Slow Cooker Gigante (White) Beans
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These gigante beans cook in the slow cooker for 6-12 hours with tomatoes, thyme, onions, garlic, and olive oil until they become stewy, creamy, and delicious! If you can’t find gigante beans, the method works well with Great Northern, Cannellini, Lima, or other dried white beans.
On Wednesday morning, inspired by a Dinner, A Love Story post, I dumped half a pound of dried gigante beans into my crockpot followed by half a can of crushed tomatoes, a bay leaf, pepper flakes, water, smashed garlic, chopped onions, thyme, and a drizzle of olive oil.
I whisked the kids off to soccer tots then to the bagel shop, and when we returned three hours later, the house smelled as if I had been working away all morning.
Dried beans in the crockpot for the win! This is where the crockpot really excels: No browning required. No measuring required. The crockpot keeps the one-pot wonder simmering at the steadiest simmer, ensuring creamy, not mushy beans.
How nice to be able to leave the house while a machine works away? And to have the oven and stovetop free should I feel like making bread or the children their favorite dinner.
The beans cooked all day — they needed 8 hours in the pot — and when the dinner bell rang, I toasted bread, placed a slice in each of our bowls and ladled the stewy white beans overtop. With a few cracks of pepper and shavings of parmesan, dinner was served.
More Slow Cooker Bean Recipes to Try
- Slow Cooker Butternut Squash and Apple Soup
- Simplest Slow Cooker Black Beans
- Slow Cooker Flageolets, Gratinéed
- Simplest Slow Cooker Chickpeas
How to Make Gigante (or other white) Beans in the Slow Cooker
Here’s the play-by-play:
Select your bean. I love gigante beans but they do take a long time to cook, anywhere from 8 to 12 hours, so plan ahead. Great Northern, Cannellini beans, Lima, or other white beans would all work here, and those varieties will cook in 6 to 8 hours. Also, if you get on the Rancho Gordo mailing list, they’ll let you know when they get beans (such as these Corona Beans) back in stock:
Dump all of the ingredients into a slow cooker. (I never add pancetta anymore.)
You can use whole peeled tomatoes — simply crush with your hands. Or use crushed tomatoes.
Give everything a stir. Then cover the pot and cook on high heat for 8-12 hours.
When done, the beans will be creamy and cooked through, and the broth will be plentiful.
Ladle the stewy beans over a hunk of bread.
Shave parmesan over top if you wish.
Crack lots of pepper over top, too.
Slow Cooker Gigante (White) Beans
- Total Time: 12 hours 5 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Adapted from this Dinner, A Love Story post. As Jenny notes, the beauty of this sort of meal is that you really don’t have to measure.
If you don’t have a slow cooker, here’s my mother’s oven method.
Beans: I love gigante beans but they are hard to find, and they’ve gotten so expensive. Use any white bean you like here. Cooking time will vary depending on the age and type of bean you are using.
Note: You can soak the beans prior to cooking if you wish, and I recomm end doing so if you are using Gigante beans, but you do not have to. If you do soak, the cooking time may be shorter. Gigante beans take anywhere from 8 to 12 hours, so plan ahead.
I love these spooned over this oven-roasted polenta.
Ingredients
- 8 oz dried white beans, such as Gigante, Great Northern, or Cannellini (see notes above)
- 1 bay leaf
- pinch red pepper flakes (I use 1/2 teaspoon)
- a few cloves garlic, smashed
- two onions, chopped to yield about 2 cups
- 1.5 cups crushed tomatoes (I love Pomi finely diced tomatoes)
- a few sprigs thyme
- parmesan rind if you have one
- 4 cups water
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt or to taste
- fresh cracked pepper to taste
- shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano for serving
- toasted bread for serving or oven-roasted polenta
Instructions
- Place everything with the exception of the Parmigiano Reggiano and toasted bread or polenta, into your crockpot. Cook on high for at least 6 to 8 hours. Depending on the type of bean you are using, the times will vary. If using unsoaked gigante beans, it may take as long as 12 hours to cook.
- When the beans are done, taste the broth. Add more salt to taste.
- Ladle broth into bowls over toasted bread or serve toasted bread on the size. Shave Parmigiano Reggiano over top. Crack pepper over top. Drizzle more olive oil over top if you wish.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 hours
- Category: Beans
- Method: Slow Cooker, Crockpot
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: slow cooker, crockpot, beans, simple, winter, gigante, white
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
145 Comments on “Slow Cooker Gigante (White) Beans”
Okay, this is it. This is the ONE article on slow cookers that has convinced me. Those beans look amazing!
