Rinse beans a few times in cold water to get the dust off, pick out any obvious rocks.
Put beans in big cooking pot
Add water to cover, plus a little extra.
Bring to boil.
Bring right down to low simmer.
Add some really good olive oil.
Let the pot of beans simmer. Check water several times in the first hour or so. Keep the beans covered so that they can dance around but not so that they feel lost in the pot. Cooked this way, they won't absorb water as you might expect.
Use the least amount of water you can manage to give the beans freedom of movement while they cook. Add water when you need to, but the more you add, the more you will dilute the beanygoodness. Pay attention to this as you go.
If you need to leave them overnight, keep them low-low-low and maybe skew the pot so that it's not completely resting on the burner. Feel the situation out. Trust yourself. You are helping a bean relax into itself. This is a big deal.
If you have a slow-cooker and a day or so, just bring the beans to a boil and let them sit in your slow cooker for a day or so.
Add salt when they're tender, cook more, then put them in your recipe.
(Is this a stupid recipe? Probably. Everyone wants to write a cookbook, but I would suck at that.)
The key thing that I've learned is about the water. The beans need as little water as possible in order to succeed, and you just need to be patient, patient, patient as they absorb whatever they want. Measurements won't do. You have to know your beans and watch. Give them room to dance. Not more. They need to connect with their fellow dancers. It needs to be a happy jumble in the pot. It needs to be kinda wicked. But the beans always need to have room to get away from their dancing partners. They need to dance by themselves when they want. That's how much water to use. Add water when needed -- but never too much.
Then season and put them in recipes. Trust the good olive oil you used earlier to help open them up to receive your seasoning later, when they're really ready.
Okay? Beans are special.
