Rancho Gordo: Beans and More

[blue_dolphin]

3 hours ago, Maison Rustique said:

I've seen several friends making the confit recipe. I really need to try this! Looks wonderful!

The garlicky aroma that escapes the oven while it's baking is quite intoxicating!

[emmalish]

I've always wanted to try Rancho Gordo beans, but I'm in Canada and the shipping costs are pretty prohibitive. I finally broke down and decided to treat myself a few months ago. I bought a variety of beans and enough to justify the shipping cost. I'm still working my way through them and continue to be blown away by the quality and flavour. And now I'm spoiled and looking for some good dried beans available in Canada (because I can't afford to keep paying those shipping costs!). 

[TdeV]

Yes you can, @emmalish. Rancho Gordo beans are probably less than a year old when they're shipped, so you could buy a couple years worth. I looked for beans grown in Canada as a gift for a relative (without success) and ended up shipping them quite a volume of beans. Toot, toot!

[emmalish]

You're a bad influence @TdeV!!

[TdeV]

You betcha, @emmalish. Wait until I get started on the kitchen toys. 🤣 🤣

[emmalish]

Oh trust me @TdeV I don't need any persuasion on the toys 🤣

[Shelby]

On 9/20/2022 at 11:23 AM, blue_dolphin said:

Cooked up a batch of Royal Coronas yesterday and used some to make the Smoky Confit'd Beans with Olives that appears in the most recent Bean Club newsletter and is from Lukas Volger's book, Snacks for Dinner.  Recipe also available online here. 

Had some for breakfast.  Very good.  I'll make it again.  Maybe reduce the smoked paprika a bit and try adding sun dried tomatoes.  Good recipe to play around with.

Did you pressure cook the beans first?

[blue_dolphin]

3 minutes ago, Shelby said:

Did you pressure cook the beans first?

The beans do need to be cooked first but I didn’t pressure cook. With Royal Coronas, I soak over night, bring to a boil on the stovetop and put the pot into the oven to maintain the gentlest simmer. 

[Shelby]

2 minutes ago, blue_dolphin said:

The beans do need to be cooked first but I didn’t pressure cook. With Royal Coronas, I soak over night, bring to a boil on the stovetop and put the pot into the oven to maintain the gentlest simmer. 

Yours look so good I was thinking of making them today but mine aren't soaked......pressure cooking seems like it might not be the way to go.

[blue_dolphin]

23 minutes ago, Shelby said:

Yours look so good I was thinking of making them today but mine aren't soaked......pressure cooking seems like it might not be the way to go.

You could give it a try. I only soak these and the Christmas Limas.  The big guys have cooked unevenly when I didn’t soak.  

[Shelby]

3 minutes ago, blue_dolphin said:

You could give it a try. I only soak these and the Christmas Limas.  The big guys have cooked unevenly when I didn’t soak.  

I came across a guy that posted a "pressure quick soak" method.  Put beans in the IP.  Add 8 cups water.  High pressure for 1 minute.  Let sit for at least 30 mins.  Then, drain.  Put beans back in.  Add 5 cups water and pressure cook for 20 mins.  

 

I'm trying this as we speak.  I will update  

[Shelby]

16 hours ago, Shelby said:

I came across a guy that posted a "pressure quick soak" method.  Put beans in the IP.  Add 8 cups water.  High pressure for 1 minute.  Let sit for at least 30 mins.  Then, drain.  Put beans back in.  Add 5 cups water and pressure cook for 20 mins.  

 

I'm trying this as we speak.  I will update  

It worked great!

 

They only deviation was that it took more like 40 minutes when I put the Corona beans back in the pot, not 20. 

 

Loved the beans!

 

[blue_dolphin]

2 hours ago, Shelby said:

It worked great!

 

They only deviation was that it took more like 40 minutes when I put the Corona beans back in the pot, not 20. 

 

Loved the beans!

 

 

That's really good to know!  I was going to suggest something like that because I've seen people mention it but didn't have any specifics.  RCs are such great beans!

[Smithy]

On 9/23/2022 at 3:25 PM, Shelby said:

I came across a guy that posted a "pressure quick soak" method.  Put beans in the IP.  Add 8 cups water.  High pressure for 1 minute.  Let sit for at least 30 mins.  Then, drain.  Put beans back in.  Add 5 cups water and pressure cook for 20 mins.  

 

I'm trying this as we speak.  I will update  

 

12 hours ago, Shelby said:

It worked great!

