Beans, beans are good for the heart...

[latelatebloomer]

hi, K-girl - We eat a lot of beans in my house, often for breakfast, as soups and chilis are some of my favorite winter breakfasts - we haven't had Beano in the house for years. I use canned beans (Goya, from a "beany" culture is our pick for both price and quality) quite a lot, and I do rinse them. I don't think there's anything special in that canned juice. Black-eyed peas are supposed to be one of the easiest varieties to digest, and I think the little white beans are easier, too, so you might want to rely on those a little more while your system acclimates. Macrobiotic friends used to say a little piece of kombu (a kind of seaweed, you can get it in healthfood stores) made beans more digestable, too.

One of the reasons I like plenty of beans in my diet is the beneficial effects they reportedly have on blood sugar. Before my weight loss and cycling habit, I was insulin-resistant and well on my way to diabetes. In fact, there is an idea out there that people of native heritage pretty much NEED beans in their diet for their bodies to work right, that it's practically a symbiotic relationship.

I eat meat now, but when I was veggie, I made a black-eyed pea & red pepper chili sauté that was sooo good.... I think I'll make some now!

[Thorn]

Second the vote for adaptation. I eat a lot of beans. Those don't tend to be the problem--cabbage, not *that* is a problem.

If you're cooking a mexican/southwestern flavor, consider adding epazote. There is a claim that it reduces the gas.