5 Frugal Ideas for Cooking Black Beans

by Nicole Dean

If you have a family budget worked out, you know how hard it is to stick to it without having some real concrete plans and strategies to stretch your money as far as it will go. Usually, the first area we can squeeze a few extra dollars out of our wallets is on groceries. I’d like to introduce you to your new partner in your frugal endeavor, the black bean.

If you find yourself wandering aimlessly through the aisles of your grocery store, looking for something to make for dinner that won’t break your budget, take a detour over to the black bean display and check out the price. Considering that black beans are loaded with nutrients like protein, iron, calcium, and potassium, and they are high in fiber, and low in fat and sugar, they really offer a lot of bang for your buck. It’s obvious that black beans should be a staple in every household, frugal or not. So, let’s think up a few simple meals to create with your new best friend… the black bean.

1) Quick and Easy Beany Soup

You’ll need 1 can each of black beans, garbanzo beans, butter beans, and navy beans (although you really can use any kinds of beans). In a large pot, pour 2 tablespoons olive oil, add 1 cup chopped celery and 1 cup chopped onion. Cook until celery is a little tender. Now add 1 clove garlic, minced or crushed and cook for just a minute. Open and drain, but do not rinse, all four bean cans and pour into pot. Add 1 small can diced tomatoes and 1 small can chicken broth. Simmer slowly for about 20 minutes. It’s ready to eat.

2) Bountiful Bean Salad

You’ll be choosing your favorite canned beans for this salad, keeping in mind color and texture; favorites like black beans, butter beans, navy beans, kidney beans, waxed beans, and whatever else you like. Drain and rinse all the beans and put them in a large serving bowl. To the beans, add some sweet onion, or green onion including the tops, chopped celery, freshly chopped parsley, maybe some fresh rosemary, or whatever herb you like, and top it all with a little shake or two of a very good vinaigrette salad dressing, I use Paul Newman’s Own Balsamic Vinaigrette. You’ve got yourself a kid-friendly and nutritious salad.

3) Simple Black Beans and Taco Sauce

Alright, this one may appear a little strange at first, but my daughter actually sold me on its merits. Drain and rinse your black beans, making sure they’re drained well. Put your black beans into a bowl and top them with any favorite taco sauce, even those little leftover packets from take-out. Mix gently and enjoy! You just have to trust me on this one. Of course, you may also use any taco sauce you have in your refrigerator, or even a nice hot salsa will do. But, just a touch, not too much sauce. You want to just flavor your black beans. (Of course you can sprinkle some shredded cheese on top, too.)

4) Black Bean Cottage Cheese Salad

Quick and simple salads are sometimes the best. In a serving bowl, put about 1 cup of cottage cheese, sprinkle some salt over the top and add a generous amount of freshly ground black pepper. Now, drain and rinse a can of black beans, and spoon about 1/2 cup of the black beans over the cottage cheese. Chop up some celery and sprinkle over the top. You now have a snack or side salad that delicious and nutritious, loaded with protein, iron, calcium and fiber.

5) Quick Black Bean Burrito

If you have a few staples in your pantry you can whip up this simple burrito. You’ll need a flour or corn tortilla, either heated or not, that’s up to you. Drain and rinse your black beans, then start building your burrito however you want. I add black beans, some diced tomatoes, a little onion, lots of shredded cheddar cheese, a little sour cream, leftover rice, some chopped up pieces of chicken from last night, and whatever else I have to use up. Depending on how I feel that day, I go a little heavier on the black beans and lighter on the other stuff. Get your salsa or taco sauce ready and enjoy.

These recipes are just a few ways to use the wonderful, and versatile black bean. All five of these simple black bean dishes can be tweaked easily by you to show off your individual style and to become your own family favorites.

Nicole Dean is the mostly-sane mom and owner of ShowMomtheMoney.com – a fun and informative site to help moms achieve success working from home. She welcomes you to learn more ways to save money in her Frugal Moms section. Be sure to sign up for her free tutorial for work at home moms.

Time Saving Cooking Tips

Cooking may not be your favorite chore, but it is something that needs to be done every day.  Thankfully, there are many time management techniques that you can use to make cooking a faster and easier part of your day.

One of the easiest ways to save time throughout the week is to plan your meals ahead of time.  This will free up the time you spend each night trying to decide what to make for dinner, racing to the grocery store, standing in line to pay for your purchases, and then driving back home to cook your meal.

Instead, you’ll sit down, write out the meals you’ll have during the week, and make one trip to the grocery store.  You can plan your meals according to what is on sale that week, which will also help you save money.

