Red Beans and Quinoa

I like to purchase organic dried beans, soak them, and cook them myself as opposed to buying canned beans.  Occasionally, when I have not prepared beforehand I will use beans from a can.  I prefer soaking my own for several reasons:  When I soak my own, I know they have not been sitting around in a can for who knows how long absorbing the contents of the can itself;  I feel much better about buying them in bulk and eliminating putting another can in the earth once I'm finished with it; It is much more cost effective to prepare them myself and I can get organic ones for even less than the cost of canned non-organic; I think they are much more flavorful when I soak and cook them myself!

Soaking Dried Beans:

2 cups dried red beans

6 cups water

I placed the above in a glass bowl and soaked them for 3 days.  Each day I drained the water off of them and replaced it with fresh water until the water was clear again.  I left them on my counter and put a glass plate on top of the bowl.

Ingredients:

Rehydrated beans

4 cloves of garlic, minced,

1 tsp celtic sea salt

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp cumin

1 white onion, diced

8 cups of filtered water

Chopped cilantro and green onions for the topping

Quinoa (to put the beans on top of!)

Place the first 7 ingredients into a stock pot and bring to a boil.  Turn down to low-med heat.  Simmer beans for 1 - 1 1/2 hours, stirring about every 10 minutes, until beans are tender.

I put the beans over quinoa, but you could use rice as well, and I topped it with green onions and chopped cilantro.  This meal provides a wonderful source of fiber and protein.

We take the leftovers and use them later in the week to put into a tortilla and add salsa, lettuce, green onion, cilantro, and purple cabbage for a lunch or dinner option!