Opening a can, pouring the beans into a colander and rinsing them is common, but rinsing is not a food-safety requirement. Canned beans are already cooked. Rinsing mainly changes sodium, flavor, surface starch and how much packing liquid enters the recipe.
Rinsing helps when sodium is the goal
A study of several brands and five bean types found that draining for two minutes lowered average sodium from 503 to 321 mg per label serving, a 36% reduction. Draining, rinsing for about 10 seconds and draining again lowered it to 295 mg, a 41% reduction.
In that dataset, rinsing after draining removed an additional 26 mg per serving. Draining therefore did most of the work, while rinsing provided a smaller extra reduction.
Not every can needs the same treatment
Canned beans may be regular-sodium, reduced-sodium or no-salt-added. A no-salt-added can can start very low in sodium, so rinsing it for nutrition offers little advantage. Reading the actual Nutrition Facts panel is more useful than applying one rule to every can.
Does rinsing wash away nutrients?
The liquid contains soluble compounds: sodium, potassium, some folate and other B vitamins, carbohydrates and small amounts of protein. Draining and rinsing removes a portion of these, but most protein and fiber stay in the bean.
If the goal is to remove several hundred milligrams of sodium, the modest loss of water-soluble nutrients does not make rinsing nutritionally pointless.
Chickpea liquid can be useful
Chickpea cooking or canning liquid is aquafaba. It contains soluble proteins, carbohydrates and saponins that help it foam and emulsify. If a recipe uses aquafaba as an egg-white-style culinary ingredient, saving the liquid makes sense.
What about soups and hummus?
In soup or chili, some packing liquid can add body. In hummus, a little aquafaba can loosen the texture. If the can is salty, rinse the beans and add water or a lower-sodium liquid instead to control the final sodium level.
Bottom line
Rinsing canned beans is optional: do it when you want less sodium, less packing-liquid flavor or a cleaner surface. If the can is no-salt-added or you need the liquid for a recipe, there is no universal nutritional reason to discard it.
A simple decision tree for the liquid in the can
If the beans are going into a fresh salad, grain bowl, taco filling, or another dish where the packing liquid would make the food watery, draining and rinsing is usually the cleanest choice. It removes surface starch, changes the flavor, and can meaningfully reduce sodium. A short rinse under cool running water is enough; there is no food-safety benefit to scrubbing or soaking canned beans after opening because the product is already cooked.
If the beans are going into chili, soup, or a thick puree, keeping some of the liquid can be useful. The dissolved starch can add body, and the flavor may integrate well with the recipe. In that case, sodium becomes the main tradeoff. You can choose a no-salt-added or lower-sodium product, drain only part of the liquid, or adjust the salt added elsewhere. This is more flexible than treating rinsing as an all-or-nothing rule.
Chickpea liquid deserves separate treatment because aquafaba can foam and emulsify. If you want to whip it for a mousse, meringue-style preparation, or sauce, rinsing the chickpeas would throw away the useful ingredient. Save the liquid first, then rinse the chickpeas separately if the final recipe benefits from a cleaner flavor. The liquid from other legumes can also thicken foods, although chickpea aquafaba is the most common culinary example.
Once the can is open, transfer leftovers to a clean covered container and refrigerate them rather than storing them in the opened metal can for an extended period. The key distinction is straightforward: rinse for lower sodium and a cleaner surface; keep some liquid when its starch, flavor, or foaming properties are useful.
When sodium is the reason for rinsing, compare labels before assuming every can needs the same treatment. A no-salt-added product may contain far less sodium even without rinsing than a standard can after a quick drain. Conversely, seasoned beans or products packed in sauce can remain relatively salty because flavorings cling to the food. The Nutrition Facts panel gives the starting point, and rinsing is simply an extra tool.
Texture matters too. Rinsed beans are drier on the surface and brown more readily in a skillet or oven. Beans carried straight from the can with some liquid work better when you want a creamy base. Neither method is nutritionally “correct” for every recipe. Decide first whether you want lower sodium, a cleaner flavor, a drier surface, or extra body, then treat the can accordingly.
Sources
- Journal of Culinary Science & Technology — Sodium Reduction in Canned Beans After Draining, Rinsing — Quantifies average sodium reductions of 36% after draining and 41% after draining plus rinsing.
- National Academies — Strategies to Reduce Sodium Intake — Summarizes evidence for sodium reduction from draining and rinsing canned beans.
- Current Opinion in Food Science — Upcycling aquafaba — Describes soluble proteins, fiber and saponins in legume cooking water and their functional properties.