Guest guest Posted July 8, 2004 Report Share Posted July 8, 2004 > The dried seeds of green beans, when mature, are known as Great > Northern beans. But not all seeds that come from a formerly green bean are Great Northerns, of course; dried beans come in a zillion varieties. Pinto, pink, Great Northern, navy (pea beans), adzuki/azuki, black turtle, black valentine, appaloosa, Jacob's cattle, wren's egg, soldier, red kidney, white kidney, lima/butterbean, small red (Mexican frijole), Amish knuttle, snowcap (Hidatsa shield), yellow-eye, Steuben, mung, etc., almost ad infinitum. And that doesn't even count all the various cowpeas/field peas/blackeyed beans, which are more like beans than peas. The wealth of dried beans in the Americas is thanks principally to its Native peoples. They had a splendid cuisine based on corn (maize), beans, squash and often tomatoes long before most Euro-Americans discovered those foods. At least 80% of the beans listed above came originally from the Indian nations; the Mandan, Hidatsa and Lakota of the northern plains were especially good at breeding beans, and Great Northern was originally a Mandan variety. >These medium-sized white beans are traditionally > prepared in the United States as Boston baked beans, Those, or Navy beans, or (even more traditionally) one of the New England varieties like Jacob's cattle or soldier beans. > Rather bland-tasting, Ohhhh, I disagree! They're mild, but I definitely wouldn't call them bland. Try 'em with millet, onion and some parsley in mild (no tomatoes, turnips or rutabagas) veggie broth, and serve 'em warm, not hot; not only do they take up the other flavors, the combination also brings out the beans' own flavor beautifully. Rain @@@@ \\\\\\ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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