Cooking with Canned Beans

[CraigC]

Canned chicken??

Now that should be a capital crime punishable by making you eat it!

 

[msmofet]

I will eat ice cold Bush's Boston Recipe baked beans. Also in a small can, waxed beans. I like them cold also with ranch dressing. Cream style corn also. And only Le Seur petite peas. Otherwise, I would rather make my veggies fresh.

I also like the Le Seur peas occasionally. Mom would buy them a couple times a year.

I use canned kidney beans (light or dark) with the liquid to make a two bean salad with olive oil, vinegar, raw onion, s & p and oregano.

 

[jennyema]

You beat me to the chicken picture, Rocklobster!!

I love canned beans (dry ones too)!! I probably have 10 cans of various types, black, cannellini, red kidney in my pantry. they are incredibly versatile.

Once in awhile I'll eat a can of green peas for dinner with a little butter. Reminds me of being 7 years old. I loved them back then.

 

[msmofet]

I also like the Le Seur peas occasionally. Mom would buy them a couple times a year.

I use canned kidney beans (light or dark) with the liquid to make a two bean salad with olive oil, vinegar, raw onion, s & p and oregano.

Oops I use one can kidneys and one can cannellini beans for the above bean salad salad.

I also use drained and rinsed canned chichi (chick peas) as a green salad topping.

Undrained kidney beans in chili.

Undrained cannellini beans in my white pasta fagioli with sausage.

Undrained cannellini beans in sautéed escarole and beans.

 

[Addie]

Oops I use one can kidneys and one can cannellini beans for the above bean salad salad.

I also use drained and rinsed canned chichi (chick peas) as a green salad topping.

Undrained kidney beans in chili.

Undrained cannellini beans in my white pasta fagioli with sausage.

Undrained cannellini beans in sautéed escarole and beans.

I take a can of chick peas, drain, rinse and toss onto a dry towel. Back into the can or a bowl and snack on them while watching TV. Any time I am at a salad bar, and they have them, I will load my plate down with them.

 

[Dawgluver]

I take a can of chick peas, drain, rinse and toss onto a dry towel. Back into the can or a bowl and snack on them while watching TV. Any time I am at a salad bar, and they have them, I will load my plate down with them.

I've made roasted canned chick peas, nice, spicy, and crunchy. Can't remember the recipe, think I did what you did, Addie, well drained and dried, then tossed with whatever spice, I think I used chili powder, then roasted until crispy.

 

[dragnlaw]

Waaaay back, before frozen vegies became edible and easily available, canned vegies were the only choices people had during the winter months.

Of course fresh is undeniably the best but when not available :-

-I like both canned and frozen corn

-I used to (sort of) like canned peas, couldn't stand frozen, then all of a sudden it swithced and I couldn't stand canned, only frozen. Now I don't mind either.

-I use frozen peas, corn & carrots for pot pies, etc.

-I havenj't bought canned nor frozen green or yellow beans in centuries, so can't really give an opinion. When little my mother often bought 'frenched green beans', canned and they weren't bad. I believe I have used green beans in a bean salad, with the dressing... I guess as long as there is some texture other than mush, they are OK.

-have never had canned spinach or potatoes or carrots

-canned mushrooms have their place, I don't use them often but sometimes in creamed casseroles I like the little bites of texture.

-dried beans, well, I always keep some on hand but usually use canned mostly for convenience as I can never remember to put them on to soak the day before.

-kidney beans and the rest of that family, again, canned. Chili's, black beans & rice, etc.

Although I do grow and freeze tomatoes - I prefer using canned for heavy thicker sauces.

 

[skilletlicker]

I mostly cook dried beans but keep canned on hand as well. I don't understand this obsession with rinsing canned beans unless it's to lower sodium or cya for some celebrity chef. The only time I rinse is when they're going straight from the can into a salad.
I always cook the beans separately first. Even in a soup, wouldn't everything else overcook before the beans were done?
Growing up in the 50's you just got used to canned goods. Pretty sure there was an electric can-opener on every counter. I eat all of the examples listed above. They're different than fresh or frozen, that's for sure. Some, like peas, are so different that you wouldn't necessarily know they were the same food originally, but I don't hate any of them. Just lucky that way I guess.