Oh, Sara, thank you! I don’t think you’ll be diappointed!
Well, you’ve converted me. I’ve always been a little snobby about the crockpot–not the method–just the word crockpot. I’ve prepared bean dishes in a clay pot, which sounds oh so much better. But to hell with snobbery–the crockpot uses less energy and obviously produces dishes to rave about. This is a far better Kool-Aid to drink. So thank you for another great post.
NEver even thought about the energy — good point!
I grew up eating beans and rice so beans are forever my comfort food. These look SO GOOD. I also do not get the appeal of a slow cooker, but well, I don’t have one! If I end up with one as a wedding gift next month, I know which recipe to turn to first!
Hi Ileana! I think you could totally make these in a Dutch oven — don’t go out and buy a crockpot! I’ve just had this one sitting here for years, and I know it has potential. That said, I am impressed by how beautifully it has cooked these gigante beans. And congrats!! You’re getting married next month?!
hi ali!
how would you do the recipe in a dutch oven?
thank you!!
Hi Rebecca!
I think I would just be sure to bring everything up to a simmer stovetop, then I would finish the whole thing in the oven at 300 for three to four hours. You could definitely simmer everything stovetop the whole time too. Wherever you decide to cook the beans, check every hour to make sure you aren’t running out of liquid, and if you are, add more water as necessary.
Hope that helps! Still have my “how to start a food blog” post in draft mode…will get to it soon 🙂 Hope you are well!
Just seeing this!!! Thank you for replying. Scott actually just bought a crock pot and can’t wait to try this recipe.
Yay! So happy to see you’re putting it to use already.
Ha — we need to form a society for those unimpressed by the food that “usually” comes out of a slow cooker. Beans, however? Perfect. I make something with gigantes that’s quite similar to this except vegan and done in the oven. I’ve got all the ingredients so am going to try it in the slow cooker this weekend! Question though — pancetta is cured/cooked where bacon is not. I wouldn’t think they’d be interchangeable?
I feel like these could be easily made vegan! The second time I made them, I used water and less pancetta, and I’m wondering if the pancetta is even necessary…next time i’m going vegan. As for your question, I don’t know?! I’ve honestly never thought about it. I always use them interchangeably…oops. I actually have not tried bacon in this recipe, so I can’t say how it would behave, but that’s what Jenny used in hers, so I imagine it would be fine. Now, you’ve got me thinking — I’ll look into it!
Alexandra FYI in response about pancetta and bacon being interchangeable. I think the poster was confusing pancetta with prosciutto. Pancetta is not cooked but prosciutto is.
Love the recipe have it cooking right now.
Thank you.
This looks completely delicious! Thanks heaps for sharing the recipe! x
ok, I think I am now convinced to purchase a slow cooker, if only to make fasolada /gigantes … with my favourite brand of beans from greece, to which I am spoiled because my local international market has recently started selling this brand and they are AMAZING !!!!!!
excellent recipe and beans are something that cannot be rushed !!!
thanks
dimitra
Yay! Dimitra — is this the same brand of beans you use? I love them, too, and can only find them online. I need to find a local Greek market.
yes, my international market , which is run my greeks, just started to sell this brand in their “greek aisle” and I have used their navy beans for fasolatha – so creamy, I have a packet of these sitting in my pantry and I think I know exactly how i will use them . they also sell chick peas, brown lentils ( however I am a french puy lentil snob for “fakes” ☺) and a variety of different rices and fava…..
Funny thing is happening in Greece with the crisis etc etc which has beset the country , one great little triumph that is coming out is the artisan (sp) food movement. Lots of unemployed people , especially young people are going back to the land and producing small unique artisan foods that are amazing .
Hope you can find them at a local international market , or at least ask them if they would consider stocking them.
dimitra
So interesting about the situation in Greece. I love hearing about these little triumphs/positives that arise amidst trouble. I can only imagine the beautiful products being created from artisans in Greece! Thank you for sharing.
