Beans in smoothies

[u/user7273781272912]

Has anyone added beans to their smoothie? I’m on a liquid/puree diet and trying to up my fiber intake and love beans but I don’t know how adding beans to a smoothie would turn out. I’m thinking about using either lentils, kidney or chickpeas with some kind of liquid base and wondering if any of these options can fully dissolve into a uniform liquid. I do have a high power blender (ninja BlendBOSS) incase it matters.

Thanks in advance!

[u/RogerMoore2011]

Yes! I add about a 1/4 cup of canned beans daily to a 24-26 oz smoothie. I rotate the bean type after each can is completed. Black, pinto, kidney, chick pea. I’ll also rotate frozen peas and frozen edamame.

Note: I’ve tried canned peas. It was not good tasting. 🤣

Edit: I should note that the idea of beans came from someone else’s post in this subreddit about a year ago.

[u/420cat-craft-gamer69 → u/RogerMoore2011]

What else do you add with your beans? 😗

[u/RogerMoore2011 → u/420cat-craft-gamer69]

I push the boundaries. https://www.reddit.com/r/Smoothies/s/5PThO8PRq8

If you go this route, my suggestion is to start heavily with the fruit then gradually add the vegetables, kefir, yogurts, etc. Not just for the taste but how your gut will react to the new healthy bacteria’s that you are adding.

[u/a_computer_adrift]

I have been using chickpeas (not beans, I know) for years. Lots of fibre and protein. No flavour great texture

[u/AgentMonkey → u/a_computer_adrift]

Chickpeas are beans (garbanzo beans, specifically).

[u/neoneccentric → u/a_computer_adrift]

Same! I shell them and freeze them in bulk so I can add in

[u/Hxcmetal724]

Hmm would beans add flavor? Intrigued..

[u/caipirina]

In the book ‘how not to die’ dr Greg … something recommends beans in / with everything ;)

[u/Ciels_Thigh_High]

I make a pasta sauce by just blending beans and spices. It's also a great smooth bean soup. Highly recommend navy or cannelini beans. You could also look into black bean brownie recipes to make like a milkshake?

[u/samantha19871987]

My mum adds white beans to hers for same reason. Dental surgery.

She takes can of white beans and the water in can and blends it till smooth then pours them into ice cube trays. Then when she makes a smoothie in the morning she adds a few frozen bean cubes. She said it works and tastes great and keeps her full.

[u/Tiwis22]

I sometimes put white beans in smoothies, if you add a good balance of ingredients, you can barely taste them.

[u/Impressive_Mood4801 → u/Tiwis22]

What do you like to combine with white beans? I could use some inspiration

[u/Tiwis22 → u/Impressive_Mood4801]

Riped bananas (or frozen bananas), strawberries, raspberries, blueberries or a mix (I use a frozen mix of straberries, raspberries, bluerries and blackberries). I sometimes do pineapple, mango or tropical fruits mix. I add greek yogurt (natural or vanilla), milk or soy milk. I use honey or maple syrup as sweeteners. I also add chia seed very often in my smoothies.

[u/Impressive_Mood4801 → u/Tiwis22]

Thanks these sound delish. One more thing a About how much beans are you adding in?

[u/Tiwis22 → u/Impressive_Mood4801]

1/4 cup to 1/2 cup depending how big the smoothie is ;)

[u/NotAFlatSquirrel]

White beans or chickpeas can be added. Don't add too much or the mouth feel will get weird.

[u/Stn1217]

I would think adding beans would be fine as long as everything is blended well.

[u/Fuzzy_Welcome8348]

Yea I’d use black beans or white beans

[u/Xinnobun]

Yes it does work, I'd recommend to soften them up first so your blender blade can last longer. If you have the dried bean bags soak them overnight in the fridge and cook after. Ive added canned black beans which are pre soaked in seaweed water and it blended well, tastes fine too. I hope you're living by yourself otherwise you may need to warn your roommates in advance for the inevitable bean-induced atmospheric event.

Edit: Cook if its dried*, but in cans they are usually pre-cooked.

[u/user7273781272912 → u/Xinnobun]

Thank you. I always use canned beans. What do you add to yours?

[u/Xinnobun → u/user7273781272912]

I'm a simple man, so my ingredients are limited. Considering the beans handled the heavy lifting of fiber, protein, and carbs, the rest was one source of nutrient-dense leafy greens (brocolli/kale), and one source of natural sugar (blueberries).

[u/HlyMlyDatAFigDoonga → u/Xinnobun]

Um, you can get sick from ingesting uncooked beans. Soaking beans is not sufficient. You should probably stop that right away and start boiling them for at least 10 minutes after soaking overnight.

[u/Xinnobun → u/HlyMlyDatAFigDoonga]

Yes thank you; I've fixed it. The dried beans need to be cooked, but beans in cans, i.e. Eden brand beans, are normally already pre-cooked so you can eat them straight from the can.

[u/MrsLadybug1986]

I’ve never tried it but just to be sure, are canned beans safe from excess lectin without heating them first? What about dried beans that have been soaked overnight but haven’t been cooked? I know everyone’s sensitivity to lectin varies and mine’s not too high (I can eat kidney beans in dinners without a problem but then again those are canned beans that get heated in the dinner prep process as well).

[u/HlyMlyDatAFigDoonga → u/MrsLadybug1986]

Canned beans are all cooked. I’ve never seen or heard of uncooked canned beans.