Place the mung beans in a saucepan with 3 times as much water (1 cup mung beans : 3 cups water) and a pinch of salt. Put the lid on and place on a high heat to bring to the boil. Once it starts boiling, pull the lid slightly ajar, turn the heat down to medium-low and leave to simmer for 30-40 minutes until the mung beans are still holding the shape but soft enough to bite. (taste one to check!).
1 cup dried whole green mung beans, 3 cups water, 1 pinch of salt
Once cooked to your liking, drain through a sieve and use as needed.
Instant Pot
Place the mung beans in the inner pot with 3 times as much water (1 cup mung beans : 3 cups water) and a pinch of salt. Put the lid on, lock, turn the valve to seal, then set to pressure cook on high pressure for 1 minute. (It will take about 10 minutes to come to pressure first and that’s when most of the cooking is done)
1 cup dried whole green mung beans, 3 cups water, 1 pinch of salt
Leave the Instant Pot to naturally release the pressure for 5 minutes and then turn the valve to quickly release the rest of the pressure. When the little silver valve drops, open the lid and drain the mung beans through a sieve. Use as required.
Notes
Soaking: if you have the time, you can pre-soak your mung beans in a jug of water for half an hour before cooking. This will help to even out the cooking to ensure there are no uneven patches and will allow you to reduce the cooking time to 0 minutes on the Instant Pot (with a 5 minute natural pressure relase before the quick pressure release) and to about 25 minutes of cooking on the stovetop.
Variations: You can add additional flavourings to the cooking process by substituting vegetable stock for the water and adding some garlic cloves and a bay leaf. Or add sautéed onion, garlic and giner and some spices to make a delicious Indian green moong dal. Please see the blogpost for other recipe ideas.
Uses: Squeeze with lemon juice, add a teaspoon of wholegrain mustard and sprinkle with cayenne pepper for a delicious addition to salads and buddha bowls. Or add to curries, stews and soups.
Storage: Batch cook and store some in the fridge for weekday meals and some in the freezer for another time. These cooked mung beans keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.