Found below is our roundup of the ten best white beans this 2021. Remember, white beans are a staple in many dishes across lots of cultures all around the world. This means knowing which options are the best can allow you to prepare a variety of tasty recipes. More so, they aren’t just delicious, but also packed with nutrients, including protein, fiber, and potassium.
To create our top ten collection of white beans, we started by checking out the current best-seller lists of widely used shopping platforms, such as Amazon. This allowed us to develop our preliminary selection. Our target objective was to populate our shortlist with the most popular brands of white beans in the market today.
Our carefully curated group of testers consisted of family, friends, and coworkers alike. We even scoured the web for members of cooking forums and other social communities with discussions about cooking and related topics to help us finalize our collection. From professional chefs and bean connoisseurs to home cooks and restaurant owners, we made it a point to include the likes of everyone who may be looking for the perfect brand of white beans this year. After they gave us their helpful opinions and reviews, we decided to go with more common white beans. Then, once our group of testers tried out many of the products in our preliminary selection, we came up with this final roundup:
Best White Beans Comparison & Rating
| Image | White Beans | Rating |
|---|---|---|
 | #1 - Goya Cannellini Alubias | 99% |
 | #2 - Rancho Gordo Classic Cassoulet Bean | 98% |
 | #3 - Hunza Organic Great Northern Beans | 95% |
 | #4 - 365 Everyday Value Cannellini Beans | 93% |
 | #5 - Bush’s Best Cannellini Beans | 93% |
 | #6 - Eden Organic Cannellini Beans | 91% |
 | #7 - Food To Live Navy Beans | 89% |
 | #8 - Olivenation Gigante Beans | 87% |
 | #9 - Camellia Brand Cannellini Beans | 84% |
 | #10 - Carmelina Brands Cannellini Beans | 81% |
Health buffs, home cooks, and dieticians alike are always asking for new ways to eat healthier and tastier meals. This is also why we embarked on the mission to create a list of the best white beans for the gourmet recipes they had in mind. After all, white beans are easy to cook, and they’re quite healthy and nutritious for the body. This is primarily due to its high protein content. Plus, they’re capable of livening many old recipes. So after meticulous deliberation and thorough testing, here are the comprehensive details that we learned about the products in our collection of the top ten white beans this year:
#1 – Goya Cannellini Alubias
Goya Foods is a trusted company that produces Spanish, Latino, and South American cuisine staples. They also specialize in white beans and delicious Caribbean cuisine. One of their main products is the dried cannellini or alubias beans.
Cannellini beans, also known as white kidney beans, are part of the same family as great Northern beans and navy beans. These three types of beans are both healthy and hearty. They taste delightful in stews and soups, including white bean soup and escarole soup, where they provide plenty of substance and flavor. You can also use these for other tasty recipes like Florentine baked beans and lemony white bean puree, both of which are great around winter holidays or as classic mid-summer side dishes.
Goya Foods harvests their beans when the beans are in their most natural state, which ensures that they don’t contain harsh chemicals, like pesticides. They choose to harvest in this manner because Goya wants you to eat nothing but the healthiest of foods. Moreover, this product is completely fat-free, and it is also rich in iron.
However, even after purchasing these beans from the store, Goya still recommends giving these beans a long soak before cooking. A proper soaking will rid the beans of foreign substances like soil particles, dirt, and small stones.
What We Like About It:
Indeed, these beans are delicious, according to many of our testers. They added the beans to a variety of their recipes, including spinach and white bean soup. The dish ended up with a delectable and creamy texture, plus a small hint of nuttiness, thanks to these beans. The beans also maintained a decent firmness after cooking. They neither became too hard nor turned mushy.
Some of our testers like that the beans came salted, but the group was a little divided on this aspect due to health concerns associated with excessive salt. Beyond that, the only other downside of this product was that these beans are slightly more expensive than the others in this roundup.
#2 – Rancho Gordo Classic Cassoulet Bean
This bag of cassoulet beans weighs around a pound, but what you might miss in quantity, this product makes up with its overall quality and taste. As its name suggests, these beans are perfect for French cassoulet, which is a hearty casserole dish that includes beans, pork skin, and meats, like mutton, pork sausage, or duck. These beans are all white and quite large and creamy once they have been cooked.
Rancho Gordo is a company that also specializes in producing delicious heirloom beans, and you can use these for just about any kind of savory recipe. They are grown in the West Coast (Napa Valley, California, to be specific) and are taken from the classic French Tarbais seed stock. Plus, aside from cassoulet dish, these beans work well in baked bean recipes, salads, soup, dips, and Pasta e Fagioli. Heirloom beans are all indigenous to the Americas and are ideal for French, Mexican, Italian, and certainly some American dishes.
