What Is the Difference Between Navy & Great Northern Beans?

Appearance

• Both a white bean, the Great Northern bean is flat, medium-sized and kidney-shaped, compared to the smaller, oval-shape of the Navy bean.

Flavor

• Great Northern beans absorb cooking flavors, adding a mild, delicate taste to recipes; Navy beans have a mild flavor.

Texture

• Navy beans' refined texture maintains its shape when cooking, as in making Boston-baked beans. The thinner-skinned Great Northern is interchangeable in recipes with most other beans.

Preparation

• Great Northern beans require a shorter cooking time than Navy beans. The time to cook 1 cup of Great Northern beans ranges from 45 to 60 minutes, while Navy beans need from 1½ to 2 hours cooking time.

Food Poisoning

• According to the U.S. Dry Bean Council, many varieties of beans contain a protein called lectins, which interfere with the process of repairing cell membranes. If this protein is not destroyed by cooking, lectins may cause severe food poisoning.