black beans

shannahrose
shannahrose Posts: 585 Member
edited September 21 in Food and Nutrition
what are your favorite ways to sneak black beans (or beans in general) into your diet? i'm trying to eat more! thanks!

Replies

  • misty589
    misty589 Posts: 319 Member
    I'm interested in knowing this too!
  • questionablemethods
    questionablemethods Posts: 2,174 Member
    I guess I don't try to sneak them into my diet because I love them! I just eat them "undisguised" most of the time.

    I like to simmer black beans with some onion, garlic, chili powder and cumin and some water to make a nice sauce. The beans cook down and I can mush them a bit with my spoon and they are sort of refried beans but without the lard, I guess. I like to put those on tortillas with some salsa, avocado and some lettuce for a black bean wrap.

    I eat a lot of hummus but I also toss chickpeas in salads. Chickpeas are delicious in curries too.

    There are some recipes out there for black bean brownies that look delicious, but I have yet to try them. I figure I don't need to go out of my way to add any more sweets to my daily intake. :laugh:

    I like to cook beans from dried because then I can totally control how much salt gets added (usually none or just a couple pinches, depending upon how I will be using them). Also, it is DIRT CHEAP compared to buying canned. I cook up a whole heap of them at once and then freeze them.
  • Nelski
    Nelski Posts: 1,607 Member
    Soups and chili.
  • day213
    day213 Posts: 18 Member
    I love black beans and we eat them at least once or twice a week. We generally have them on the side with a little garlic or I mix in Tastefully Simple Fiesta Dip mix. We also put them in Quesadillas.

    I don't think I could do black bean brownies though!
  • questionablemethods
    questionablemethods Posts: 2,174 Member
    I don't think I could do black bean brownies though!

    Black beans all by themselves don't really have much of a taste. I mean, it is kind of like flour in that way. When you load anything up with chocolate and sugar it tends to taste pretty good! So, although I've never had these, I bet they are pretty good. My boyfriend just made some energy bars that used pinto beans and you can't taste the beans at all. It does up the fiber and protein content, though!
  • laura11248
    laura11248 Posts: 49 Member
    I like to toss them onto some lettuce with grilled chicken and a smidge of cheddar cheese.
    I also like chick peas in salad as mentioned earlier.
  • jenniebelle
    jenniebelle Posts: 12
    I put them in a small whole wheat tortilla with some low fat shredded cheese and a tablespoon of salsa...warmed up in the micrwowave...yummy and filling!!

    : )
  • jeweljade
    jeweljade Posts: 93
    I like to make a vinegar bean salad out of them. I use chopped celery a little corn, black beans and chick peas. Then I use a regular vinegar bean salad recipe and just use less sugar, salt and leave out the oil.
  • Aubrey2010
    Aubrey2010 Posts: 5
    I'm partial to black beans, but usually when there is a lot of salt involved - which isn't the best. I mix a can in with store bought guacamole, I can't remember the brand but I found it in the organic section of Hy-Vee. It's not fantastic for you - but it's a more nutritional substitute for sour cream on tacos or nachos, or any spanish or mexican foods.
  • MakeLifeBright
    MakeLifeBright Posts: 176
    Try any Amy's Kitchen foods. They are in most food Markets, even Walmart . Most of her foods have beans.
    Her Food is sooo Yummy I Love Amys!! http://www.amys.com/
  • dorwade
    dorwade Posts: 21 Member
    I like to mix them with brown rice and fresh salsa! Yummy as is, or in a whole wheat tortilla with a tiny amount of lowfat shredded cheese.

    My newest favorite is a Spicy black bean dip--black beans (cooked with no salt or rinsed if using canned), poblano peppers (2 cups chopped), green onion (1 bunch chopped) tomatoes (1 cup), and cilantro (about 1 cup) and lime juice to taste. Just give it a whirl in the blender or a food processor. Doesn't look "pretty" but tastes oh so good! And gets even hotter the next day!
    We've enjoyed it with baked tortilla chips and also as a salsa (added extra tomatoes and lime juice to make it juicier) with grilled chicken.

    I've also had the brownies with black beans....you can't taste them at all. I think they are used in place of the oil and eggs. I didn't make them myself, so I'm not sure.
  • Steph_135
    Steph_135 Posts: 3,280 Member
    Haha! I don't have to sneak them in, cause I love them. Search a recipe online for black bean burgers.

    http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/homemade-black-bean-veggie-burgers/Detail.aspx

    I love them! Chili is pretty obvious and delicious. You can have them cold on salads. I put them on top of brown rice or noodles as well. Have them plain. I like to put garlic powder on them sometimes, and as mentioned, great on tortillas. I just throw them on a hard-shelled tortilla with goat cheese and lettuce.
  • byHISstrength
    byHISstrength Posts: 984 Member
    Bumping. I love black beans...any kind of beans and am always looking for other uses.
  • PJilly
    PJilly Posts: 22,165 Member
    I tried a beef and black bean chili recently. I loved it so much, I posted it in the recipes section, and I've never loved something enough to do that. Here's the link:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/106257-beef-and-black-bean-chili
  • Koshie
    Koshie Posts: 61
    I just made a veggie stew with small white beans, tons of veggies. When I get home I am going to blend them all together as the chunky veggies began to weird me out LOL. I keep telling myself Beans are good for you and green beans dont count!
  • KarenECunningham
    KarenECunningham Posts: 419 Member
    I love beans because they are a good source of protein and fiber. and are so filling. I eat kidney beans on my salad, use a variety of beans (red, white, black and pintos) in chili and soups.
  • shannahrose
    shannahrose Posts: 585 Member
    these are great - thanks so much!
  • pfenixa
    pfenixa Posts: 194 Member
    I've been meaning to sneak in more black beans as well. I think the only time I've ever eaten them have been at Chipotle and Don Pablo's, which I'm sure loaded them with salt! I've bought some cans (found some with lower sodium) for recipes I've found but have yet to try them out. Definitely going to mix them with some salsa and such like recommended in here too! Thanks for the ideas.
  • nursestewart
    nursestewart Posts: 229 Member
    I love to simmer black beans and whole kernal corn together with some spices..It make a great combo..Looks a little out there, but taste great..
  • mamaturner
    mamaturner Posts: 2,447 Member
    I don't really sneak 'em, my whole family loves 'em. I put them in with my taco meat, in soups, in rice or puree with cumin and such for a great black bean dip!
  • kgrutch
    kgrutch Posts: 223
    my favorite way to use them is rinse canned beans, simmer with a can of rotel tomatoes (they are spicy so no additional spices needed) and a chopped onion, 30 minutes and they taste delicious. i put them over brown rice or on whole wheat tortillas with chicken. they are great just with chopped grilled chicken in them as well.
  • abyt42
    abyt42 Posts: 1,358 Member
    I do love me some beans! I just had a black bean quesadilla (with hot sauce!), and was thinking it was just about the best lunch ever..... I think being mindful of what goes in is helping me to appreciate food more, but that's a side benefit.

    Beans, especially black beans, are just good food.... I soak mine overnight, then cook them with an onion, about 15 cloves of garlic and a bunch of cilantro. When they're soft, I discard the cilantro, mash the garlic and onion, and then season the heck out of them. They're so good. And they mash well.....
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