Dried beans go through a series of thrashing and sifting processes to remove pods, foreign material and undersized beans before packaging. This mechanical process does not remove all the small stones, soil clods and dust. You must complete te process by sorting and rinsing the beans at home.

Sorting:
Pick over the beans. Removing rocks, pieces of dirt, misshapen beans.

Rinse

Soak for shorter cooking time:
(Black-eyed peas, lentils and split peas do not need soaking, rinse only. All others should be soaked.

The purpose of soaking is to begin rehydration before cooking. Unsoaked beans take longer to cook and requie more attention so they won't cook dry.
During soaking, beans take up ther lost water, increasing up to twice their dried size. Enough water must be used to keep the beans covered while soaking.
There are two methods for soaking: long-soak and quick-soak. Both work equally well and differ only in the amount of time required to rehydrate.

Long-soaking: Takes time but very little effort. Cover the beans in water at room temperature. Soak them overnight or for 8 - 10 hours. (Cold water only as hot water may cause the beans to sour.)

Quick-soaking: Rehydrates the beans in a little more than 1 hour. Bring the beans and water for soaking to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes. Remove the beans from the heat and cover the pot. Let the beans stand in the oak water for 1 hour. Discard the soak water and cook the beans. Don't let them stand in hot soak water longer than 2 hours or they may spoil.

Cooking Times:
Black Beans 1 - 1 1/2 hours
Garbanzo Beans 1 - 1 1/2 hours
Great Northern's 1 - 1 1/2 hours
Lg. Lima Beans 45 - 60 minutes
Baby Lima's 1 hour
Small White Beans 1 - 1 1/2 hours
Pink Beans 1 - 1 1/2 hours
Pinto Beans 1 - 1 1/2 hours
Red Beans 1 - 1 1/2 hours
Kidney Beans 1 - 1 1/2 hours
Soybeans 3 hours

Beans not soaked:
Black-eyed peas 1 - 1 1/2 hours
Lentils 30 - 45 minutes
Split Peas 30 - 45 minutes

Well that explains why my mother used to have a bowl of beans soaking overnight! One great mystery solved - thanks Di!

I've been cooking beans for years , and never could tell any different wether you soaked them or not..

One thing I do tho, is add a can of beer when cooking..You never taste the beer, but it adds a nice flavor...