oh FGS these beans have been soaking since Sunday and boiling for about 6 hours today and they are still hard.

[HerBeatitudeLittleBella]

And this happens every single time I try and cook pulses not from a tin. Kidney beans, cannelini beans, haricots, chickpeas - every sodding bean I ever soak and boil to death doesn't go soft. Why? What am I doing wrong?

How long have you had them? They do this if they have been in the cupboard forever.

That is why I buy the tinned pulses

Cos I cant be bothered with soaking and boiling

And do you have hard or soft water? I think they can take longer in hard water - have you tried filtering the water first?

oh that might be it.
What space of time do they have to be used up by?

I usually go for 6 months max.

are you putting salt in the water? a big pinch of bicarb in teh soaking water is good.

i mean don't put salt in the boiling water.

No I didn't put salt in.

Bicarb eh?

you are not buying them in a tin. That is what you are doing wrong .

I tried this once and never again!

the beans must be tres old though. i have got some black beans which are impervious to cooking, i have a go every so often just for fun.

Honestly in the last 10 years i haven't been able to cook beans

Am convinced by the tin argument....

They are has-beans.

LOL Blu

that just made me snort

i get the tins, very cheap and delicious beans in lidl. haaaaaaaaaaaate that squeaky undercooked dried bean thing.

Have just thrown out a packet of haricot beans, best before December 2009 and a packet of cannelini dated September 2006.

OK that might have been it then....

Sorry, December 2008, obv

bean there done that lol