I am the mom of 4 young kids, so I totally know where you’re coming from. I agree that a lot of crock pot recipes are faddish- especially ones that would take 30 minutes or less anyway to cook (stir fry type things, hot dogs, etc.) But, as a busy mom- even a stay at home mom, who gets to spend a lot of time in the kitchen if she wishes, for things that would take a long time anyway, the slow cooker is a fabulous tool. I love it for braised meat- yes, you do brown the meat, but you wash the pan in the morning, and then you have all day where you don’t have to prep any more. It uses way less energy than running the oven, and things taste great. Soup, steamed puddings, a crustless pumpkin pie, lasagna… Buying yourself extra time during the “crazy” hours of the day when everyone is coming home from school, or you’re coming home from volleyball practice, or everyone is just starving but you’re still prepping stuff. It’s great.
I sound like a wild crockpot devotee, but I’m not. I use it probably twice a month, and I’m always happy when I do. And, I like it more in the summer when I want to cook “oveny” type things, but not heat the house, as we don’t have an AC.
Okay! Long comment! Sorry!
Hi Sarah, Thank you for your comment! For all of the reasons you’ve mentioned, I would love to master a few crockpot recipes. I am so excited by this crockpot bean discovery, and I am already looking forward to trying other bean recipes. Do you have any you recommend? That you could point me/others to online. I do understand that washing one pan in the morning is no big deal. I basically do the same thing these days in a way — I feel like I have to get dinner prepped before the little one wakes from her nap, because as soon as she is awake, it’s just chaos and preparing dinner is such a stress. And, moreover, as I observe my neighbors with older kids, and from what you are saying, soon I won’t have the luxuory of being home all day — we’ll be out and about dashing from activty to activity. So anyway, just want you to know that I totally appreciate your comment and thoughts.
Best Bean Recipe:
1 1/2 cups dried beans (no need to soak, through I usually put this all together the night before and leave it on the counter until the AM when I turn the crock pot on.) 4 1/2 c. water, 2 tsp salt, grind of black pepper, healthy sprinkle of cumin, 1/2 of a peeled whole onion, jalapenos, as many as you want (we use a TBS or so of pickled slices) Add all to crock pot and cook on low 10 hours or until soft.
Serve with tortillas, salsa, guacamole, and shredded cheese. You’ll love them! Promise.
Oh my, this sounds amazing! Thank you thank you. I am dying to try more slow-cooker bean recipes, and this ones looks simple and delicious. I will report back. Question: I have always read (and questioned) that you shouldn’t add salt to beans until they are mostly finished cooking — do you think it matters? I suspect it does’t with a 10-hr cooking time, but I have read that the no-salt-till-the-end rule is both to prevent toughness (I am skeptical of this) and to allow the beans to rehydrate properly/in a reasonable amount of time. I’m going to give salting at the beginning a try — what’s to lose?!
The salt at the beginning of the recipe preserves the beans integrity, otherwise after so many hours, they would be mush.
I have read that and have avoided adding salt at the beginning because of that, but I’m still curious to try. One day I will. Thanks for the input!
Might I suggest using the crock-pot for venison, rabbit or wild game meats?
Although a good dutch oven is just as effective. I’ve tried both methods and have had great success.
For obvious reasons, (and mentioned before ) I like the crock-pot for the summer months & the dutch oven in the winter.
Thank you, Lisa! I actually have some venison in the freezer — not sure what cut — from a friend. Might give it a go in the crockpot.
I made vegetable beef soup last week and ate every bit of it….something about the broth that I have always loved….I only started adding water instead of other things to soup since you brought it up on another post and the thing is that is so perfect…the broth always has a flavour that you cannot get when you muddy the soup as it were! This looks so good and how much easier can it get! Reminds me, cooking wise, of the lentil soup on a prior post which I have made several times, everything in the pot at once, then cook and eat! I bought a crockpot at Christmas for myself but when I opened the box the side was crushed….I need to take that thing back! In the meantime I will get out the Le Croquet as Jeffray calls it! lol! side note, oatmeal and chocolate chip cookies are a personal favorite!! XXOO!
Yes, pull out that Le Croquet! This recipe reminds me of the lentil soup recipe. Next batch I make, I’m going to try adding some vinegar. xoxo
I’m with you. I WANT to love the crock pot but everything that comes out of it is just underwhelming. And don’t even let me get started on the recipes with copious cans of cream of ick soup. I’m kind of a snob about those things. Also, no one in my house would eat it. Plus the recipes that take 5 hours don’t really help the working mom.
