why are my beans sometimes bitter?

[eugenep]

I don't soak the beans overnight and just boil it for about 1 hour until texture is right. But they always have a slight bitter taste either in the broth or the beans such as black beans and navy beans etc. 

 

For black beans, if I cook them longer, the bitter taste goes away 

 

Recently for navy beans, the bitter is till in the cooking liquid

 

Not sure if others had this happened or if they know the cause 

 

I googled it and others seem to have the same problem but not clear why? https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/2358701/my-pinto-beans-are-always-bitter

[Maison Rustique]

I've never had that happen. Maybe it is the beans you are buying? @rancho_gordo do you have any thoughts?

[eugenep]

I'm using Goya brand beans. I think the forum link I pasted said maybe the beans are old? another suggested it wasn't at a roiling boil when cooked and that's the cause. but it  seems like guesses so far 

[Darienne]

I have never had this experience either.

[kayb]

I've never had it either. Wonder if it has to do with the quality of the water they're soaked/cooked in?

 

[heidih]

Perhaps some of the response difference is that we taste bitter differently - there are genetic variables. Bitter to me for instance is just normal part of the taste profile while some friends will have a startling reaction. Certainly broader input is good - but just a thought. 

[eugenep]

thanks for your suggestions.

 

Hmmm I am using filtered water with Brita and from the frig (there is a filter for water in there too) 

 

I did think that maybe the bitter is the flavor profile of the bean but I don't taste the bitterness in canned beans and beans at restaurants - e.g., Chipotle etc. 

 

So I wonder if the bitterness comes when the bean is under done or some other cause?

 

For black beans, when I boiled for an additional 15 - 20 min the bitterness was gone.  

 

For the navy beans I did recently, I used the water (bean broth) to turn the navy beans into a soup in a blender so there was no avoiding the bitter taste (maybe it left the beans but still in water?) 

 

I did have an issue cooking with Mexican dried chilis that kept coming out bitter in my mole in the past. I thought it was just the flavor profile and it was unavoidable. But I found out what I was doing wrong was not throwing away the water that the dried chilis were soaked in. The hot water soak rehydrates the chili but also takes out the bitterness and the water must be thrown out. 

 

Hmmm...maybe the water? I'll taste that and the beans separately to see next time. 

 

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Could lectins be causing the bitterness you taste?  Try pressure cooking to see if it helps.

 

[SLB]

I have never experienced that, either. 

 

My only thought is, soap.

[chileheadmike]

Are  you  using the same pot every time? Maybe a reaction from that.

 

I use the water from re-hydrating chiles to thin the paste all the time with no bitterness. 

[eugenep]

5 hours ago, chileheadmike said:

Are  you  using the same pot every time? Maybe a reaction from that.

 

I use the water from re-hydrating chiles to thin the paste all the time with no bitterness. 

I use a staub dutch oven each time. 

 

I mean, I googled the issue and it seems like others have this problem and asked this question too but apparently with no clear answer 

[Dave the Cook]

Are you seasoning the beans with anything during the cook? Salt,  pepper, cumin, coriander, epazote, chiles?