[Stoves] Revisitng the pine needle issue

[ajheggie at gmail.com]

On Thu, 09 Aug 2012 22:47:41 -0600, Andrew C. Parker wrote:

>I have read that beans (some beans or all beans, depending on what you  
>read) should be held at boiling for at least 10 minutes to inactivate  
>toxins (I suppose I would need a pressure cooker at high altitude).
>
>Andrew Parker (Not AJH)
>
>On Thu, 09 Aug 2012 22:33:00 -0600, Pat <clamshell at iinet.net.au> wrote:
>
>> There is also a health aspect to soaking beans: the soaking causes  
>> toxins in dry beans to become less harmful. If anyone gets  a stomach  
>> upset from eating beans, the beans probably weren't soaked (not to  
>> mention causing plenty of flatulence). Maybe they capture the flatulence  
>> to run their gas stoves.
>>
>> Pre-soaking softens the skins of the beans and can reduce cooking time  
>> by up to 70%. It also makes the minerals more available. The soak water  
>> should be discarded, which also cleans the beans.


Taking Andrew and Pats' posts above: I too have read that dried beans
at harvest are toxic and that soak water should be discarded. It makes
sense because many plants will have evolved for their fruits to either
resist or deter animals from consuming them and to be able to survive
over wintering before the next generation can germinate and
propagate.

With wikipedia reporting a drop in boiling point of 1 degree celsius
with every 285 metres of elevation is temperature a concern or is it
just a hydrolysis reaction which speeds up with temperature.

I think manioc (cassava) similarly has to undergo a lot of washing to
remove toxins.

From a protein coagulation and sterilisation point it looks like 70
degrees C is sufficient to kill most common bugs or parasites.

AJH