What We Like About It:
Our tester enjoyed mixing beans and other legumes into her diet as a means to consume less meat. Even though she has been using plenty of white bean brands in her cooking, Rancho Gordo’s Classic Cassoulet Beans is a brand that she keeps going back to. They hold up well to her own cassoulet recipe and are slightly bigger than your average white bean. They’re also very firm and tend to infuse their flavors into the recipe without being overwhelming. After using Rancho Gordo’s beans, her cassoulet tasted so much better compared when she used other brands. Although these beans were a bit pricey than the others in this roundup, she believes they are definitely worth it.
#3 – Hunza Organic Great Northern Beans
Hunza Natural Foods Great Organic Northern beans are certified 100% USDA organic by Ecocert’s ICO. Not only are they great for digestion from being loaded with dietary fiber, but they also happen to be a great source of iron, potassium, and may even help to lower your blood pressure, too. This is excellent for those who are watching their weight, cholesterol, or overall health. Of course, like most other white bean recipes, you can substitute in Hunza’s Northern Beans for different types of legumes.
The beans come nicely packaged inside a high-quality green stand-up pouch, allowing durability and convenience for your cooking. It is also an affordable brand, so you can save plenty of cash when you order these beans in large quantities, such as five bags or more. These beans are creamy, luscious, and plump and are great for stews and soups.
Northern white beans, in particular, have a rather delicate flavor compared to kidney beans. They also melt more quickly in your mouth, which provides a unique eating experience. You can use these beans for baked bean and white bean chili recipes.
What We Like About It:
For something so natural and carefully nurtured, these beans come at a reasonable price. They also arrived quickly at our tester’s doorstep, which is always a great feature. She ended up soaking them overnight for a vegan dish and cooking them in salted water.
According to our tester, this product tasted heavenly. That’s why she started using them in other recipes. She could also immediately tell that these beans were fresh, as they took a while to cook, compared to different types of beans. Plus, our tester offered the suggestion of cooking them on a stovetop so that they will soften faster.
#4 – 365 Everyday Value Cannellini Beans
This brand is unique because you can only find it at organic food stores, such as Whole Foods. These beans are all produced, processed, and harvested under rigorous standards. In fact, the products created by 365 Everyday Value are so high-class and of exceptional quality. These are the reasons why they’re a regular staple inside pantries everywhere.
There are no added chemicals in these beans, and they are BPA-free. With 365 Everyday Value, you can rest assured, knowing that your food is purely organic and grown in natural ways.
Cannellini beans are also known as Fagioli and white kidney beans. Like all beans, they’re completely fat-free and can aid in digestion. They’re also sugar-free and are consumable by both vegetarians and vegans alike.
No traces of GMO or BPA are found in the product or its can. The company is one that knows their customers care a lot about the ingredients that they choose to add to their recipes and only want to use the very best. That’s why 365 Everyday Value ensures you will never need to compromise on the components you want (or don’t want) in your food.
What We Like About It:
Many of our testers said they found this product excellent. Not only is it quite affordable for an organic product, but its quality is also great, they said. These beans have a slightly starchy texture when uncooked, which translates to a unique texture when cooked. Some of our testers suggest that you give them a long soak in water to get rid of dirt or any tiny pebbles before cooking.
One of our testers ended up measuring half a cup of beans and soaking them in salted water overnight. The beans came out very well, and he was then ready to add them to his favorite Italian soup recipe and bean dip.
Flavor-wise, the dishes tasted great, according to our tester. They were also less salty and mushy, which was welcomed and to be expected.
#5 – Bush’s Best Cannellini Beans
These beans have a smooth and silky texture, even when eaten straight from the can. They also have a wonderfully nutty flavor, which can surely complement any savory dish you cook. The product is also cholesterol-free, fat-free, and gluten-free. This makes them very healthy to eat. They also pack around 6 grams of fiber and 7 grams of protein per serving.
Cannellini beans are a type of kidney bean that comes straight from Italy. They’ve since been welcomed by American chefs who are now using them for all sorts of American and Italian-American dishes. You can find the same beans in tuna salads, pasta dishes, and minestrone soup, which is an Italian classic.
Bush’s Best selects only the smoothest, largest beans with a shiny finish. This enhances the flavor and appearance of your recipes. This excellent addition to any dish is also available in a reduced-sodium variety.
