Experimental cookery

For an end point in cooking the beans were cooked so that they would be as whole as possible yet soft all the way through. A common household way of testing when beans are done is to stick them with the point of a sharp knife or fork. This was the test used, but the experiments being done by students through different quarters give differences of opinion as to when the beans were done. For example, the minimum time for beans cooked with soda in tap water is shorter than the minimum time for beans soaked with soda in distilled water, but the averages are reversed. Soda may be added to the cooking water and not discarded. This was tried in class, but the beans became mushy on the outside and disintegrated while the center was still hard. In all varieties of beans, cooking with the vessel covered gives a shorter cooking period than cooking uncovered. This may be due to the cooling effect by evaporation of the water at the surface and possibly will not occur with a large quantity of beans and water. 140 FRUITS AxND VEGETABLES TABLE 20 Class Results for Cooking Navy Beans by Different Methods Method of cooking Weight of un- cooked beans grams Weight of soaked beans grams Weight of cooked beans grams Time of cook- ing min. Tap water Minimum 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 98 106 100 98 105 101 95 106 99 96 104 99 92 134 110 91 122 111 102 131 116 105 133 118 100 136 116 111 142 121 91 116 100 95 145 118 80 Maximum 105 Average Distilled water Mmimum 89 55 Maximum 85 Average Soaked in tap water Mmimum 70 32 Maximum 85 Average . . ... 60 Soaked in distilled water Minimum 30 Maximum 64 Average Soaked in tap water, yi teaspoon of soda added to soaking water, but no soda in cooking water Minimum 46 21 Maximum 50 Average . ... 36 Soaked in distilled water, soda ys teaspoon added to soaking water, no soda in cooking water. Cooked in distilled water Minimum 25 Maximum 40 Average 32 Salt ]4 teaspoon added to tap water Minimum . . 60 Maximum 108 Average 87 Soda yi teaspoon added to tap water Boiled 10 minutes. Discarded Minimum 30 Maximum 116 Average 56 REFERENCES 141 Soaked beans are lighter in color and less strong in flavor than the non-soaked ones. Lima beans. Although the work with lima beans has been limited in extent in comparison to that done with navy beans the results have been similar to those obtained with the latter. Soaking to shorten the cooking period must continue until the beans have absorbed enough water to weigh nearly double their dry weight. When boiling water was poured over the lima beans and left to stand, swelling occurred more rapidly than when cold water was used. The time required for soaking with cold water is 7 to 8 hours or longer, but with the boiling water 4 to 5 hours is usually sufficient.