Community Picks
Editors' Picks — Beans & Grains

We were blown away by the pheneomenal community effort that went into both creating and testing this record number of Editors' Pick candidates. You rose to our mysterious bulk bin challenge (all will be revealed soon -- we promise!) and in return now we all have a wealth of inventive and delicious recipes to draw from when we find ourselves wandering down the bulk bin aisle or peering into our pantries, needing some dry good inspiration.
So this week, we want to give an especially big thanks to all of our volunteer recipe testers for your thoughtful comments and for helping us continue to strengthen our recipe recommendations. You can read each tester's comments by clicking through to the recipes. And even if the recipe you tested wasn't chosen as an EP, please feel free to leave your testing notes in the recipe's comments section. Constructive criticism is always encouraged!
Congratulations to another great batch of Editors' Picks!
- RICE
- Bhutanese Red Rice, Millet, and Oat Breakfast Pudding
- Shangri-La Rice Pudding
- Long Grain Brown Rice with Black Quinoa
- A Recipe for Long Grain Brown Rice Pilaf (Vegan, Gluten Free)
- Roasted Cauliflower Brown Rice Risotto with Lemon, Walnut and Mascarpone
- Butternut Squash Risotto with Brown Rice
- Sephardic Megedarra with Garlicky Brown Rice Pilaf
- Sweet and Savory Whole Oats and Sweet Brown Rice Porridge
- Savory Cooked Rice Sandwich Bread
- Brown Rice Jambalaya-ish
- Kimchi Fried Brown Rice
- Sweet and Savory Porridge with Almonds and Cardamom
- Mung Bean and Mixed Rice Sweet Congee
- Purple Tai Rice Cooker Sticky Rice
- Volcano Rice Tabouli Salad
- OTHER GRAINS
- Stuffed Red Pepper Shells with Couscous, Forbidden Rice, Kamut or Quinoa
- Red Tabbouleh
- Warm Red Quinoa and Squash Salad
- Spicy Black Bean and Quinoa Salad
- Amaranth Tabouli
- Cherry and Amaranth Dessert Casserole
- Mushroom Ginger Soup with Hulled Barley
- Barley Bowl
- Gatherer's Pie
- Avena con Champiñones/Oats with Mushrooms
- Peas Porridge Hot (Oat Risotto with Peas)
- BEANS AND LENTILS
- Rio Zape Beans with Toasted Chili Sauce
- Slightly Smoky Mixed-Bean Chili
- Best Boston Baked Beans
- Simple Seasoned Adzuki Beans
- Perfumed Adzuki Beans and Rice with Bourbon and Bacon
- Red Bean Espresso Brownies
- Red Rice and Beans
- Spicy Stewed Black Eyed Peas and Baby Limas with Corn Quesadillas
- Jalapeno and Black-eyed Pea Fondue
- Slow Cooker Hoppin’ John
- 4th of July Baby Limas, Barbeque Style
- Christmas Risotto
- Mung Bean and Shrimp Soup
- Mung Bean and Butternut Squash Stew
- Savory Mung Bean Crepes
- Yellow Split Pea Soup
- Tri-Colored Lentil Soup
- Porky’s Peas
- Split Pea Soup for a Winter’s Day
- Bisi Bela
- 10-12-12-12 (Sprouted) Lentil Soup
- SEEDS
- Breakfast Chia Seed Pudding
- Sweet Rice with Mango, Chia and Black Sesame
- Chia-Mint-Yogurt Dip
- Seeded Skillet Cookie
- Granola for Fellow “Granolas”
- Shichimi Edamame
- Swiss Bircher Muesli
- Tres Leches Oatmeal
- Blueberry Smoothie
- Power Bread
- Flax Seed Potato Bread
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Comments (32)
about 2 years ago Hippo Flambe
Somehow I was really late to discover my recipe in this list as an Editor's pick. So happy to see that my moment of laziness while picking parsley on a hot day was appreciated by my tester. Thanks Goldenblind221 for the review, I am very happy you enjoyed it.
about 2 years ago vvvanessa
thanks to Marnely for the generous review! i'm so glad you've found a way to enjoy oats!
about 2 years ago Hilarybee
Thank you, Forest_Lady for your kind review! If you want more kick, I sometimes chuck an extra jalepeno pepper in there with some cayenne.
about 2 years ago susan g
Since AJ has brought up our distant pasts, I'll contribute a reminder that 'bulk bins' as we know them are a recent evolution of the concept. My history with bulk commodities starts with crocks, the same kind used for pickling. They have a number on the side which gives the quantity of gallons it holds. When I was in college there was a shop that sold them priced at $1.00 per gallon. Now I can find them in antique shops, at pricy prices. Classics!
about 2 years ago AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames is a trusted source on Bread/Baking.
