Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Chef Tess' Taco Soup Mix using NEW Instant Beans! And Product Review!

 We got something new in the store! Ooo-Laaa-Laaa!  Super cool INSTANT beans. What's the difference? Well...Our THRIVE Instant Red Beans will help you spend less time in the kitchen. Boiling dried beans can sometimes take hours, but with THRIVE Instant Beans you can prepare great meals in no time at all. Whether you use our instant beans for homemade refried beans, Boston Baked Beans, or bean soup, you will know that you are using a quality, long-lasting product that is an excellent source of protein and fiber. That's a mouth-full huh?! In a nut shell... They taste like regular red beans but they cook up super quick! I'm totally in love with them...for a bean anyway. So here's a Chef Tess moment of glory...a dancing in the hallway-jumping for joy-food-storage-moment of glory...ready?


You want to know the other cool thing? It just got a whole lot easier to make soup mixes for food storage! In fact when I saw the instant beans I almost started squealing. I know you're thinking, "Geeeek alert!" Oh my gosh!!


 I think I may be one of the only people on earth who gets this excited about food storage technology. Well...Troy does too.  However, that being said, I had to share this great new recipe I've developed from an old favorite. It's adapted using instant beans. Instead of taking hours to cook in a crock pot, it takes just about 20 minutes! I'm super excited about it! Can you tell?! It can fit conveniently in a quart size jar so it's perfect for food storage!



Put a funnel on the mouth of a quart jar and measure as follows into the jar:


 2 cups THRIVE instant Red Beans
1 cup Taco TVP
1/2 cup Dehydrated Onion  
1/3 cup Freeze Dried Mixed Peppers  
3/4 cup Freeze Dried Corn  
1/2 cup Tomato Powder  
1T homemade taco seasoning


                    So, here's  a picture of my new boyfriend red bean. I love him them.








When you get to the tomato powder, just shake the jar so it works its way into the cracks.

Add an oxygen packet. Seal. Good on the shelf in a cool place up to 5-7 years.  To prepare, place contents of jar in a gallon pot in a solar oven or on the stove. Add 2 quarts of water and simmer 20-30 minutes until veggies are tender. Serve with nacho chips, sour cream and salsa if desired.