There is only one way... The right way!!!

Surely walt, a classic dish such as beans on toast should not be modified with the adding of cheese. Unlike the mk1 which benifits from modification   adding cheese offers nothing. There is nothing more pleasing to the eye than standard beans on toast  :mrgreen:

I have cold beans at work and dip bread into them.

It's collectivley known at my place as deconstructed Beans on Raw Toast.  :mrgreen:

So come on Walt, what's the result of your epic forensic test of the the cheesy-beany-toast dilemma? I imagine your kitchen has been like something off ramsey's kitchen nightmares this weekend. We want your judgement……..come on spill the beans :redfaced:  

Ok.. Gonna go and buy the cheap aldi bean.. I already have the two market leading, industry standard beans that are of course Heinz and Branston.. I shall be back shortly with a selection of cheeses and bread and I shall then cook to perfection and photograph my case and explain my findings..

Back shortly, off to aldi and Morrisons….  :mrgreen:

89clipper said

Surely walt, a classic dish such as beans on toast should not be modified with the adding of cheese. Unlike the mk1 which benifits from modification   adding cheese offers nothing. There is nothing more pleasing to the eye than standard beans on toast  :mrgreen:

As for you young man.. I thought we would be needing to serve it on a neon illuminated, chrome spinning plate with flambe flame kit!..  8O

Nice to see you do appreciate something standard though, so I'm not gonna bust your chops or retaliate too severely to your jibes..  :wink:

Ok guys and girls.. I'm back..



There have been a few variables thrown into this thread which I have tried to address scientifically and fairly whilst still managing to prepare this classic meal the correct way.. First of all, several brands of bean were thrown into the mix as potential industry standard beans by which all should be measured.. Of course the long term heavyweight champion of beans "Heinz", then the new kid on the block "Branston" and from under the radar, the stealth bean "Corale"..

So, in order to give this test some credibility, I opened all three and gave them a taste test.. Now I am gonna try and describe their tastes fairly so that rather than force my preference on anyone (which would be sooooo unlike me  :wink: ), instead you can gauge for yourselves which is the best bean for your buck..



As you can see, the Branston and corale beans colour and thick texture are virtually identical and to be honest, I was surprised how similar they both tasted.. If you like the Branston beans, then the corale are so similar that after a couple of spoonfuls of each, I could tell a difference, but I wasn't sure which I prefered which is a good thing.. the Branston were just a little zingier and the corale blander, but neither in a bad way.. The Heinze on the other hand were runnier and also a little more harsh in flavour, in the same way that the branson had more zing, the Heinze had more than the Branston and this zing was left almost as an after taste compared to the other two in test..

So how do they stack up in price?.. The corale only available in single can, 28p.. Branston in single can price, 53p and way out of my normal bean price range were the Heinz at 64p for a single can price.. Granted you get the ring pull top on the heinz can, but quality of packaging on all three are equal in every way other than this..

My other ingredients chosen for this test were morisons white farmhouse uncut loaf (In my opinion the nicest white loaf available) and two different strengths of cheddar cheese.. First of all, the Welsh mature cheddar, which was a light coloured cheese which was firm and withstood my sausage fingers ravaging it over my cheese grater without disintegrating. Second choice to give a contrasting test was a more orange budget morrisons branded mild cheddar. This cheese was a little softer and grated easily also, but felt a little squeezier..

So the doorstop white slices were toasted to perfection whilst my grill was warming up..



I decided to go with the corale beans as this was my first pleasantly surprising experience of them.. So I placed the un buttered toast on a baking tray and spread the beans evenly..



Next the cheese added..



Then grilled and served..

First the Welsh mature..



Secondly, the home brand orange mild..



Once cooked, the tastes and consistany was very different.. Again, rather than tell you which you should think is best, I will just state the differences that i found.. First of all, the taste of the mature cheddar was obvious.. It made my jaw ache in the saliva glands in the joint where it hinges, rather like it does in anticipation of a juicy steak.. The mild on the other hand was much smoother and less rich.. however, where this lacked the zing of the mature, it made up for in the chewy nature of the way it cooked.. The mature had gone more runny and separated more with tiny pockets of oil, whereas the mild had held together for a much more satisfying texture once chewed.. Both cheeses worked well with the beans and I enjoyed both.. I wish I could have a little more chewyness with the mature and a little more flavour than the mild so I am gonna suggest a medium cheddar of an orange variety as I believe this was the more aesthetic of the two dishes, however, this info is for you to make your own minds up..