That being said, I’ve had success making chicken stock, corned beef, chili and beans of many sorts. Besides that, I’d rather use the oven. It just comes out better.
Thanks for the recipe!
I know, there are way too many crockpot recipes that call for a can of this and a can of that — that has always deterred me. But I love the idea of corned beef — never made it! — and chili and beans. These foods seem perfect for the crockpot. Would love to make a good chili and beans recipe for the super bowl!
Dang girl.. this looks so amazing I can just about imagine the delicious aroma. I’m gonna try this veggie style. Thank you so very much for an awesome recipe. Beautifully done.
Made this tonight…don’t have a slow cooker so I did it the old fashioned way…used my trusty Le Cruset dutch oven…however I modified the recipe and used Butter Beans, canned, and added them in for the last 1/2 hour. So the whole thing took only 2 hours for me. Flavor was mind blowing. This is a keeper.
Yay! Makes me so happy! I should add notes to the recipe re not using a slow cooker. I do love my Dutch oven 🙂
This looks delicious! Thanks!
The only truly successful slow cooker meals I’ve made have been beans and soups. I do use it to make homemade pasta sauce, tho. It simmers away and thickens up without the lid. Use an immersion blender to puree the tomatoes, leaving as many chunks as you desire. The skins don’t have to be removed, but I like to peel the tomatoes before chopping them roughly and putting them in the cooker. Dehydrate and crumble the peels into a powder and then you can add them back to the sauce to thicken it faster and add more tomato flavor. OR you can just put the powdered peels on a spice jar and use them to flavor other meals.
I received a Cuisinart 8 qt Electric Pressure Cooker for Christmas, and I’ve been using it almost daily – sometimes twice a day! I’ve made several bean dishes in it. I wonder how long your bean recipe would take to make in a pressure cooker. Most beans take 30 minutes or less, but those are large beans! I’ll have to see if I can find those beans locally and give it a try! Thanks!
Love the idea of tomato sauce in the slow-cooker. Definitely going to try that. And I have a dear friend whose parents swear by their pressure cooker for beans. Might have to invest in one of those, too!
Oh, almost forgot – roasts work well in the slow cooker, too. My husband loves it when I decide to cook him a roast!
I have to echo Judy H’s comment, I just got a pressure cooker and it strikes me as having all the benefits of a slow cooker (although I haven’t had a slow cooker for years), plus you can brown meats/saute onions/etc, plus it’s super super quick!
Don’t you love it?? I think it’s the greatest kitchen gadget ever! 🙂
Tonight I made juicy & flavorful chicken breasts in six minutes! As my hubby would say: Winner winner chicken dinner!
Wow, had no idea you could brown meats in it! Need to explore aquiring one of these gadgets …
This sounds SO good Ali. Adding to my make list xoxo
Thank you, Phoebe!!
Hi!
Any way to make this recipe without a slow cooker?
thanks so much!
Rebecca
Hi Rebecca! Yes, absolutely. I would preheat the oven to 250 or 300ºF, throw everything in an oven-safe dish, bring mixture to a simmer stovetop, cover, throw in the ovenf for at least 4 for 5 hours, checking every so often to make sure the water level is OK. If you soak the beans, you might be able to get away with a shorter cooking time, but if you don’t, depending on the bean, it might take much longer. Hope that helps!
Well. we’re waddling around here like Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum with tummies overly full this weekend! I tried the bialys (fab-u-lus !) and then, finding the pearl sugar smiling at me from the Southern Season shelf, I grabbed it down and brought it home for the liege waffles I made for Sunday breakfast. My husband, a waffle snob, nearly flipped his wig over those!!! He’ll never go back to regular waffles.
HowEVER! I do have one question. I found the waffle iron was really gooey after each and every batch. The sugar would melt into the valleys of the iron and burn black, depositing on the next batch if not faithfully cleaned out each and every time. Am I doing something wrong or is there a solution for this? If there is no answer, I’m doomed to wet rag and tongue depressor duty every time because this man will never give up his liege waffles!
Amy
Amy, you are hilarious! So happy to hear you tried both the bialys and the liege waffles! But YES, cleaning the waffle machine is a total pain. I tried letting the melted sugar cool first before cleaning, but that was a disaster, so then I reheated the waffle iron and used a skewer to poke at and dislodge the quickly darkening pieces of sugar, which worked better but which still was not easy. This little liege waffle experiment made me realize how nice it would be to have a waffle iron with removable plates, (though I have heard mixed reviews about these kinds of gadgets with removable plates), because mine still isn’t completely clean. I’m wondering how my machine is going to hold up because we’re going to have a hard time going back to regular waffles, too. So happy you and the husband approve!!
