Fermented Beans
Enjoy these tangy and delicious fermented beans!
Servings: 1 Quart Jar
Equipment
- 1 Quart/Liter Jar
- 1 Glass Fermenting Weight If you don't have a glass fermenting weight, watch my video on DIY alternatives provided on my website or YouTube channel.
- 1 Lid A regular lid will work. Optionally, you can use a specialty fermenting lid.
Ingredients
There Are 2 Versions To Choose From:
1. Beans Only Version
- 3.5 cup Cooked Beans Only Bean Ideas: kidney, great northern, turtle, navy, red chili, chickpeas, etc.
- 1 cup Liquid Starter Culture See Below for liquid starter culture options
- ¾ cup Water Optionally, you can replace the water with more liquid starter culture if you have plenty.
- ½ tsp Salt Use a salt that does not contain anti-caking agents.
2. Beans & Veggies Version
- 2.5 cup Cooked Beans Bean Ideas: kidney, great northern, turtle, navy, red chili, chickpeas, etc.
- 1 cup Raw Chopped Vegetables Suggestions: carrots, bell peppers, leeks, onions, zucchini, or cabbage. Use one or a combination.
- 1 cup Liquid Starter Culture See Below for liquid starter culture options
- ¾ cup Water Optionally, you can replace the water with more liquid starter culture if you have plenty.
- ½ tsp Salt Use a salt that does not contain anti-caking agents.
Liquid Starter Culture Option #1 KOMBUCHA
Liquid Starter Culture Option #2 FERMENTED VEGETABLE BRINE
Instructions
Prepare The Beans
- Cook the beans of your choice until the the skins have split. They should be quite tender, but not mush.
- If the beans didn't split during cooking, you can gently break the beans open with your hands or a fork. Be careful not to mash them. FYI: If the skins aren’t split open, the probiotics will not be able to feed on the inner starch of the bean and the fermentation process will fail.
Prepare The Vegetables (optional)
- If you are adding vegetables: Chop up the vegetables and add to a large bowl.
- Add the beans to the veggies in the bowl and mix everything together without mashing the beans. If you want to ferment beans only, then skip this step.
Prepare The Jar & Weight
- Wash the jar and fermenting weight in hot soapy water. Sterilization is not required, hot & soapy water is sufficient.
Load The Jar
- Fill the jar with the bean mixture. NOTE: Make sure the beans have cooled to room temperature first.Then while holding the jar with one hand, bump its bottom end with your other hand to settle the beans until there is about a 3 inch (5-6cm) headspace.
- Add a glass fermenting weight atop everything in the jar.Set the jar down and next prepare the liquid starter culture that will also double as the brine.
Prepare The Liquid Starter Culture
- Pour your choice of liquid starter culture into a pourable glass measure cup.
- Add the salt to the starter culture. Stir the salt until dissolved.
- Add the water to the liquid starter culture. Optionally, you can replace the water with more vegetable brine or kombucha if you have plenty.
- Pour the liquid starter culture into to the jar until all the contents and the fermenting weight are covered.
The Fermentation Period
- Leave the beans on the counter at room temperature for 4 to 5 days. So long as the lid is loose, the fermentation gasses will be able to escape and you will not need to burp the jar.
- Exposure to regular room light is fine, but it is best to keep the ferment out of direct sunlight.
Ending The Fermentation
- After the fermentation period of 4 to 5 days, it is time to end the fermentation.If kahm yeast developed on the surface of the beans, do not worry, it is harmless.
- You can remove the kahm yeast by first reaching into the jar and pulling out the fermenting weight. The removal of the weight will take with it most of the kahm yeast.Follow up with a paper towel to dab off the remaining kahm yeast flakes floating on the surface. Also wipe the inside of the jar with the paper towel A little leftover kahm yeast is harmless so don't worry if there are remnants. In my Fermented Beans video, I provide a demonstration of how to remove the kahm yeast.
Storage
- Do not return the fermenting weight to the jar. Place a tight lid on the jar of fermented beans and transfer to the refrigerator for storage. If the beans fermented properly, they should last about 2 months in the fridge.Enjoy!
Video
Notes
WHEN IS IT READY TO EAT?
On day 4, give the beans or lentils a taste test. If it tastes good to you, then you can begin eating the fermented beans and move them to the refrigerator for long term storage. If you want a little more tang to the taste, or if the PH needs to drop further below 4.5 in order to be well into the “safety zone”, then leave it for another day on the counter before moving to the refrigerator. (Remove the weight once placed in the fridge so you can reuse it with other fermentations)
KAHM YEAST
Kahm yeast is most likely going to develop on the beans somewhere between days 3 to 5. This is normal for fermented beans and should not cause alarm. Follow the video instructions on how to remove it.
SMELL
To determine if the fermentation is good, smell the beans starting on day 3 up until the day you place them in the fridge. A healthy fermentation should have a light soury-sweet smell. This means the beneficial, probiotic bacteria are dominating and a successful fermentation is taking place. If a foul/stinky odor develops then that means the beans are being taken over by bad bacteria and are not properly fermenting. Throw away the beans if they have a foul stench. PH By day 3 or 4 the PH should drop below 4.5 on the PH scale. (In my home this usually takes 4 days, but can be sooner in other homes.) Take a PH reading with either paper strips or a digital meter. If the PH has not dropped by day 5 to a PH below 4.5, then it probably won’t. For some reason, the fermentation failed. Watch the video to review troubleshooting questions.
To determine if the fermentation is good, smell the beans starting on day 3 up until the day you place them in the fridge. A healthy fermentation should have a light soury-sweet smell. This means the beneficial, probiotic bacteria are dominating and a successful fermentation is taking place. If a foul/stinky odor develops then that means the beans are being taken over by bad bacteria and are not properly fermenting. Throw away the beans if they have a foul stench. PH By day 3 or 4 the PH should drop below 4.5 on the PH scale. (In my home this usually takes 4 days, but can be sooner in other homes.) Take a PH reading with either paper strips or a digital meter. If the PH has not dropped by day 5 to a PH below 4.5, then it probably won’t. For some reason, the fermentation failed. Watch the video to review troubleshooting questions.