Kidney bean poisoning?

[texanatheart]

Okay, so my husband cooked dinner today after I gave him a recipe to use. It was a New Orleans beans and rice recipe that called for dry kidney beans and you have to boil the beans for a while in the beginning. When I got home from work, it had been cooking for 2 hours (recipe calls for 2.5 hours), and the beans were far from being ready. I asked if he boiled the beans in the beginning (like the recipe called for), and he said, "Oh, I guess I forgot that part."

We did something else for dinner, thinking we could let it finish cooking and eat it as leftovers tomorrow. It's been simmering for a few hours more now, but the beans are still not quite cooked through. Now I'm remembering something I came across a year or so ago about dry kidney beans having some kind of poison, but if you prepare them correctly it's safe. I found the page (linked here) and now I'm afraid I'm going to have to dump the beans. SUCH A SHAME BECAUSE IT TASTES SO GOOD!!!!!

So what do you think? I really need to dump them, don't I?

[Fuamami]

It doesn't sound like a danger if they've already been boiled for at least two hours.

However, I know from personal experience that if beans aren't properly soaked, either for about six hours in cold water or a "quick-soak" with boiling water (which it sounds like you were going to do), they don't ever really soften up the way they should. I guess if I were you I would try to cook them more and see what happens.

[texanatheart]

I'm going to need to add more water, too. It's pretty thick. But it's getting late here. Guess I'll keep it going as long as I'm up.

So you don't think (after reading the link I posted) that even though they are essentially being slow-cooked and never really were boiled per-se that you would keep them?

[tanyalynn]

Do you have a cooking thermometer? Then you'd know just how warm the beans are.

[texanatheart]

So smart! Going to check now...

[EviesMom]

Personally I'd check the temperature on them with a thermometer. You could dump them into a pot and cook it on the stove at a higher temperature to get rid of the toxin if the slow cooker just isn't getting to temp. You would need to add more water, though.

[texanatheart]

It's 132 right now. But I turned off the heat 30 minutes or so ago. Still don't know what to do...

We have an electric stove, and it was on med-low heat for at least 3 hours, probably 4.......

[cristeen]

Poison-wise, I'd say you're fine. But the beans may never soften at this point. Did that recipe contain tomatoes? It's a pretty common problem, actually - the tomato prevents the bean from softening, and it's particularly problematic with red beans. That's why you have to cook them first.

Also, if the beans were particularly old, they may never soften.

[texanatheart]

Originally Posted by cristeen

Poison-wise, I'd say you're fine. But the beans may never soften at this point. Did that recipe contain tomatoes? It's a pretty common problem, actually - the tomato prevents the bean from softening, and it's particularly problematic with red beans. That's why you have to cook them first.

Also, if the beans were particularly old, they may never soften.

No tomatoes. I bought the beans a month or two ago.

[texanatheart]

Well, I turned the heat back on (to where I had it most of the cooking time), and the temp reading shot up past 160. So I think I'm alright, since they cooked at that heat for so long. LOTS of leftovers for me! The beans are still not quite cooked all the way through, so hubby won't eat it, but I'll be chowing on it... knowing that I'm not poisoning myself.

[mamadelbosque]

Umm... yeah, I never soak beans. Ever. I used to do the 'quick soak' (bring to a boil, boil for x minutes then turn it off and let'm sit for an hour or so), but, once I didn't have time/forgot and they came out the same.... So, now I don't bother. But I also almost always cook beans in the crockpot for like a 6+ hours.