The best method I found for keeping the burning sugar from gooping up in the grooves is to keep a wet towel handy (rinse frequently). I throw it over the iron after each batch of waffles comes out. As it steams I use a tongue depressor to press it down along the grooves and rub out the molten sugar. I guess from now on I’ll have one towel designated for that use since it isn’t good for anything else afterward.
I have the Cuisinart Panini/Grill thingy with removable plates but don’t have the waffle attachment. Since I really like the grill I think I’ll order the waffle plates because I think liege waffles are going to be requested frequently from now on around here.
Great tip, Amy! Thank you. I will definitely try that with the next batch. I will have to invest in some tongue drepressors, too, I guess, as I forsee a lot of liege waffles in our future as well. It really does feel hard to go back 🙂
I had NO idea that you could do this in a slow cooker. What HUGE beans. I have never seen those either. Wow I definitely need to get out more, as they say.
They are delicious! And, I, too, absolutely need to get out more. One day.
Oh wow! Haha, when we still ate meat, I did love my slow-cooker for that. But browning is a step I didn’t want to skip, so I completely understand that it is not necessarily EASIER to use the crockpot. I have America’s Test Kitchen’s Slow Cooker book, which I haven’t made anything out of, yet…. everything from breakfast to soups to lasagna. Hm. I’m skeptical, but I do trust ATK!………..
This sounds SO delicious and you made it look so beautiful. Love how you ladled it over crusty bread! I wonder if a bed of polenta might be as welcome? I can’t wait to try some for our dinner! Maybe a little liquid smoke in place of pancetta? Wonderful inspiration for dinner, Ali, as usual! xo
I just saw that book and am so tempted given my new-found love for my slow cooker. I do trusk ATK as well…just subscribed to the magazine, too.
Yes, re polenta! Sounds amazing. xoxo
What huge beans these are. Where’s Jack? I had no idea
you could use a slow cooker to cook dry beans. I like the idea a LOT. The slow cooker is my dear dear friend.
Haha, I love it. Thanks, Carol. It is quickly becoming my dear friend as well 🙂
Didn’t read every word in the comments so maybe it is already been mentioned…crockpots with an insert you can use on the stove? Mine is fabulous as you just brown away, meat-onions-garlic-whatever, and then place the insert back on the slow cooker with the rest of the ingredients. Most definitely worth the purchase!
Oh wow, genius! I haven’t even looked at the manual on mine, but I suspect it is so old that it is incapable of stovetop use. But, as soon as this one starts tanking, I know which model to turn to. Thanks!
I thought ALL dried beans had to be soaked and boiled for 10 minutes before use (something to do with toxins?) Am I dreaming that or is it “duff gen”. 🙂
I don’t know! Never heard that. I thought the soaking of beans was primarily to cut back on the cooking time, especially if the beans are old. I haven’t been soaking my beans recently — doesn’t seem necessary especially with the slow cooker.
Maybe you’ve dodged the proverbial bullet. Apparently, this toxin is a real thing.
Oh man, there is always something. This is crazy. Thanks for sending. I want to look into this more.
I think you may have saved my slow cooker’s life! It was getting sad and dusty on the lower shelf.
Made these on Saturday and then ended up having surprise dinner guests—we all loved this dish. I’m making it again today and can’t wait to try other bean combos. Thank you!
Yay! Mine has been totally revived since discovering this recipe/method as well. So happy you and your guests approved. I have two more recipes I’ve been working on. Will report back soon with any luck 🙂
I just made this dish and it is absolutely fabulous. I have to say I was bit skeptical as I wasn’t sure how something so easy like this (and in the crock pot no less) could be so delectable. But it is truly delicious.
For you meat and cheese lovers out there, just so you know I used high quality Niman Ranch bacon and the flavor it added to the dish was just superb. I also think another must is the parmesan rind (though I realize these ingredients make it more fattening and not as vegetarian or vegan friendly). But I do think these two ingredients added a lot to the dish.
Also, I couldn’t find the gigante beans so I just used 14 oz. of navy beans, which worked great but just keep in mind the cooking time can probably be reduced. I can’t wait to try this recipe w/ the larger beans next time.
