Food Spotlight: Black Beans

Beans are one of the healthiest, well-rounded foods that I love recommending to clients. Black beans are particularly nutrient dense, with more antioxidants and fiber than many other beans. Slightly sweet and soft in texture, black beans can easily be added to most dishes for an antioxidant boost.

Black Beans and Protein

Adults should aim to consume 10-35% of daily calories from protein, depending on their age and physical activity level. Protein is present in every cell in the body and is essential to healthy muscles, tissues, and bones. It is particularly important in growth and development, and contributes to hormones, enzymes, immune system response, and fluid balance. Cooked black beans have 7.6 grams of protein and 114 calories per ? cup serving. Since protein contains 4 calories per gram, a serving of black beans has 30.4 calories, about 27%, from protein.

Beans, Carbs, and Fiber

Black beans have 21.7 grams and 86.8 calories from carbohydrates. 7.5 of those grams of carbohydrates are from fiber. Since it’s recommended that most adults consume between 25 and 35 grams of fiber per day, one serving of black beans meets about 25% of your daily needs. About 2/3 of the fiber found in black beans is soluble fiber, which can help stabilize blood glucose levels and improve blood cholesterol.

Other Black Bean Nutrients Chart

One serving of black beans contains over 25% of a non-pregnant, non-lactating adult’s daily need for folate. They contain around 10% of the daily recommendations of iron, potassium, and magnesium. All beans are good sources of antioxidants, but colored beans have a higher amount than white beans. Brighter and darker color of beans, fruits, and vegetables often correlate with higher antioxidant levels in those foods.

How to Cook Black Beans

The four main steps to cooking dry beans are:

1. Clean
2. Rinse
3. Soak
4. Cook

To clean beans, sort through to remove any broken beans or other objects. Then rinse beans under running water. I like hot soaking beans since it reduces cooking time and gas-creating compounds. To hot soak, place beans in a large pot with 10 cups water to every 2 cups dry black beans. Bring to a boil and boil for 3 minutes. Turn off the heat and set aside for 2-4 hours. When finished soaking, drain the beans and rinse with fresh water. Bring the beans to a boil and cook for about 2 hours, making sure the beans stay covered in water. Once cooked through and tender, add salt, acid, herbs, olive oil, and other seasonings as desired. If using canned beans, rinse them in a colander under running water to remove a third of the sodium.

5 Black Bean Recipe Ideas

Black beans are very versatile and are popular in South American, Central American, and Caribbean cuisines. Add them to salads, mash them on toast, or add to soups and stews. Adding an acid to your bean recipe can help the flavors really pop. Try a liberal amount of vinegar, a squeeze of citrus, or handful of fresh tomatoes after cooking.

Looking for a new way to cook beans? Try this black bean soup with Caribbean flavors:

Black Bean Soup with Caribbean Flavors

2 TB canola or avocado oil

1 medium onion diced

1 TB minced garlic

1 tsp fresh minced ginger

1 tsp fresh thyme

1 tsp paprika

4 cups cooked black beans (about 2 15oz cans rinse and drained)

1 large tomato diced

1 large potato (about 1 cup), diced

1 small sweet potato, diced

4 c broth

1 large bay leaf

salt and pepper

garnish with fresh pickled jalapeno slices, cilantro, Greek yogurt, lime or avocado

Saute the oil, onions and spices over medium heat until softened. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook about 25 minutes, until desired thickness is reached and potatoes are cooked through. Garnish with fresh pickled jalapeno slices, cilantro, Greek yogurt, lime and/or avocado.

How to Add More Beans to Your Diet

If you want to eat more beans but are worried about gastrointestinal discomfort, start slow. Add ? cup beans per day. Try adding them to your morning eggs or snack on them in the afternoon. Incorporate them into salads or make a wrap for lunch. Once you are tolerating that amount of beans without discomfort, continue to increase the amount by ? cup at a time and see how you feel. Eating beans is a simple and tasty way to increase your daily protein, fiber, folate and antioxidant intake.

What are your favorite ways to eat black beans? How will you incorporate them more into your diet?

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