Black Beans in the Slow Cooker

So if you know you are going to use a bunch of black beans and you have the foresight to buy a bag of dried beans, and then soak them the night before, then you can save yourself some dollars and some sodium by making them in the slow cooker.  I got this from Stephanie O'Dea's website but I'll paraphrase it here.

Pour the bag of beans in the slow cooker, throw out any that look yucky, and then add water and cover the slow cooker.  Do NOT turn it on yet.  Let it sit for 8 hours or overnight.  In the morning, dump out the water (it will be bean colored) and then add fresh water, enough to cover them with 2-3 inches of water.  Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.  They are done when they are bite tender.

1 2/3 C. is equal to one 15 oz. can, and a 16 ounce bag yields about 3 cans worth.  The only thing is that they are lacking in salt, and you can tell.  But aside from that, they're great.  They'll keep in your fridge for 3-4 days (maybe more but I get weirded out after that) or you can freeze them for later use.  I usually make them this way when I know I am going to be using a ton, like for the Healthy Turkey and Black Bean Chili.

If you're going to do this with red or kidney beans, make sure you boil them for 10 minutes plus first, so you kill off any weird diseases.  You don't have to do this with black beans.