Learn How to Cook Dried Beans at home so you'll always have some on hand. Use this easy stovetop method for a variety of beans and add them to salads, soups, stews, and more!
Sort through beans to remove any damaged beans and debris. Place dried beans in a large bowl and cover with 2-3 inches of cold water. Soak for 8 hours or overnight.
Drain and rinse the beans. Place them in a large pot, fill with cold water 3 inches above and cover the pot.
Bring to a boil on high heat, then reduce heat to low so beans are boiling just gently, and simmer. Just before and as beans start boiling, you will see a lot of foam. Remove it with a mesh strainer.
Cooking time depends on beans' size and age. General rule of thumb is to cook small beans (black, black-eyed peas and navy beans) for 45-90 minutes, medium beans (kidney, Great Northern, pinto and garbanzo beans) for 60-120 minutes, and large beans (lima and cannellini beans) for 80-180 minutes.
When beans are still firm but a bit tender, about 40-60 minutes into cooking process, add salt to the pot. Keep cooking the beans until the beans are soft inside but still intact on the outside. Best way is to taste test the bean every 20 minutes or so!
When beans are cooked to your liking, remove them into a bowl with a slotted spoon and save the broth for making soups and stews, or drain the beans through a mesh strainer. Leaving beans in the hot liquid will keep cooking them, which is fine only for soups.
Let beans cool and use them as per recipe, store in the fridge or freezer.
Notes
Store: Store drained beans or in the cooking liquid in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the fridge.
Freeze: I like to pack drained beans about 1 3/4 cups into each resealable Ziploc bag, which is equivalent to one 14-15 ounces can of drained beans. You can also freeze beans in their cooking liquid. Freeze for up to 6 months.