question about cooking dried chick peas

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

Anybody know what that smell is caused by, and the white foam?

This is probably due to fermentation of yeasts in the garbanzos. You
can probably get away with giving them a good rinsing after about 24
hours, but if you let them soak for much longer than that, it may be
better to start again :-)

Neil
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Quoted message said:

But yesterday I had let some dried beans soak for an extra long time,
more than 24 hours (I was just too busy to get to them before that),
and when I lifted the cover to the pot, the water was totally covered
with the white foamy stuff, and it gave off a foul odor, a bit like
sour milk. Again, I dumped out that water, gave the beans a very
thorough rinsing (until I couldn't smell anything on them), and scrubbed
out the pot. After I cooked the beans, they tasted fine, so I don't
think anything's wrong with them.

Anybody know what that smell is caused by, and the white foam?

No, but I have noticed the little bubbles. I soak garbanzos for a
couple of days because it takes that long for me to get my act
together and cook them . I change the water at intervals during that
period so it doesn't get to the point of smelling.

Usually. I have to admit once I forgot about them for a week. They
were on the stove in the ornamental red enamal pot that I always have
on the back burner so they were easy to forget. They didn't smell but
there was a large head of froth. I took them to the cellar sink and
doused it with bleach. And left it for another couple of days :>

Sue(tm)
Lead me not into temptation... I can find it myself!

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

Actually, it's about soaking them. I do it a lot, and I notice that
the next day, after they've been soaking over night, there's some
white foamy stuff on top of the water. I assume that's some kind of
bacteria giving off gas or something? If so, I guess it's not a
harmful bacteria. Anyway, I usually dump out the water, wash the
beans and the pot well, and fill with clean water, then cook the
soaked beans.

But yesterday I had let some dried beans soak for an extra long time,
more than 24 hours (I was just too busy to get to them before that),
and when I lifted the cover to the pot, the water was totally covered
with the white foamy stuff, and it gave off a foul odor, a bit like
sour milk. Again, I dumped out that water, gave the beans a very
thorough rinsing (until I couldn't smell anything on them), and scrubbed
out the pot. After I cooked the beans, they tasted fine, so I don't
think anything's wrong with them.

Anybody know what that smell is caused by, and the white foam?

Thanks,

J.

I cannot answer your question, but you should be aware that soaking dry
beans is unnececssary. All it does is shorten the cooking time.

--
Peter Aitken
Visit my recipe and kitchen myths page at www.pgacon.com/cooking.htm

Peter Aitken said:

I cannot answer your question, but you should be aware that soaking dry
beans is unnececssary. All it does is shorten the cooking time.

With chick peas, though, this is significant. It still takes a couple
of hours cooking to get them soft enough for hummus, even when they have
been pre-soaked.

But you're right, and I usually don't pre-soak other dried beans.

Thanks!
J

Neil Trotter said:

This is probably due to fermentation of yeasts in the garbanzos. You
can probably get away with giving them a good rinsing after about 24
hours, but if you let them soak for much longer than that, it may be
better to start again :-)

How come? Because they won't taste good, or because they spoil and might
make you sick to eat them?

Thanks,
J

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

Neil Trotter said:

... but if you let them soak for much longer than that, it may be
better to start again :-)

How come? Because they won't taste good, or because they spoil and might
make you sick to eat them?

For me, just to remove doubt ... I wouldn't want to risk eating anything
that might fall into either category (bad-tasting or sick-making).

The fermentation theory is just a suggestion, but it seems clear that a
organic chemical reaction of sorts is taking place, and one which is not
necessarily part of your recipe :-)

But hey, I have consumed many products of a fermentation process in the
past without coming to much harm ...

Neil
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Quoted message said:

Peter Aitken said:

I cannot answer your question, but you should be aware that soaking dry
beans is unnececssary. All it does is shorten the cooking time.

With chick peas, though, this is significant. It still takes a couple
of hours cooking to get them soft enough for hummus, even when they have
been pre-soaked.

But you're right, and I usually don't pre-soak other dried beans.

Thanks!
J

In my experience, chick peas (aka garbanzo beans) take a lot less time to
soak than most other dried beans. There's always the "quick soak" method,
too. Just bring the beans to a boil, remove from heat. Cover and let sit
for an hour and then cook as you usually would for the recipe.

Jill