What Kind Of Beans Are The Most Nutritious? An Expert Weighs In

It's no big secret that beans are good for you, but if you're really set on getting the biggest nutritional hit, which beans are best? Chowhound asked Mackenzie Burgess, an LA-based registered dietitian nutritionist and recipe developer at Cheerful Choices. "If I had to pick a frontrunner, black beans consistently rise to the top," she told us, highlighting that they have high fiber content while also containing solid amounts of potassium and magnesium.

That said, Burgess also suggested that this doesn't mean you need to ditch all other beans from your diet: Instead, rotating a few different types through your diet is wise, as the exact nutrients vary across varieties. You'll also want to consider how to work beans into your meals, and Burgess suggests that you don't try to reinvent the wheel. "Start with what you already know and love," she advises. This could mean adding beans into recipes you know are winners — for example, Burgess noted, if you're making taco bowls with ground meat, stir in a can of black beans. They work in a lot of soups or stews and can replace meat in dishes like chili.

If you're looking for more bean-centric dishes, you can purée them into a dip or make a bean-centric salad with herbs and an oil and vinegar dressing. If you're torn between canned or dried beans, know that there's no substantial nutritional difference between the two. That said, dried beans are cheaper and considered to be a bit more flavorful, although they need a longer cooking time.

Keep in mind that the "most" nutritious may depend on what you want to add to your diet: If you're looking for protein or fiber, you won't need to be choosy, said Burgess. "Most beans have similar impressive amounts of protein and fiber, which together help keep you fuller longer, support digestion, and stabilize blood sugar levels."

But some other nutrients you may want to consider are iron, folate, magnesium, and potassium, says Burgess. These are all present in beans but vary across varieties. For iron, white and kidney beans come out on top (soybeans, too, although they're quite bland and need a long cooking time). If you're looking for folate, which helps your body produce red blood cells, chickpeas (despite the name, they're beans) and black beans do well, and kidney beans are decent.

If you need more magnesium (it helps regulate blood sugar and produce protein), black beans are a strong choice, although pink beans, common in Caribbean and Puerto Rican cuisine, are even better. Finally, there's potassium, which helps regulate your blood pressure. Here, white beans and lima beans (also known as butter beans) come out on top, although most beans will give you some; although chickpeas don't carry so much of it.