But, more than all of that, I must to give homage to my pressure cooker. Definitely the cheapest at the store and completely aluminum, however, the thing has changed my life. I cook beans and veggies without much fuss at all and since I LOVE dried beans, it makes my time in the kitchen so much more efficient and fun on beans day. I hadn't used one before my sister swore by it when cooking her mother's Guyanese Dal recipe (I might do that one to later this month, now that I think of it). I had just never been introduced, my family (a beautiful bunch of "suthun cookin'" divas) had never used one to my knowledge at all. Beans were done in a slow cooker or on the stove. So of course, that's how I did it.
Now I have seen the light, and I hope you will try to see it to if you haven't already. A pressure cooker is great for veg-heads, because often times, we need to infuse things with flavor. I am talking tender collards, perfect beans, and super-juicy-flavorful seitan dishes, that will make you think about smackin' your Momma (notice I said think). If you haven't given it a try, do. Read your instructions, maintain it well, and keep it super clean, and it will love you and your belly for years. I don't really follow a recipe, but here is what I usually do each time. I call it bean soup for the soul (much better than chicken soup for a cold, in my opinion).
Navy Bean Soup Recipe
1 lb dry navy beans
4 or 5 pieces kombu
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
6-8 cups water for soaking and
6-8 cups water for cooking (Pay attention to your pressure cooker levels if using one)
1 can tomato paste
~1/4 cup Earth Balance
1 large onion chopped
4-5 celery stalks chopped
4-6 cloves garlic minced
3 carrots chopped
1 green pepper chopped
3 bay leaves
1 Tbsp sugar
~1 tsp each (marjoram, basil, cumin, smoked paprika, rubbed sage)*
1 Tbsp nutritional yeast (optional, I just love it and the vitamin boost is great)
fresh ground pepper to taste
sea salt to taste (I usually start at about a tablespoon, though)
*feel free to play with your seasonings, these are just the ones I love, and they seem to work together well.
Sort and soak your beans overnight in about 6 cups of water and add 2 of the pieces of kombu. After beans have soaked, drain them, rinse them and then add them to your pot or pressure cooker, discard the first two pieces of kombu and add the next two pieces to your pot. Add your 6-8 cups of water and the olive oil (Do Not Add Salt now). Bring to a slow rolling boil for a few minutes and skim off any foam that rises. Once you have skimmed it clean then reduce the heat to a simmer and cover or pressurize. If using a pressure cooker, you want the pressure gauge to get to a gentle rock and keep it there for about 35-40 minutes. If you like your beans pulverized and creamy like me for this recipe, then keep the pressure going for another 15 min. or so. If you are using a regular stock pot, that's fine, you may need to cook the beans covered for about 1 1/2 hours, keep checking them for desired tenderness.
Add all the rest of the ingredients, be sure to stir until the tomato paste is dissolved (leave in or take out the kombu, your call) and then continue to simmer for about 20 min. If you are using a pressure cooker, add the ingredients, stir until tomato paste is dissolved, then bring the pressure back up just until the gauge is gently rocking and then remove it from the heat and let the pressure come down naturally. (It may take about 15 to 20 min.) Enjoy.
Beans soaking with kombu pieces
Pressure cooker at work, I wish I could capture the magic :)
After bringing down the pressure and adding the other ingredients.
A close up for good measure.
The finished product, I hope you try it out!
-Ty