Toxins

Most of the kidney bean family have a toxin in the skin which must be destroyed by fast-boiling for 10 minutes and then throwing the water away. Never cook beans in a slow cooker and never attempt to eat them raw. It sounds silly, I know, but the toxins in red kidney beans were discovered by someone eating beans that had been soaked but not cooked. However, do not let this alarm you unduly. There are tiny amounts of toxins in most foods and generally they do us no harm.