“Hard-seed” beans occur when temperatures are high, but humidity and water supply are low during the growing season. The outer seed coat gets very water-resistant. Hard-seed beans are smaller than normal and can be picked out before cooking.
“Hard-to-cook” beans are normal when harvested, but become resistant to softening when they are stored for a prolonged time (months) at warm temperatures in high humidity. This results from changes in the bean cell walls and interiors, including the denaturation of storage proteins and the formation of a water-resistant coating around the starch granules. There is no way to reverse these changes and no way of spotting them before cooking. Once cooked, they are smaller than normal and can be picked out.
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