How I Learned to Love Tinned Beans (And You Should Too)

Helen

In gaming, bean counting usually means obsessively tracking resources, money, or meeples with terrifying precision. But today, I’m counting something even better: actual beans.

Yes, the humble, magical tinned bean — the unsung hero of both gaming nights and real-life survival.

For years, I thought beans were one of those things you had to soak, simmer, and sacrifice three hours of your life to prepare.

 Growing up in the UK even my experience of tinned beans were baked beans that needed to be heated up or tinned kidney beans that needed be simmered in a stew for hours to taste good. I genuinely had no idea that tinned beans are already cooked and ready to eat straight from the can, and with a light bit of seasoning taste great.

When I had gall bladder issues and needed to start a low-fat diet overnight, tinned beans were a literal nutritional lifesaver. No cooking. No effort. Just pure, creamy, slightly nutty goodness…boom!

Why Beans Are Basically Legendary Food

Cheap and Cheerful:
A tin of beans costs less than a small healing potion and nourishes you way longer.

Pre-cooked and Instant:
Need food in 30 seconds flat between game sessions? Done.

Nutrition Powerhouses:
High in protein, fibre, iron, and packed with complex carbs — basically, beans are the barbarians of nutrition: strong, hearty, and always ready to battle hunger.

Gut Health Boosters:
Beans are loaded with prebiotics, the kind of fibre your good gut bacteria absolutely throw a party over. (You might want to ease into large quantities, unless you’re prepared for… atmospheric effects.)

Bean variety: Unlocking the endless expansions of legume possibilities

There are just so many choices: red kidney (classic worker placement!), cannellini (the white meeple of beans), black turtle (perfect for area control), pinto (spotted resource tokens), navy (the reliable starting player bean), fava (the legacy game changer), lima (the Euro-style staple), mung (quick filler bean), chickpeas (the versatile wild card), adzuki (Asian strategy import), black-eyed peas (victory point collectors), great northern (expedition resource), butter beans (smooth engine builder), cranberry beans (the limited edition), flageolet (French designer bean), borlotti (pattern matching maestro), anasazi (ancient civ builder), soybeans (endless expansion possibilities), and garbanzo (the bean so nice they named it twice – perfect for set collection).

How I Use Beans in My Kitchen (and My Cookbook!)

Since my fateful discovery, beans have become a core mechanic in my kitchen. Some of my favourite upcoming recipes feature the mighty bean:

• “Black Bean Point Salad” — a beautiful bean salad ideal for fast setup and faster devouring
• “Chillihaven” — a legacy vegetarian chilli feast
• “Twilight InBEANium” — a hearty, tomatoey bean soup that keep your players fuelled for an epic amount of time

And trust me, these recipes are fast, filling, and game night-approved!

Final Thoughts: Level Up with Beans

They’re easy, healthy, versatile, and honestly, the ultimate low-effort victory condition.

Bean counting has never tasted so good.

Stay tuned for more bean-fuelled brilliance in our upcoming cookbook “Winner Winner Chickpea Dinner: A Board Gamers Wholesome Cookbook” — because when life hands you a tin opener, open a tin of magic.