What We Like About It:
Being vegetarian, our tester enjoys incorporating beans into her diet in place of meat. The price got her attention while she was shopping for groceries. She knew beforehand that canned beans are ideal ingredients for her recipes. She like this product’s texture and taste, and they reminded her of home-cooked beans when she used them in a vegetarian soup recipe.
#6 – Eden Organic Cannellini Beans
As mentioned earlier, kidney beans are an excellent source of plant-based proteins and fibers. They can help lower your cholesterol and blood pressure. It can also promote good colon health. They are on the milder side with a slight creaminess to them, which is excellent when paired with a variety of other flavors that might be in your dish.
This product’s slightly soft texture also makes it easy to puree. Some other nutrients found in these kidney beans include magnesium, zinc, iron, and vitamin B.
Eden Foods only uses the finest ingredients for their kidney beans. They’re one of the most trustworthy food brands out there today. They harvest the beans from their farms, soak them overnight, and then package them out inside an organic and Kosher cannery.
The cans they use are safe and entirely free of BPA and chemicals. This protects the quality of the food and even the quality of your health. However, as usual, be sure to give these beans a good rinse before using them for cooking.
What We Like About It:
We have to admit, finding these beans in a grocery store was a bit difficult at first. These beans also come in a dry version, but our tester wasn’t very experienced in cooking. Thus, her beans always ended up tasting tough and were overly salted to boot. If you are lucky enough to find this in the supermarket, then keep in mind that the product still tastes great when cooked the proper way.
In fact, the beans eventually became a staple in our tester’s pantry, and she began adding them to her white chili, cassoulet, and minestrone soup. Not only were they amazing when seasoned well, but they’re also great when heated up.
#7 – Food To Live Navy Beans
Navy beans are also known as Haricot beans. They’re an excellent source of fiber, minerals, and vitamins (specifically, vitamin B). Plus, they can lessen symptoms of metabolic syndrome, due to the high amount of fiber in this food.
Food To Live’s beans contains their unique, yet mild and delicate flavor. It’s this same flavor that can enhance your stews, soups, spreads, dips, and other dishes. Feel free to mix them with your vegetable-based dishes, meat-based dishes, as well as any type of casserole. You can even give your minestrone soup a bit of authenticity by including this ingredient in your recipes.
You can also use these beans in chili dishes. If you suffer from obesity or are overweight, then consuming five cups of navy beans and incorporating legumes at least two or three times a week maybe a diet solution for you. This is also applicable when it comes to losing weight, lowering blood pressure, and reducing blood sugar levels. Of course, eating beans can also help you manage your weight.
Food To Live is a company that wants to give its clients the most affordable and tasty grocery choices for food. They have plenty of product categories that range from your basic grocery items to household consumables.
What We Like About It:
Other navy beans take a while to soften when you soak them overnight, especially if they’re dried. However, this is not the case with Food To Live’s navy beans.
This product works nicely with our tester’s dishes, too. He discovered that they are great beans for minestrone soup, as well as his own creation of bacon and bean casserole. They aren’t too mushy and not too tough. Rather, they’re in the right consistency.
In both cases, our tester’s dishes turned out absolutely delicious. He was also surprised that they tend to expand while they soak in the water, so it seemed that the product’s bag contained more beans than he thought.
#8 – Olivenation Gigante Beans
Olivenation only provides its clients with the freshest ingredients, and that includes their beans. They have been around for more than 25 years and have built stable relationships with growers and farmers from across the globe. In turn, they can supply their customers with the best ingredients for their own recipes.
These beans tend to keep their shape after you cook them. It makes a fantastic addition to salads, soups, and other side dishes. Beans are often referred to as a “superfood,” and you can even use them as a potato substitute.
What We Like About It:
Our tester first tried these beans with some Spanish tapas. She decided to order some online, so she could cook them at home. The dish turned out fabulously, and the beans were exactly what she wanted in a product. It also arrived well-packed and protected, without any dirt or pebbles in the product. She did mention that they require a little longer soak in water than other beans she’s tried, most likely due to their larger size.
#9 – Camellia Brand Cannellini Beans
Camellia Brand Cannellini Beans are imported directly from the beautiful state of Louisiana. They’re known for their Creole cuisine, which incorporates plenty of spicy, zesty, bean-based dishes, including red beans and rice. Camellia Brand, meanwhile, was founded by a man named Sawyer Hayward in 1850, when he decided to expand his cotton-harvesting business to include other products.
