Beans the Frugal Super Food – Frugal Foods Review

Posted on Feb 19 2009 - 4:55pm by Patty

This is second in the series of food reviews, where we will be taking a closer look at Frugal Foods that are also very nutritious.

We have all heard the phrase “Super Foods” in reference to foods that are very high in nutrition and exceptionally good for you. The problem that comes in with most of these foods is that many of them are exotic items that you will pay a premium price for, others such as blueberries, are expensive out of season and not in the budget of the average frugal family.

I want to take a look at a few foods that are “Super” in their nutritional content but are also very frugal making them in the price range of any family.

beans

Beans Taste Good

Beans are a very misunderstood food, many people can identify them in things such as refried beans in burritos, or kidney beans in chili but that is as far as it goes. Many even say they don’t like beans but often as not this is because they have never properly learned how to cook them.

Beans are very tasty, often they can also take on the flavors of the foods you are cooking them with, but what is more important is they are very nutritious.

Beans are One of the Best Nutritional Values Out There

Beans beat out most foods on our list because they are packed with nutrition, and they are one of the cheapest foods you can buy.

Consider these nutritional facts:

  • 1/2 cup of dried beans supplies 6-7 grams of protein, 10% of the RDA but only costs .20 per serving
  • Each serving of beans contains only 120 calories and almost no fat
  • 1/2 cup of cooked beans contains 25-35% of your daily fiber needs
  • Beans are rich in many vitamins such as Vitamin B, Folicin, thiamin.
  • Beans are a rich source of minerals something that is lacking in the American diet. They contain large amounts of iron, phosphorous, magnesium, manganese, potassium, copper, calcium, and zinc.

Beans are filling, they are considered both a Protein serving and a vegetable serving.

Eat Beans Every Day

If your family like the typical American family tends to  eat meat with every meal, consider replacing 30 – 50% of your meat with a serving of beans, higher in nutrition, with zero saturated fat, they make a frugal and nutritious replacement for your expensive meats.

If you need help preparing beans,  I will be posting an entry about how to work with beans as well as a number of recipes which I will link here.

Tomorrow- how to prepare both dried and canned beans for cooking.

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