Varieties of beans

Many well-known bean varieties belong to this species, and none of the lists below are in any way exhaustive. Both bush and running (pole) varieties exist. The colours and shapes of pods and seeds vary tremendously. Let us know if we have missed any important types of beans.

Further information

Click the image to for an enlarged version or the text to take you to our detailed Wiki article on the specific bean.

Recipes using beans

Quantities: dried beans vs cooked beans vs canned beans

A rough guide for quantities of dried beans, compared with cooked or canned beans would be:

  • 1 pound dried beans = 2 cups dried = 4 to 5 cups of cooked beans
  • 1 large (15 oz) can of beans is roughly equivalent to 2 cups of cooked beans

Slow cooking beans

How to cook beans or pulses in a pressure cooker

Use this basic guide if you do not have a specific recipe

  • Pick through the beans and discard any discoloured beans or loose skins
  • Soak in cold water for a minimum of the time shown, soaking overnight is usually the best way to achieve this
  • Change soaking water a few times if possible
  • Never cook the beans in the water they were soaked in
  • Rinse the beans well at the end of the soaking period
  • Ensure the pressure cooker is at least a quarter full
  • Never fill the pressure cooker more than half full
  • Always cover the beans with at least 5 cm (2") water
  • Add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil to the water - this reduces foaming
  • Allow the pressure cooker to get to the required pressure and then begin timing
  • Use the specified pressure release method - this is the natural method in the case of dried beans or pulses
  • A bean is usually perfectly cooked when it can be easily squashed between your forefinger and thumb
  • If the beans are not sufficiently cooked, return to pressure, cook for another 3 minutes and allow the pressure to reduce using the natural method.
    Re-check that the beans are cooked to your liking.


BEAN VARIETY COLD WATER SOAK TIME
minimum period
PRESSURE COOKING TIME COOKING PRESSURE
High = 15 psi
Medium = 10 psi
Low = 5 psi
PRESSURE RELEASE METHOD
Azuki (red) beans None 8 minutes High Natural
Black beans 4 hours 12 minutes High Natural
Black urad beans None 7 minutes High Natural
Black eyed peas None 10 minutes High Natural
Borlotti beans 4 hours 7 minutes High Natural
Broad beans 8 hours 4 minutes Medium Natural
Butter beans 8 hours 4 minutes Medium Natural
Chickpeas 8 hours 25 minutes High Natural
Faba beans, (Fava beans) 8 hours 4 minutes Medium Natural
Lentils or Split peas None 7 minutes High Natural
Lima beans 8 hours 4 minutes Medium Natural
Mung beans (green) 4 hours 9 minutes Low Natural
Pinto or mottled beans 4 hours 12 minutes High Natural
Red kidney beans 4 hours 12 minutes High Natural
Mung beans (red) 4 hours 9 minutes Low Natural
Shell beans 4 hours 10 minutes High Natural
Snap, string or runner beans None 4 minutes Low Cold water release
Soya bean 8 hours 35 minutes High Natural
White or cannellini beans 4 hours 12 minutes High Natural
White urad beans None 7 minutes High Natural
Yellow or Peruano beans 4 hours 10 minutes High Natural

Chef's tip - A selection for the freezer

To ensure that you always have access to a nice variety of beans for recipes, every now and then, open four or five cans of different beans and pulses, add a cup of frozen peas to them and mix well, then freeze them in small plastic coffee cups for later use.

How much does one cup of beans weigh?

Estimated US cup to weight equivalents:

Ingredient US Cups Grams Ounces
Beans any dried beans
1
200 grams 7 ounces
Beans black, kidney - cooked
1
62 grams 2.5 ounces
Beans lima, navy - cooked
1
75 grams 3 ounces
Beans green / French / runner - fresh / raw - sliced, diced or chopped
1
150 grams > 5 ounces
Beans green / French / runner - cooked - sliced, diced or chopped
1
180 grams > 6 ounces

Conversion notes:
Every ingredient has a cups to ounces or grams conversion table. Search for the ingredient, cup to weight conversions are at the end of each ingredient page.

We also have a generic conversion table and a portions per person lookup.