So I have this bag of small red beans in the pantry and they bare resemblance to those wonderful little Robitussin caps I love so much. Anyhow they have no fat and 16g of the 22g of carbs they have are fiber as well as 8g of protein per 1/4 cup, which equates to about 4 swallows for me. I mean thats convenient as convenient gets, however Im concerned that they may not break down in the gut. Anyone got some input? Thnx

-D

I was under the impression most (if not all) dry beans are toxic prior to cooking.

They aren't directly toxic, however they will inhibit absoption of other nutrients like protein and minerals so eating raw legumes one time won't do harm, but if it is done too often....
If what the op is looking for is a healthy snack roasted garbanzo beans are great, and being roasted it won't cause any problem and even if they are hard they are chewable without destroying the teeth.

Oops, really thought I had found the jackpot, Ill have to try the garbanzo beans