Food of the week: Black Beans

A few days ago I wrote a post about my wonderful birthday dinner at a Latin American bistro. It seems that this week I have been eating quite a bit of Latin/Cuban food. Tuesday I had dinner at a Mexican restaurant and last night I found myself at a Cuban restaurant with a friend who was in town. While contemplating a food of the week I thought maybe I should incorporate a common staple in all of these cuisines. So today I present to you, the black bean.

Benefits:

• Good source of cholesterol lowering fiber. This means that your blood sugar will not spike after eating them. Good news for diabetics and those with hypoglycemia. And since the fiber is insoluble, it helps to prevent constipation, irritable bowel and diverticulosis.
• Protein that’s almost fat free (unlike those pesky meats)!
• Detoxifies sulfites.
• Antioxidants! And much like chocolate, the darker the bean the more antioxidants.
• Help prevent cancer.
• Lowers risk of heart attack.
• Good source of Iron.

Drawbacks:

• Because black beans contain Purines, excessive eating may lead to the gout or kidney stones.

Ways to eat black beans:

• Cuban black beans and rice are a favorite side dish of mine. I always get them whenever I go out for Cuban food. Trader Joe’s makes a pretty decent version that you can just heat up and throw over some rice.
• Amy’s Organics makes the best darn black bean soup I’ve ever tasted.
• I process black beans with olive oil to make the base for my taco dip, which is loved by all. By all!
• Essential in my Southwestern Quinoa recipe.

Little known facts:

• Dried black beans can be stored for up to a year.
• Black beans have been around for over 7,000 years.