers which will enrich the soil. Nitrogen Fixers are an orderless, tasteless, colorless nonmetallic chemical element found in the Earth's atmosphere.

Beans grow in temperatures between 65 and 75 degrees F. It takes 120 days for them to reach maturity and dry.

 Black beans are very high in nutritional value, making them a good choice for keeping your body healthy.  They contain:

• Fiber - fiber relieves constipation, hemroids, helps lower cholesterol and blood sugar, prevents diseases and helps keep weight under control.
• Folate - also known as vitamin B9 and Folic Acid. This has been known to benefit unborn babies by; preventing birth defects, and help the mother by preventing cervical cancer.
• protein - helps build and repair tissue.  Also a good source for vegetarian and vegan diets.
• antioxidants - vitamins or nutrients that may help prevent the damaging effects on your body's organs and tissues.
• starch - helps improve insulin sensitivity and lower blood sugar.
• iron - helps improve energy.
• zinc - helps strengthen immune system. Helps wounds to heal and improves taste and smell.

When choosing dry beans, choose those that do not look old, shriveled, or broken. If buying iin a bag, make sure there are no holes in the bag that could indicate there are bugs in the beans. Store these beans in a dry, sealed container for up to 1 year.

Before cooking dry beans, wash them and remove any stones, debris or damaged beans. Presoak beans overnight by covering them with water. A faster way to soaking them is to cover the beans with water and bring it to a boil. Boil the beans for 2 minutes, take off heat, cover and allow to soak for 2 hours.

To cook dry beans, put in a sauce pan with enough water to cover the beans, plus 2 inches. Bring to a boil, then reduce it to a simmer. Simmer for about 1 11/2 hours or till tender. Watch carefully so that the water doesn't completely boil out and the beans burn on the bottom.

After they are cooked, store in a refrigerator for no longer than 5 days. You can put them in an airtight container and store in the freezer for up to 6 months.

Canned black beans can be used interchangebly with dried beans in most recipes. When choosing canned beans do not buy damaged, dent, or expired cans.

Rinse canned beans before use. the beans contain added salt and this will get rid of that additive. Canned beans are already throughly cooked and only need to be heated for hot dishes and are great in cold dishes.

Canned beans can be a great convience when needed. They are especially good because unlike other canned vegetables, black beans do not loose any vitamins when cooked and canned. So, choosing canned are just as good as cooking dry ones as long as you wash away the added salt.

For recipes using canned black beans read this hub: