Anasazi Beans with Vegetables, Short-Grained Brown Rice, Green Cauliflower (No Added Fat)

As I described this past April, Anasazi beans are tasty and seem to cook in under a half hour. I decided to make an Anasazi bean dish with vegetables, but didn't get a chance to soak the beans overnight. They did have about five hours of soaking with, initially, boiling water. I don't know if I've ever cooked short grain brown rice, but bought some a few days ago, and decided to try it. I cooked tonight not just for my family, but also took over a good size serving for a friend and her family. Here is what I did:


Ingredients

• Approx. 2 1/2 cups Anasazi beans soaked overnight (but see comment above)
• 1 vegan bouillon cube
• Enough water to just cover beans
• 3 cups carrots cut into 1/4" slices
• 2 compressed cups kale cut into approx. 3/4" pieces (about half of a bunch of kale)
• Kernels from two ears of fire-roasted corn (approximately a cup)
• Additional 1/4 cup water
• 1/8 t turmeric
• 1/4 t oregano
• 1/4 t salt (or to taste at the table)
• 1/4 t lemon pepper (or freshly ground black pepper)
• (Optional) 2t chopped basil
• 1 1/4 cup onion cut into 3/8" cubes
• (Optional) Up to a cup of tomato, cut into 3/8" cubes, or up to 1/4 cup marinara sauce
• 2T lime (or lemon) juice

Process

1. I put the beans, bouillon cube, and enough water to just cover the beans into my Instant Pot pressure cooker and cooked on high pressure for 25 minutes.
2. After a few minutes, I slowly let out remaining pressure and added the carrot, kale, corn, additional 1/4 cup water, turmeric, oregano, salt, lemon pepper, and basil.
3. I cooked on high pressure for another 2 minutes.
4. When I was ready to serve, I slowly let out remaining pressure, added the onion and lime juice, and served. I had thought of also mixing in some fresh tomato or marinara, but the dish seemed full of flavor and not lacking, so I decided to skip tomato or tomato sauce.

I used the brown rice setting on my rice cooker to make rice; I put in twice as much water as rice, plus a vegan bouillon cube. This short grain brown rice could also be cooked stovetop for 50m. I served some raw green cauliflower.

Results

The beans were very good! My wife and I added some hot sauce at the table to them. I liked the rice - predictably, it was sticky. I have grown up preferring long-grained rice, but think I'll occasionally make short-grained, as well.

Ideas for the future

Were I not also cooking for a spice averse child, I'd add some hot sauce or chili powder, as well as some ginger.