Ruined a big batch of chili by using old beans, what a waste

Last Saturday I was making a big pot of chili for a family dinner, like 6 quarts worth. I grabbed a bag of pinto beans from the back of my pantry that I'd had for maybe 18 months. After soaking them overnight and cooking for 3 hours, they were still hard as rocks. Ended up having to toss the whole pot because the beans never softened up, lost about $12 in ingredients. Has anyone figured out a good way to test if dried beans are still good before you go through all that effort?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_sandra1mo ago

That test with a separate pot is a smart idea. It's funny how we trust things like a bag of beans to be fine just because it's sealed, but age gets to everything eventually. A little upfront check saves a whole lot of frustration later, same as checking the oil in your truck before a long drive.

the_kevin1mo agoTop Commenter

You ever had one of those cooking fails that just makes you want to kick yourself? I feel your pain on this one. I did basically the same thing with a bag of black beans that were like two years old, soaked them for a whole day and they were still crunchy little pebbles. The worst part is you put in all that time and effort, smelling that chili simmering, and then you have to dump the whole thing. I've learned to test a few beans by just boiling them in a separate pot for like 15 minutes before committing to the full batch, if they stay hard then you know that bag is a dud and you can save the rest of your ingredients.