Here's Why Dried Beans Have Become More Popular In 2025

It's no secret that food prices have risen. According to NPR, since February of 2020, prices have gone up 29% at the grocery store. This has led shoppers to find new ways to tighten the grocery budget. This has been a big boon for beans. They're already one of the cheapest sources of protein, and they contain an excellent amount of fiber. Even cheaper than buying beans in a can is buying them dried. On average, the dried version costs around half the price. It certainly helps that dried beans have a surprisingly long shelf-life. With tariffs on steel coming into effect, that gap will most likely widen as the prices of cans will rise.

On top of this, there is the global rise of vegetarian and vegan diets. Whether people are choosing to avoid or simply eat less meat for health, ethical, or environmental concerns, the search for cheap and delicious meat alternatives is rising, and beans are benefiting. Compared to many other plant-based sources of protein, beans are cheaper. In the end, with the job market in the US on the decline, the low cost of beans is bringing in more and more consumers.

Purchasing dried beans instead of canned has more benefits than just the lower price. For one, soaking and cooking your own beans from scratch allows you to decide how much salt to include. For those on low-sodium diets, this can be a big deal maker. While there are low-sodium options, generally a half-cup serving of canned beans will have around 500 milligrams of sodium, or a third of your daily recommended amount.

The fun side of using dried beans over canned is the control over flavor and texture. Guy Fieri prefers dried just for this reason. For texture, you can cook the beans for as long as you want, getting them to perfectly tender, but still slightly firm, which you can't achieve with the canned version. When it comes to flavor, it's up to your own imagination. Onions, garlic, and aromatic herbs are often added to the pot for the beans to cook in, giving them a wonderful depth of flavor. Make sure you salt the water beforehand so the beans have a strong flavor; contrary to popular belief, it won't make them tougher. Then, for truly tasty beans, take a tip and add some acid at the end of the cook, after they have already become tender.