Camellia’s beans are white, creamy, and smooth when cooked. They also produce a delicate, nutty flavor, and are an excellent substitute for Great Northern beans or Navy beans. They’re also a rich source of fiber and zinc. These beans are often sold out in most groceries and supermarkets. Even their other legumes, like lentils and peas, sell really well. They are also the official supplier of the Louisiana Gulf Coast region’s red beans, which is a huge honor in and of itself. It’s so easy to see why this brand is trusted by many families across America.
What We Like About It:
Our tester soaked these beans overnight and cooked them the next day for lunch. He added a pinch of salt and some sautéed onions. Beans are his favorite food, and according to him, Camellia’s beans, in particular, tasted delicious.
The texture is also great, he said. Our tester could immediately taste the freshness of the product. He claims that these beans are far superior compared to the other bean brands in this roundup.
#10 – Carmelina Brands Cannellini Beans
This brand takes its inspiration from Italian cuisine and their passion for high-quality, yet simple and fresh ingredients. Carmelina’s white beans feature a mild flavor, along with a delicate texture. They stay firm while you cook them in soups and sautés. Plus, they won’t lose their taste, shape, or texture in any way.
These beans are all-natural and are a great source of fiber and protein. They’re also BPA-free, vegan-friendly, and Kosher.
What We Like About It:
These beans taste fresh and have a very firm texture even after cooking. Our tester has been using the product as a pasta substitute, and it works wonders as it doesn’t contain any carbs and also provides protein. She mixes it with alfredo sauce, red sauce, or simply makes her own recipe with garlic, peppers, and ground chicken with a dash of sriracha sauce.
This completes our top ten list of white bean brands for 2021, and we hope these comprehensive details have been helpful for you while you decide which option is most suitable for your recipes. If you’re still unsure, then found below are some discussions on why you need white beans in the first place.
Do You Need White Beans?
The benefits of beans are plentiful, and if there was ever a superfood in existence, the white bean would be a great contender. These wonderful benefits of beans are, of course, health-related and are based on a diet with beans.
The greatest advantage that beans bring to a diet is that they are a major source of protein. In fact, one serving (about 1 cup) of white beans can provide around 30% of your daily need for protein, based on a 2,000-calorie diet. As a result of being filled with protein, white beans also act as an excellent substitute for meats. Therefore, if you want to eat healthier, lose weight, or switch to a vegetarian diet, then white beans may be part of the solution.
Another great benefit of incorporating white beans into your diet is the fiber that they bring. They aid in the digestion of all your food and can keep the contents of your intestines moving in a healthy rhythm.
In addition, white beans have other amazing health qualities, such as being the main provider of potassium. They’re also a heart-healthy choice when it comes to protein options because they’re also low in fat, all while being high in iron and magnesium.
One last benefit to beans isn’t necessarily health-related, but we simply can’t leave this one out — White beans are delicious! The pure diversity of white beans alone means you are bound to find a texture and taste combination that you adore for every meal you make!
Now you know that white beans are critical for a healthy and flavorful diet, so investing in the best brand can only benefit you.
However, you might still be stuck at this point on what to consider when selecting from our top ten collection of white beans this year. Not to worry, though — We also dedicated a section below to both the pros and cons of the white beans that you’re considering from our list.
White Beans Pros
Health Benefits
As discussed earlier, whether you really need white beans, the answer is pretty clear. The health benefits of adding white beans to your diet are incredible, and they improve even more if you substitute some or all of your meat ingredients for these beans. The benefits of having a white bean-rich diet include having a low-fat protein source, an improved intake of dietary fiber, and high levels of micronutrients, such as potassium, iron, and magnesium. You simply can’t go wrong with this super nutritional food; and
Delicious Flavor
Also mentioned earlier was the added value of great flavor when considering the addition of white beans to your meals. Be it creamy and nutty or starchy and salty. You’re bound to find the blend of taste to suit your palate.
White Beans Cons
Cost
—Many of us are working on some kind of budget, especially when it comes to our routine grocery shopping. Having financial constraints can certainly affect which brands of white beans will best suit you. In fact, some of them might be too expensive, easily out of the reasonable range for many people and their families. On the other hand, these same high-priced beans may be exactly what some professional chefs need for their recipes. This all comes down to your individual situation and needs. However, one downside to white beans can certainly be its cost; and
Preparation Time
No. 2 white bean brands are created equal. Some arrive pre-soaked in a can, while most come packaged dry in a sack. For dried white beans, a serious drawback is the time or the energy required to prepare them. So if you choose to purchase dried white beans, then you’ll have to plan and commit to a long soak in water (often overnight) before the beans are ready to be cooked in a dish.
With how busy we can often be, we know that planning this far ahead for a single ingredient in an entire meal can be a source of headaches for many home cooks. For this reason, pre-soaked, canned beans are preferred, but they tend to be on the more expensive side, in terms of per weight unit.