 

They only deviation was that it took more like 40 minutes when I put the Corona beans back in the pot, not 20. 

 

Loved the beans!

 

 

I used this "pressure quick soak" method to cook a batch of RG's Rebosero beans that have been sitting in my pantry for far too long. I think the method overcooked them a bit -- that is, they were about to fall apart by the time I finished cooking them.

 

That said, I used them to cook the above-linked Smoky Confit'd Beans with Olives (sans olives, since my darling dislikes them) for dinner tonight. They were a hit! My darling insisted on adding white wine worcestershire sauce to sweeten them to his taste. I thought they were fine as they were.

 

Those beans, along with pan-fried salmon, were tonight's dinner. I'm not crazy about this method of cooking salmon, but hey -- it was easy, and he thought it all right too. Anything, in his opinion, to disguise the taste of salmon.

 

 

(It's true: he doesn't like olives. He doesn't like salmon. Fortunately, his good qualities outweigh these shortcomings.)

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

1 hour ago, Smithy said:

 

 

I used this "pressure quick soak" method to cook a batch of RG's Rebosero beans that have been sitting in my pantry for far too long. I think the method overcooked them a bit -- that is, they were about to fall apart by the time I finished cooking them.

 

That said, I used them to cook the above-linked Smoky Confit'd Beans with Olives (sans olives, since my darling dislikes them) for dinner tonight. They were a hit! My darling insisted on adding white wine worcestershire sauce to sweeten them to his taste. I thought they were fine as they were.

 

Those beans, along with pan-fried salmon, were tonight's dinner. I'm not crazy about this method of cooking salmon, but hey -- it was easy, and he thought it all right too. Anything, in his opinion, to disguise the taste of salmon.

 

 

(It's true: he doesn't like olives. He doesn't like salmon. Fortunately, his good qualities outweigh these shortcomings.)

 

 

Have you tried him with arctic char?  Similar fish but not as salmony.  Much cleaner taste in my opinion.  Not to mention less expensive, and I've heard arctic char harvesting is sustainable.

 

While I can't deny I've overcooked a Rancho Gordo bean or two in my time, a far worse sin is undercooking.  Some Rancho Gordo varieties from Mexico need to be pressure cooked halfway to oblivion to make them eatable, in my experience.

 

Now I'm wishing my diner included some Rancho Gordo beans.

 

[Annie_H]

On 9/21/2022 at 11:53 AM, blue_dolphin said:

The garlicky aroma that escapes the oven while it's baking is quite intoxicating!

Good recipe. I soak a couple varieties of RG beans without much of a plan usually. I've made this recipe a couple times with great results. 

Brings beans to the next level without much effort. 

 "I don’t stir, as I like the chewy crust that forms on the beans at the surface, but you can stir once or twice as it bakes if you prefer a more uniform consistency."

I added a 1/4 pint of homemade stock. Garlic, smoked paprika, olive oil, but forgot the olives. I added lemon and a couple pats of butter.

 

 

[Annie_H]

Experiencing that success, (though it could use more spice and more garlic before baking), I think I can improve my Oaxacan black bean recipe. It is good but would be better baked. I've been using a sauce pan. A molé spice blend. Miropoix, bit of tomato paste, 1/2 pint stock. 

Soaked some RG midnight black beans last night. Will be a nice base for a protein undecided. Maybe a chicken thigh. ---tomorrow.

[Annie_H]

Last week I way over-cooked RG cranberries. Mush. I do a similar method for all beans,---no brainer, for me any who. 20 minutes uncovered in an enameled dutch oven. To a boil, then salt and set on back slow burner to simmer partially covered. 30 minutes. At that point with a taste test I can easily judge another 15-20-30 minutes. 

I do write on the half bag shelved, 'quick cook' or 'long cook'. No complaints as I like having sooo many varieties to try. Should probably keep a little book for reminders. Like I have for sous vide. RG sent a tiny book a few years ago but that is in my SV cambrio. 

Definitely a sweet spot. Undercooked is so disappointing.

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Last night I finished a bag of Christmas limas.  I remembered them as OK but not great.  But they had been in my kitchen a long time and I wanted to use them up.  I pressure cooked two hours.  The wretched beans were bitter.  Really bitter.  The only additions were a quarter of a red onion, a bay leaf, and some salt.  The rest of the red onion had been fine, so I am pretty sure I have the beans to blame.  Nothing in the pot was burned.

