Cooking pasta is easy. A little water, a hot stove and about 6-10 minutes and you have the base for some really amazing culinary creations! It isn’t any different when cooking with TOLERANT legume pasta, although there are some and it is a pretty fun way to eat your beans!

Let’s start with why…

Legumes are loaded with proteins and “good for you” nutrients and when ground into flour, these magic pods can be formed into pasta shapes. Tolerant uses no fillers or binders so all the goodness from the legume stays in each and every noodle – it looks and cooks like pasta BUT is really a legume in disguise!

These helpful hints will help them cook up just right because when they are overcooked, no lie, it is a gooey, gunky mess!

#1 Use a LARGE pot!

Legumes will foam when cooking – even more so than traditional pasta since they are really beans! You will likely use a slightly larger pot then you would for traditional pasta prep. When in doubt, choose the bigger pot.

#2 Use PLENTY of Water.

There must be enough water to cover the noodles in the pot, but also allow for the natural starches to cook off and expansion during cooking. Legume pasta does not expand nearly as much as traditional pasta though because it is full of natural legume goodness.

 #3 Keep a watchful eye

A best practice is to test the product as it’s cooking. A good time is just under the lowest cook time noted on the TOLERANT package especially the first couple times you cook it.  The noodles can be sensitive to heat and each variety can cook a bit differently depending on your cooktop or your pot.

#4 Be sure to RINSE

To stop the cooking process, rinse immediately after draining the pasta. If they sit without rinsing, they will continue to cook.

 

REMEMBER:

– It is normal for the pasta to break up a bit – especially the spaghetti – without any binders or sticky starches, it is no different than cooking a pot of beans.

-Starchy, foamy water happens and a natural part of the cooking process- do not be alarmed!

– Always watch the first batch closely to know how your stove or cookware will handle the pasta- it is key to cooking success.

– Use legume pastas just as you would any other pasta – it just adds to the goodness of the recipe!

– Cook times average anywhere from 6-10 minutes depending on the variety

 

Here’s to happy cooking, happy noodles and happy, healthy bellies!