The Denver Nuggets are over for the season. But maybe your home team isn't! And in other good news, maybe you don't give a crap about basketball! I wish I didn't- then I might be a lot happier this time of year. I guess we all have our vices.
The best news is: the "Nuggets of Wisdom" you'll find on Dr. Tofuhead's blog aren't going anywhere!
Thank you to all who have left comments. Sorry if yesterday's post was confusing: the Food of the Day was "chives," NOT "sexually transmitted diseases!" I try to do an early post and a Food of the Day post later; but on some days I'll only have time to do the Food of the Day. Tomorrow Dr. Tofuhead will be tackling his first "Reader's Medical Question," and I promise: it will leave a delightful fragrance in your brain. Stay tuned!
FOOD OF THE DAY: PINTO BEANS
This is a tough one to tackle; not because the subject is so difficult, but because it is so dear to me I can hardly do it justice. Pinto beans are truly a delight. I went through a "black bean in my burrito" phase; everyone from San Francisco does at some point. Then I decided to be "hardcore" and eat refried pinto beans for a few years. For the last 10 years, however, I've been loyal to whole pinto beans when it comes to Mexican food, and when it comes to the beans on the stove in my kitchen.
One thing that people forget is that beans, despite their awesome protein quantities, are still mostly carbs. In pinto beans, for example, there are still 3 grams of carbohydrate for every 1 gram of protein. But as I've said before, you need carbs! And to get such QUALITY, filling carbs with so much protein, and iron and vitamins to boot, is rare in a food. Best of all, they taste wonderful.
I don't think great pinto beans are hard to cook, they just take a long time. I also don't think there is anything wrong with buying them in a can. Today I got a 12 oz. can of pinto beans, King Sooper's store brand, with no added fat and low sodium. It cost 88 cents! They're practically giving these things away! When you get them this way, just the beans in the can, they have almost NO fat. The fat column on my can said "0". How often do you see that?
PINTO BEANS: BENEFITS
-Higher protein than most plant-derived foods. You CAN get enough protein in your diet with pinto beans, and other beans, even if you are a vegan.
-They also have substantial amounts of iron, b-vitamins, and fiber.
-Dried pinto beans keep for a year or more.
-Cheap, any way you buy them.
-They are the main bean in Mexican food; so you can eat them in burritos, tacos, tortas, you name it. They also work well in American classics like baked beans, chili, and barbecued beans.
PINTO BEANS: DRAWBACKS
-If you are cooking them from scratch, you'll need 5-8 hours of stove time, depending on the elevation you live at.
-Many canned preparations of them come with added lard, saturated fat, and lots of salt.
-They can cause gas- it's true. Most of the tricks, except for one, will not prevent this. The one trick that does work I learned from a Rick Bayless cookbook. Rick notes that eating beans regularly in your diet reduces bean-related gas. I eat beans at least twice a week and as my wife would tell you, I have no gas whatsoever! (Don't ask her to verify this). But seriously, the more often you eat beans, the less serious your gas from them will be.
RECIPE: BASIC, FOOLPROOF PINTO BEANS, FROM SCRATCH:
1. Take a few cups of dried pinto beans, toss them in a colander, and rinse them. Pick out any severely deformed beans, or any small rocks or dirt clods. DON'T soak the beans. Soaking before cooking cuts down the cooking time, but it also gives the beans a chalkier texture.
2. Put the rinsed beans in a heavy colander on the stovetop, with enough water to cover them by 2 inches. Bring to a boil.
3. Drizzle in some olive oil. This is optional, but it will make the end product smoother and tastier. That's the reason restaurants add lard, but you don't need lard! The perfect amount is 1 tablespoon olive oil for every 1 cup dried beans.
4. Toss in a bay leaf or two, or a teaspoon of ground cumin (optional). If you know what epazote is, add a sprig of that. I really think a bay leaf is just as good.
5. Cut up a white or yellow onion and toss it in (optional).
6. Reduce heat to low (barely bubbling), and cook for many hours. Keep covered for most of the time. If they are too thin, take the lid off for awhile; if they are too thick, add more water. In Denver, this takes about 7 hours. Cook time will vary depending on your altitude.
7. Salt to taste, but not until they are almost done! Salting early seems to increase the cook time.
8. Serve some fresh- they are wonderful! Freeze the rest, and thaw out any time for great Mexican food.
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