WinnieAb's Simply Seasoned Adzuki Beans are amazing, everyone. I just made a second batch. I don't put the garlic powder and chili in (don't own the former, don't like the latter), and the past few days, have stirred these tasty little beans into my morning steel cut oats with a bit of ricotta salata or, this morning, white miso. To die for! And here's to everyone who contributed to and/or tested recipes for this project. I've been a bulk bin regular since I started baking bread regularly (at about age 20 -- long before many of you were born), and this project, with all the great ingredients I've seen but not tried yet, and all these recipes that are now on my "must try soon" list, has been so fun . . . and useful!! ;o)
about 2 years ago creamtea
Wow! Thanks Panfusine and Enbe for testing my recipes and for your gracious comments! Thanks for posting the lovely photos of the megedarra, Panfusine. I hadn't checked the site in awhile. This was such a pleasant surprise.
about 2 years ago Panfusine
My pleasure Creamtea, thanks for a wonderful lunch idea.. & that dollop of greek yogurt over the lentils completely bowled me over!! (I did not put that in the pic since it tends to reflect light & look like a white blob!)
about 2 years ago Jaynerly
Thanks for the EP! Thank you to susan g for testing my soup and your review. This was such a
fun challenge and there are so many more recipes here that I will be trying.
about 2 years ago boulangere
Cynthia is a trusted source on Bread/Baking.
Feel so lucky to be here! Thanks to hardlikearmour for such a sweet review!
about 2 years ago susan g
So honored to make the EP list! I'm in such good company -- so many recipes here to try! Yesterday's snowfall made me appreciate even more all the good comfort foods . And thanks to aargersi for a review full of perceptive thoughts.
about 2 years ago aargersi
Abbie is a trusted source on General Cooking.
Absolutely my pleasure - we love love love your 4th of July limas and will be making them again! BEFORE the 4th of July!!!
about 2 years ago lastnightsdinner
Wow, thanks for the EP, and big thanks to Jaynerly for testing my recipe! What a great group of dishes - I look forward to cooking my way through them :)
about 2 years ago Jaynerly
My pleasure, I loved it!
about 2 years ago Helen's All Night Diner
What a great challenge this was! Congratulations to everyone. I'm so inspired and can't wait to try more of these. Many thanks to moneymom for trying my recipe and the great review - it's one of my husband's favorites and I'm glad you liked it too!
about 2 years ago monkeymom
Helen, I felt like I totally hit the jackpot with this recipe. It is SO delicious. I've been happily eating if for lunch all week with the corn quesadillas. What a great combo and I can't wait to put chipotles and adobo into many more things.
about 2 years ago fiveandspice
Emily is a trusted source on Scandinavian Cuisine.
Congratulations to all the EPs! It's so much fun to see how creative everyone here is with using ingredients, whether they're imported from France or found in the bulk bin! It's just fabulous!
about 2 years ago betteirene
After this wealth of recipes to try, we can call ourselves a bunch of, ahem, "regular" cooks. Just look at all those photos of glorious fiber! We're all gonna live to be 100! But seriously, now. . .I tested 2 recipes (Gatherer's Pie and Barley Bowl) last weekend; today, because it's pouring here--a perfect day for soup, I made Yellow Split Pea Soup with Cooked Rice Sandwich Bread. Brown Rice Jambalaya-ish will be Sunday dinner, accompanied by either Power Bread or Flax Seed Potato Bread. With the weekly theme, I'll try two, maybe three recipes. . .this theme, though, has really got me cooking. I can't wait to hit the bulk bins again. Thanks, everyone, for the contributions.
about 2 years ago Fairmount_market
Thanks to everyone for their efforts in this project. I'm excited to try so many of these recipes.
about 2 years ago boulangere
Cynthia is a trusted source on Bread/Baking.
hardlikearmour, thank you profoundly for your sensitive and generous testing results!
about 2 years ago healthierkitchen
What a great wealth of new recipes! Many thanks drbabs and sagegreen for testing my recipes and for the thoughful notes. Can't wait to find out the mystery!
about 2 years ago Sagegreen
Thanks TiggyBee and Burnt Offerings for such great reviews of my dishes. Thanks to the editors for the EPs. Congrats to all the testers and new EPs, as well.
about 2 years ago TiggyBee
Sagegreen, it was my pleasure. I'll be making it again soon!!
about 2 years ago Panfusine
Thank you Jennifer Ann for the lovely validation & review of the Bisi bela
about 2 years ago boulangere
Cynthia is a trusted source on Bread/Baking.
YAY for you AntoniaJames! Your potato bread with flax seeds is truly wonderful!
about 2 years ago monkeymom
Sagegreen, what a beautiful photo! Thanks for testing my recipe and for the lovely review. So many great recipes, can't wait to try them!
about 2 years ago Sagegreen
My pleasure! I uploaded two photos; thanks for asking. I took photos of all the recipes that I tested, but I think these were my lucky shots.