I’m a big fan of canned beans — they’re easy, cheap, and, most importantly, delicious. At least once a week, I use canned beans and legumes like chickpeas, black beans, pinto beans, and white beans. Chili, Stew, Saladand more. And although I’m not always one to follow recipes to a tee, when the instructions call for draining and rinsing the canned beans, I dutifully throw them in a colander, running cold water over them. , and remove them.
It turns out there are lots of good reasons recipes call for washing canned beans. A common reason is that rinsing can remove up to 41% of sodium (ie, salt). Bain Institutea website maintained by the Inter-Growers Association of North Dakota and Minnesota.
To learn more about why you should take those “drain and rinse” orders seriously—plus when you might want to stop rinsing—I spoke with Richard LaMarita, chef instructor at Plant-Based Culinary Arts. Institute of Culinary Education. Here’s what I learned.
3 Reasons to Wash Canned Beans
“Rinsing does three things in addition to reducing the salt content,” says LaMarita. Here are three reasons why it makes sense to rinse canned beans:
1. It affects the taste of your food.:”[Rinsing] Gives the bean a clean mouthfeel and prevents the gel-like coating from altering the flavors of the surrounding ingredients.” That’s why you’ll want to rinse canned beans even if you’re making a similar dish. As much as it may be tempting to use liquid from a can.
2. Get consistent dishes every time: LaMarita says another good reason to drain and wash beans is so you can replicate recipes consistently. “If you wash your beans thoroughly, you’ll have a product with a consistent flavor, but if you don’t wash them, each time you cook them, they’ll have different amounts of salt left over, and It will be difficult to cook consistently.” Says so if you want you Chickpea curry or Black bean tacos To get the same flavor every time you make them, go ahead and rinse those beans.
3. It may mean you’ll be less gassy: “The reason juice has a gel-like texture is because it’s full of soluble fiber,” says LaMarita. “A significant and sudden increase in fiber consumption can cause bloating and gas. The fiber in beans can do that anyway, but rinsing the beans helps.” LaMarita added that for people who generally have a high-fiber diet, the difference between consuming unrinsed and rinsed beans may not be noticeable, and these symptoms usually improve over time. , but if you’re cooking for people who don’t eat much. Because of the fiber, they may feel bloated afterward.
Is it okay to eat liquid?
“The liquid is sticky, and it tastes great,” says LaMarita. “It’s also perfectly healthy to consume, so there’s nothing wrong with it from a taste standpoint. No To rinse.”
In fact, canned green beans can be great from a cooking standpoint in dishes like this. White bean soupwhere the liquid adds a “starchy richness,” as recipe creator Sheila Prakash notes.
Draining but not rinsing canned chickpeas can also make them too creamy. Homemade hummus. Still, LaMarita comes to rinse most of the time. “It depends on how much fiber you want, and who you’re cooking for,” he notes.
What if you’re using unsalted canned beans?
If sodium is your biggest concern with canned beans, you can certainly use unsalted or low-sodium canned beans, but LaMarita still provides the same purity and less gas in most cases. Recommends rinsing for the same reasons you rinse canned beans. with salt.
Regardless of the amount of salt in canned beans, LaMarita says, “You still have to taste them and ask, is it the right amount? [of salt] to make a balanced dish?” and adjust for salt accordingly.
take away
Even if you’re not concerned about sodium, it’s a good idea to rinse canned beans in most cases. Washing beans can improve the flavor and texture of the final dish and help reduce the amount of gas they produce. So, for your culinary success and bowel comfort, rinse those canned beans unless your recipe specifically says so.