roguequilter

i became the family cook when my grmother & i moved in with my family. my daddy taught me to cook. he taught me about soaking beans, then putting them on to finish cooking slowly thru the day on the wood stove. i started using a crockpot after my grfather bought me one. i would soak the beans, rinse, then turn them on & go to work. i am a retired rn. worked anywhere from 8 to 16 hrs before heading home to my nice hot dinner. i set them at low since i never knew how long i would be gone. now i start them at high and turn them down to medium after they start to soften & i add the seasonings & other ingredients ..which have been warmed in microwave if necessary. adding salt to early prevents them from becoming soft. i've come along way from cooking beans on woodstove ..and they are always great! try the crockpot again ..there are crockpot recipes on web that may give you better, more in-depth info than i have here. one thing tho, one of my bean cook books said to not rinse black beans, so i no longer do. but all beans should be soaked with the lid off to allow gases to escape, and the rinsing helps a bit more with removing the gas producing enzymes that beans are famous for.