How to cook beans in a rice cooker

Cooking beans from dry, instead of buying canned, is both economical and healthy.  Canned beans seem inexpensive, but for the cost of a can of black beans, walk two aisles over and buy a bag of dry black beans and you can have quadruple the amount of beans for the same price.

Cooking beans may seem intimidating but is actually very simple.  All it takes is dry beans, heat, and water.  If you already know how to use your rice cooker to make rice, then you have everything it takes to make beans.  Unlike rice, beans take three times their volume in water.

Rice cookers generally come in two sizes.  The smaller sizes make three to four cups rice, the larger size makes about double this amount.  In a smaller size rice cooker, use one and a half cups of dry beans.  Be sure to pick through the dry beans for any stones.  For this amount of beans, add four cups of water.  In larger size rice cooker, use three cups of beans and five cups of water.  In both cases, turn on the cooker and walk away!  Really!  Don't add anything else - DO NOT ADD SALT at this point, the beans will be tough when cooked. 

When the rice cooker has stopped, or switched over to "warming" mode, it's time to add more water.  For the smaller cooker add an additional one cup of water.  For the larger cooker add an additional two cups of water.  Turn on your cooker and walk away - again!  When the cooker stops this this time, your beans are done.

This second cooking is the time to add any seasoning.  Some suggestions, chili powder, sauteed onion or green pepper, crushed tomatoes, herbs and spices.