 

[Dawgluver]

I rinse canned beans to reduce the sodium content, as well as to reduce the, um, aftereffects. I buy reduced sodium canned beans when I can find them.

 

[Cheryl J]

Canned beans are a staple in my pantry, I love them! I always have quite a variety - pinto, kidney, garbanzo, cannellini, black beans....love them all and I use them in anything from drained and sprinkled on green salads, to soups, stews, chili, you name it.

Canned veggies, not so much. If not fresh, then I prefer frozen over canned. About the only canned veggies in my cupboard are corn and beets. I love sliced or slivered beets with a green salad, topped with ranch.

I don't think I've ever had grocery store canned spinach, asparagus, carrots, potatoes, or peas, at least not in the past many decades or so.

Dawg....funny, I was just looking up ideas for seasonings for roasted garbanzos the other day. Sounds really good with chili powder, maybe a little cumin...

 

[skilletlicker]

Hominy is a vegetable that I don't think you can buy any way except canned. I've made it from dried corn. Tastes better but it's a project.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I grew up on canned spinach, now I just chill and drain it, top with a bit of Tabasco. I also eat plenty of fresh spinach as salads and cooked.

 

[Kayelle]

When my parents had their little grocery store (1946-1961) the use of canned goods was common. Clarence Birdseye's frozen foods had only been around a short 20 years.
We ate a lot of canned goods that had lost their labels. Now that was an adventure, much like the "box of chocolates" but with nasty surprises. Once in a while Dad would open up three of four cans of who knew what, and dump it in a pan for a meal. He called it Gravy Train night. Mom and I wouldn't eat that slop, but he did.
Clarence Birdseye is a hero in my book!!

 

[rodentraiser]

I use a crock pot to make a hot dog and bean mix and I've always used Van Camps canned beans. The hot dogs and beans cook for 8 hours and I don't remember that they fell apart. Of course, crock pot cooking is on low heat, so maybe that makes a difference.

 

[CraigC]

Hominy is a vegetable that I don't think you can buy any way except canned. I've made it from dried corn. Tastes better but it's a project.

Huitlacoche is a great sub for hominy. It is an acquired taste, but really special!

 

[CakePoet]

Huitlacoche but that is fungus while hominy is field corn... how can the substitute each other?

 

[CraigC]

Huitlacoche but that is fungus while hominy is field corn... how can the substitute each other?

It has a taste and texture like hominy and it only grows on corn.

 

[skilletlicker]

Huitlacoche but that is fungus while hominy is field corn... how can the substitute each other?

Hominy is nixtamilized corn. Could have been field corn. Better if it were made from better corn.

Never tried huitlacoche. Goya sells it in a can. Doesn't sound as revolting if you call it corn mushroom.

 

[blissful]

Hominy is nixtamilized corn. Could have been field corn. Better if it were made from better corn.

Never tried huitlacoche. Goya sells it in a can. Doesn't sound as revolting if you call it corn mushroom.

We were innocently growing some sweet corn one year, then we were attacked by raccoons and a skunk. We trapped them, we tried to rescue the corn. By then, this horrifying disgusting glop called huitlacoche started growing on it, putrefying any chance of eating good sweetcorn. We burned it at the stalk to prevent the end of the world as we knew it.

 

[Dawgluver]

We were innocently growing some sweet corn one year, then we were attacked by raccoons and a skunk. We trapped them, we tried to rescue the corn. By then, this horrifying disgusting glop called huitlacoche started growing on it, putrefying any chance of eating good sweetcorn. We burned it at the stalk to prevent the end of the world as we knew it.

We called it corn smut when I was growing up in the great state of NoDak. It was a reason to throw out corn. Looked absolutely disgusting. I didn't realize until a few years ago that it's a Mexican delicacy, and becoming increasingly popular here.