Kitchen Tips

Dip Tricks

Keeping your dips cool and fresh during a summar BBQ is important. Try placing your dip bowl on top of a bowl of ice. THe ice will cool the contents and keep you dips tasting fresh and delicious.

Dry Bean Tips

Always store dry beans in a dry, airtight container at room temperature.
Do not store dry beans in the refrigerator.
Beans can be stored indefinitely but are best used within one year. Beans can lose their moisture over time and take longer to soak and cook.
Before use, always rinse and sort beans.
Once cooked, beans can be kept four to five days when covered and refrigerated.
To freeze, package cooked beans in an airtight, freezer container and keep for up to six months.

Soaking Beans

Dry beans need to be soaked before cooking to replace the water lost in drying. A general rule is to use 3 cups (750 mL) of water for each cup (250 mL) of sorted and rinsed beans. Then follow one of these directions:

Quick Soak:

Bring water and beans to a boil, cover and boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand 1 hour. Drain.

Overnight Soak:

Let beans and water stand overnight in refrigerator. Drain. (Beans soaked by this method cook in less time and keep their shape better).

Microwave Soak:

Combine 3 cups (750 mL) hot water and 1 cup (250 mL) of dry beans in a 4 qt. (4 L) microwaveable casserole dish. Cover and microwave at HIGH (100%) power for 15 minutes or until boiling. Let stand 1 hour. Drain.