The following are some more tips to help you save time, but still provide tasty and healthy meals for your family:
* Start using your crockpot! This is a great time saving tool when it comes to cooking.  When you get up in the morning, you can throw your meal in and let it simmer all day.  When you are ready to eat, your dinner will be hot and ready to eat.

* You may want to consider freezer cooking.  With this method of cooking, you’ll spend one weekend preparing a month’s worth of dinners and then you’ll store them in the freezer.  At night, you’ll take out the next day’s dinner and let it thaw in the fridge.  When your family is ready to eat, just pop that night’s dinner into the oven.

* The casserole was very popular in the 1970’s, but it fell out of fashion during the 80’s and 90’s.  They’re making a come back among busy families and for good reason.  This is a one pot dinner that is quick and easy to make (and easy to clean, since there is only the one pot plus plates and silverware). You can find some cookbooks on Amazon.com or eBay to give you some inspiration.

* If you don’t have time to cook a whole meal, you can opt to have a soup and sandwiches night. You can find some great soup starter mixes in the soup aisle. You simply open the mix, add water, and any fresh ingredients you choose and let it simmer.  While that’s cooking, you can make up some turkey and cheese sandwiches and cut up some raw veggies and serve those with a side dip.  You’ll have a very filling and nutritious dinner.

* Short cut cooking is the process of mixing prepared food with fresh ingredients to create a quick meal with homemade taste.  For instance, you can purchase a rotisserie chicken from the deli and serve it with some pasta and a side salad that you made at home.

* You can also plan your leftovers in order to create quick and easy meals throughout the week.  For instance, using the chicken from the above example, you can take the leftover chicken meat and use it to make a stir fry or chicken salad sandwiches for the next day’s meal.

Marinade Ideas

photo credit: Yandle

I’m not sure about you, but I love to see well seasoned food on the grill. It seems that when you go to the restaurant and order a grilled steak, it has those beautiful grill lines and is so juicy it makes your mouth water before the steak ever hits your lips. On top is a sauce that can be tasted all the way through the meat. With a little practice and just the right combination of marinade and seasonings, you can learn to create a steak marinade just as good, if not better, as those you thought could only be found in your favorite steak house. Read more

Healthy Grilling Ideas

photo credit: Steven Fernandez

Grilling food is actually better for you than one would think. This is not dependent on the type of grill you have it is the grilling process. Here are some ways to make your next grilling adventure a healthy one for the family. Read more

Quick Tips to Keep the Grill at It’s Best

photo credit: billaday

With summer almost upon us, barbeque grills everywhere are being dusted off and cleaned for the new season. If you are ready to try your hand at grilling this year, here are a few tips to get you started off on the right foot.

Grilling properly is something that you learn over time. It is like anything else in life. You get better with practice. To learn how to grill a chicken breast or a steak properly, you will have to cook more than one or two a season.

With that said, I know that you are more ready than ever to get started. You have barbeque on the brain and there’s no stopping you. So, here are few quick tips to make this summer’s backyard barbecues the best yet.

The first thing to do is to start out with a clean grill. No one wants to put fresh cuts of meat on a grill that is crusted over with pieces of pork or chicken from the last time you used the grill. Besides the fact that it’s gross, you don’t want that hamburger to taste like a chicken burger. Clean the grill after each use while it is still hot so the char comes off easily.

Use the proper temperature. A gas grill will give you a more even cooking temperature over the entire surface of the grill. If you use a charcoal grill or a smoker, know where the temperature is the hottest and start your meat out in that area. When it is close to being done, move it to the cooler side to finish cooking.

While we are speaking about temperature, let your grill get good and hot before putting anything on it. Some people think that you don’t have to preheat a grill, but meat cooks better when it has reached the correct grilling temperature. You wouldn’t put your roast in a cold oven would you? The same goes for the grill. If you want, use a thermometer to gauge the temperature before grilling your meats.

Have all of your utensils and marinades ready and waiting beside the grill. The one thing to remember when grilling is that you have to man the grill for the entire time you are cooking. It is not like an oven that you can walk away from and come back in fifteen minutes. A grill that is working at its optimum temperature will cook the food faster than you think. Closing the lid also increases the heat and decreases cooking time.

So, prepare your area ahead of time. Don’t forget to bring along your favorite drink and maybe even a snack to nibble on since you will be the happy gourmet griller for the day. Learning to grill can be a lonely job but one whose product will be greatly appreciated by everyone when it comes time to eat. Remember, the more you grill the better you’ll get at it, so cook out as much as your heart desires this summer. Watch how your crowd grows once the word starts spreading that you are the king (or queen) of the neighborhood grill.

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