These are the pros and cons of the products in our selection of the ten best white beans this 2021. We carefully curated only the most relevant information to assist you in making a critical decision. In fact, as we learned, this decision can affect everything from your health to your diet, and even your time!
Therefore, making an informed decision is critical. To make the best decision, we recommend you keep these pros and cons of white beans at the back of your mind. Perhaps you are one who likes to thoroughly consider your decisions before you commit to anything too serious. We don’t blame you! In fact, we know you’re out there, so we put together one last sub-list to help you make that perfect selection.
Found below are crucial factors to consider when selecting the best brand of white beans to suit your needs. We suggest that you also think about these factors as you read through our top ten list again, as they will help you make the most informed decision possible. Go ahead, and read on:
Factors to Consider When Buying the Best White Beans
Cost
As mentioned above, besides the health benefits, the money that you need to pay for your beans is a critical consideration. Whether you have a large or small budget for spending on white beans, the decision will almost always come down to the price at the end of the day. Of course, we have to budget our hard-earned money, so we have enough to pay for our homes, our cars, and other crucial expenses. For most of us, white beans are a luxury instead of a must-have, so it matters significantly where they fall on the scale of prices. Whether you’re prepared to spend $7 or $70 for a pound of white beans is totally up to you and your situation. However, it’s still a crucial factor that you must absolutely consider;
Prep Time
The state of your white beans upon purchase can be a deal-breaker for many of us. While some professional chefs or at-home cooks who are quite invested in the way their foods are prepared and presented will be more particular about how their white beans arrive in their kitchen, most of us are in the market for convenience. What this means for you is that you must consider if you’re prepared to soak dried beans in water overnight before you can even begin prepping them for cooking. The other option is to purchase pre-soaked beans, even if it comes at a slight markup. When it comes down to it, many of us simply don’t have the time or energy to plan and execute meals requiring so much preparation, and that’s okay. This simply means it is an aspect you need to keep in mind while you are deliberating;
Flavor
One aspect that most of us will not waiver on is this one. We cannot settle for subpar flavor when it comes to our white beans. There is a wide variety of flavors that white beans can offer, so you may have to do a little digging to find the perfect fit for you. For many people, the preferred flavor is nutty, while others like sweeter or more savory white beans. Much of this has to do with the particular plant the bean is grown from, the area it is grown in, and the way it is processed. Nevertheless, the flavor of the white beans you choose will be a critical factor to keep in mind;
Texture
Along similar lines as flavor, the texture of the white beans you select is no minor aspect. In fact, many people refuse to even eat beans because of the texture, but perhaps they have not tried the right beans for them. Some beans remain firm even after soaking for hours and cooking at high temperatures. At the same time, other varieties will become creamy, whereas others can become rather soft and mushy. To each their own, but be sure to know what it is that you like, so you can make the best decision;
Appearance
While this one may seem silly, if you’re into the presentation of your food, then you’ll understand that this is quite an important factor. You wouldn’t want soft beans that split open under the pressures of soaking and cooking unless you’re hiding them deep inside a casserole dish. Instead, you would likely want those beautiful, firm, larger beans that really make a statement when spread across a plate; and
Packaging
Finally, many of us are now aware of the dangers of low-quality packaging. For plastic containers, BPA is a big concern because it can contaminate your food with harmful chemicals and toxic materials. So it’s crucial to know the safety design and standards that are followed by the brand when packaging their white beans. If you’re concerned with these types of issues, then you ought to keep the style of packaging in mind when considering the best white beans for you.
We were able to identify these factors while studying the feedback that we got from our networks of relatives, friends, and colleagues about the products in our selection of the top 10 white beans today. That’s because we noticed that almost all of our peers primarily focused on a specific set of factors as they gave us their comments and shared their experience in using these brands for their recipes. We also noticed the same thing when we were reviewing the comments and insights shared by our fellow home cooks, pro chefs, foodies and kitchen lovers at the online communities and social groups where we hang out. These Web places are our favorite spots when we want to discuss kitchen and cooking-related topics. We decided to provide you with this checklist because our objective is to give you a quicker and easier time in pinpointing the right brands of white beans for your exact needs.
These are the most critical factors to think about as you peruse our top ten list of the best brands of white beans this year. If you do keep these aspects in mind during your deliberation, you’re almost guaranteed to find the perfect fit for you quickly and without much agonizing. In addition, you have our list of pros and cons to help guide you in choosing the right product from our collection of the ten best white beans this 2021.