 

Yet when I last had the same beans I don't recall them being bitter.  Could sitting on a sunny shelf in the kitchen cause beans to turn bitter?

 

The only way I really enjoy lima beans is when they are purchased frozen.  Is there a way to make dried limas come out to the same texture?

 

 

[Katie Meadow]

On 10/5/2022 at 8:56 AM, Annie_H said:

Last week I way over-cooked RG cranberries. Mush. I do a similar method for all beans,---no brainer, for me any who. 20 minutes uncovered in an enameled dutch oven. To a boil, then salt and set on back slow burner to simmer partially covered. 30 minutes. At that point with a taste test I can easily judge another 15-20-30 minutes. 

I do write on the half bag shelved, 'quick cook' or 'long cook'. No complaints as I like having sooo many varieties to try. Should probably keep a little book for reminders. Like I have for sous vide. RG sent a tiny book a few years ago but that is in my SV cambrio. 

Definitely a sweet spot. Undercooked is so disappointing.

 

For stovetop cooking I find that most RG beans take 2 hours and change to get fully cooked, except of course for the Alubia beans, which are really fast. I typically soak beans for about 5 hours, then bring them to a boil for ten minutes, then simmer very gently, partially covered, until they taste done. Then I salt them and cook another 15 minutes. I doubt that anyone would disagree that undercooked beans are unpleasant. Of course if you have a half bag sitting around fo any length or time your direx may need adjustment, no? 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

16 minutes ago, Katie Meadow said:

For stovetop cooking I find that most RG beans take 2 hours and change to get fully cooked, except of course for the Alubia beans, which are really fast. I typically soak beans for about 5 hours, then bring them to a boil for ten minutes, then simmer very gently, partially covered, until they taste done. Then I salt them and cook another 15 minutes. I doubt that anyone would disagree that undercooked beans are unpleasant. Of course if you have a half bag sitting around fo any length or time your direx may need adjustment, no? 

 

These beans had not been soaked.  When I think of it I always prefer to soak my beans -- except for black beans.

 

I would not have said the Christmas limas were undercooked.  Ranco Gordo says the texture is like a chestnut, and that describes about how they were.  While the texture was not my favorite, my complaint is that the beans were bitter.

 

[Katie Meadow]

47 minutes ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

 

These beans had not been soaked.  When I think of it I always prefer to soak my beans -- except for black beans.

 

I would not have said the Christmas limas were undercooked.  Ranco Gordo says the texture is like a chestnut, and that describes about how they were.  While the texture was not my favorite, my complaint is that the beans were bitter.

 

I've never had Christmas limas, nor do I remember any RG beans being bitter. Although I admit that I don't order a lot of variety when I order beans. I'm kinda stuck on certain ones. A chestnut texture would not be a favorite for me. Message Steve and see what he thinks, maybe?

[JoNorvelleWalker]

21 minutes ago, Katie Meadow said:

I've never had Christmas limas, nor do I remember any RG beans being bitter. Although I admit that I don't order a lot of variety when I order beans. I'm kinda stuck on certain ones. A chestnut texture would not be a favorite for me. Message Steve and see what he thinks, maybe?

 

As I recall Steve has asked that any problems go through the Rancho Gordo website, not through eGullet.  But again, the beans were not bitter when I opened the package in 2021.

 

[blue_dolphin]

2 hours ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

Yet when I last had the same beans I don't recall them being bitter.  Could sitting on a sunny shelf in the kitchen cause beans to turn bitter?

Interesting. I like Christmas limas and haven’t gotten a bitter batch yet.  I don’t soak many RG beans but always soak the big guys (limas, garbanzos and Royal Coronas) for more even cooking, not for problems with bitterness.  I’ve  cooked Christmas limas that that I’ve had for quite a while without issues. That said, I don’t have a sunny shelf in my kitchen.  Excess bean inventory is stored in the garage which has no windows and is pretty dark except when I’m out there doing laundry. 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Just now, blue_dolphin said:

Interesting. I like Christmas limas and haven’t gotten a bitter batch yet.  I don’t soak many RG beans but always soak the big guys (limas, garbanzos and Royal Coronas) for more even cooking, not for problems with bitterness.  I’ve  cooked Christmas limas that that I’ve had for quite a while without issues. That said, I don’t have a sunny shelf in my kitchen.  Excess bean inventory is stored in the garage which has no windows and is pretty dark except when I’m out there doing laundry. 

 

My excess bean inventory is stored in the living room, which is pretty dark and I don't use the living room for laundry.