Thanks for a delicious and super easy weeknight recipe! And please add other slow cooker recipes that are good as I too have trouble finding ones I like.
So happy to hear this! I was just as skeptical, but I have quickly become a convert. Thanks for the tip on the Niman Ranch bacon. What’s nice about this kind of cooking is that overall it’s very inexpensive, so using a good piece of bacon seems all the more worthwhile — I’ve been using a local company’s bacon, and the flavor has been wonderful.
I have two more recipes to add: flageolet beans (with about a handful of white beans) done almost the same way but without any tomato product: water, bay leaves, garlic, onions, bacon, pepper flakes, thyme, olive oil. I didn’t have any parm rinds — but I agree with you, love that flavor — and I cooked for 6 hours on high in slow cooker. Then pressed start again, cooked for another hour or so, then added salt and finely diced carrots and celery and cooked for one more hour — delicious. I’m going to try baking a gratin dish of these tomorrow with breadcrumbs on top and see how they come out.
And I have the crockpot full right now with ingredients for black bean soup: water, beans, olive oil, bay leaves, pepper flakes, cumin, bacon, thyme, onions, olive oil. Tomorrow I’ll add carrots and celery (maybe?) and purée part of it (maybe?) and then top with onion, sour cream, scallions, etc. Will report back of course!
I have a small crock pot. Crockpots and dried beans are a match made in heaven. I start beans the night before. Tomatoes , I add in the morning.
They add to the cooking time. Rancho Gordo and I have become good friends.
I love it — Rancho Gordo beans are so good. Do you have any favorites? I need to place an order.
we are so impressed, and contented with this fabulous recipe! it was fast, easy, and truly delicious. this recipe will be on my emergency meals for drop in company 🙂 the flavours were balanced and it was very hearty. I used thick cut toast on the side.. I did make a wee mistake..my bay leaves are small so I added one too many I think. stick with the recipe… it is so perfect,
Alexandra,
I can’t wait to try this! It looks so good. I was wondering about the effect of soaking the beans on cook time. Somewhere I read that soaking the beans allows them to release phytic acid (which increases potential nutrient absorption) and makes them digest more easily as well as cook faster. I don’t know how reliable my sources for this info are, but if you did soak first, would you just reduce your crockpot time to 4-6 hours instead of 12ish hours?
Hi Deb,
I have heard mixed things about soaking. Here are links to the two articles I read, both of which suggest not soaking: https://www.latimes.com/food/dailydish/la-dd-dont-soak-dried-beans-20140911-story.html#page=1 and https://www.seriouseats.com/2014/09/soaking-black-beans-faq.html But I am sure there is something to what you are saying re digestibility and cooking times. Both articles seemed to say that not much time is saved by soaking — maybe 20 minutes of cooking time — and that soak beans might be somewhat easier to digest, but that it’s hard to tell for sure. As for your question, I think I would reduce the cooking time. The beans will definitely be cooked after 6 hours (soaked or not), but the beauty of the slow cooker is that they really won’t turn to mush in that amount of time. If you are able to start checking after 4 hours, do so, and if you find the beans seem done after 4 hours or 6 hours, just turn it off. If you are at work and will be unable to monitor, I would suggest cooking for 6 hours. As the beans cool in the liquid, they will continue to cook (without overcooking) and get nice and creamy. Hope that helps!
Loved this recipe! And I love your blog!
A word of caution though, some beans are poisonous when improperly cooked (including Gigante beans and Kidney beans). To rid the beans of their toxins, they must come to a FULL boil for 10-15 minutes. Some crockpots do not reach a high enough temperatures to achieve this and at lower temperatures can actually INCREASE the toxins. I’ve attached two links for further information.
https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/features/beware-of-the-beans-how-beans-can-be-a-surprising-source-of-food-poisoning-931862.html
[link no longer active]
Safety first!
Thanks so much for this recipe – I’m going to make it this week! Love gigantes! Also wanted to mention that I’ve been enjoying the various bean and lentil recipes out of the Indian Slow Cooker recipe book, which had been recommended to me by a friend after I complained about how complicated some slow cooker dishes can be (check it out on Amazon – author is Anupy Singla, I think). She advocates putting salt in with all the other ingredients, and I’ve had no problem from doing so…the beans have come out very nicely.