So thanks for reading and i hope this has helped clear up a few of those questions which were until now, unanswered!..  :mrgreen:

oh god that looks good! how do i change my vote? cheese on top looks sooo much better!! i've got food evny now. grr

walt, you've gone to a lot of effort there and I commend you for that, but how can you mess with perfection? It's like ice cream and chocolate. They're both perfect by themselves, and when you mix 'em together it's not the same. It's this chocolate-like taste that reduces the joy of the ice cream. It's like two positives somehow equal a negative.

Chocolate = positive
Ice cream = positive
Chocolate + ice cream = BAD

Beans on toast = positive
Cheese on toast = positive
Beans and cheese on toast = BAD

Too many flavours in one hit! DOWN with that.

Another corale convert then?… 28P!!!!!!  

del revio(?) orange juice is good too..

Supermarket snobs pay attention!  :mrgreen:

LeFrancoPhoney said

walt, you've gone to a lot of effort there and I commend you for that, but how can you mess with perfection? It's like ice cream and chocolate. They're both perfect by themselves, and when you mix 'em together it's not the same. It's this chocolate-like taste that reduces the joy of the ice cream. It's like two positives somehow equal a negative.

Chocolate = positive
Ice cream = positive
Chocolate + ice cream = BAD

Beans on toast = positive
Cheese on toast = positive
Beans and cheese on toast = BAD

Too many flavours in one hit! DOWN with that.

I take it you don't like pizza either?.. :dontknow:

Walt you deserve a medal for your meticulous forensic approach to this thorny issue. perhaps due to your heroic efforts in the bean and cheese world you or the whole club could get sponsorship from Branston, Heinz or Corale and the unlikely pairing of Mk1 golfs and beans could go on to conquer the world :notworthy:

Its a nice thought russt, however I doubt it will ever happen unless they were to come to vw shows all year and dish out beans on toast for breakfast for everyone.. I think bean connoisseurs are very brand conscious and very few people are receptive to change.. I think I will now be buying the corale beans when there are no offers on from Branston.. Every now and again you can buy 4 pack bean offers for as low as 79p.. So while Branston and Heinz slug it out in a bean war, I will continue to reap the rewards.. On single can price, the corale beans win hands down although their taste is not quite so strong in the actual beans themselves, (the sauce is pretty much identical to the Branston) but like I said, this is not a bad thing, just different..

walt said

LeFrancoPhoney said

walt, you've gone to a lot of effort there and I commend you for that, but how can you mess with perfection? It's like ice cream and chocolate. They're both perfect by themselves, and when you mix 'em together it's not the same. It's this chocolate-like taste that reduces the joy of the ice cream. It's like two positives somehow equal a negative.

Chocolate = positive
Ice cream = positive
Chocolate + ice cream = BAD

Beans on toast = positive
Cheese on toast = positive
Beans and cheese on toast = BAD

Too many flavours in one hit! DOWN with that.

I take it you don't like pizza either?.. :dontknow:

Ahhh pizza is a great example of things complementing each other, whereas the beans/cheese on toast or the chocolate/ice cream are just competing against each other. See? There's girl logic in this.  8)

Have you even tried beans on toast with cheese on top?…  :dontknow:

Pizza base, Beans, Cheese??

Baked Bean Pizza anyone??  :mrgreen:

And I suppose chocolate milkshake is delicious too?…  :dontknow:

hi walt
just in case you missed the spark plug page, and so that every one does not miss this, how about every one going to agm bringing some beans with them and maybe bert making a bath on wheels.

walt said

Have you even tried beans on toast with cheese on top?…  :dontknow:

Yes I did, when I lived in the UK. One mouthful was enough.     

And yeah, chocolate milkshakes are great…there may be a flaw in my logic I guess….

Raul said

Pizza base, Beans, Cheese??

Baked Bean Pizza anyone??  :mrgreen:

Ewwwwwww *closes eyes* *fingers in ears* *thinks happy thoughts*

LeFrancoPhoney said

walt said

Have you even tried beans on toast with cheese on top?…  :dontknow:

And yeah, chocolate milkshakes are great…there may be a flaw in my logic I guess….

I think you need to see a food psychiatrist.. I doubt very much I am gonna be able to help you with a simple pizza influenced poorpers meal…  :?