If this has been brought up before, and I suspect it has but I couldn't find it doing a search, please point me to the thread and then just ignore this one.
After reading Boaz's post about "Tamale Beans" (which by the way I HAVE to try) I noticed he did not soak his beans first. Got me thinking about that process. I googled the topic of soaking beans before cooking and the result was very enlightening. There is NO positive yes or no answer. It seems one can do as one wishes, depending on the individual taste.
I have always soaked and with the exception of "Ham-N-Beans", didn't add salt until the beans were finished cooking. After reading probably 20+ articles on both sides of the topic, I think I'll just keep on doing what I do because I'm comfortable with the process. However, I may try not soaking and adding salt just to see if I can tell any difference.
So my questions are:
1. Do you or do you not soak your beans before cooking?
2. Add salt to soaking water, cooking water or after finished cooking?
3. Why?