Classic and innovative cannellini bean recipes
4 sweet and savory cannellini bean recipes
If you’re looking to experiment in the food department and have already begun preparing for winter by boiling legumes to be freezer-ready, perhaps it’s time you dive deeper into the world of beans – more specifically Turkish-style stews and white bean desserts
WHEN YOU think of dried legumes, probably one of the first that comes to mind is beans. From kidney beans and mung beans to black beans, there are many different kinds. Today we’ll look at all the weird and wonderful recipes you can do with the cannellini kind, from classic savory dishes to innovative desserts, which goes to show that there are actually many ways you can use them in your cooking.
KURU FASULYE
This traditional Turkish bean dish often gets compared to baked beans but is probably best described as a classic stew. This dish can be found in many local and small restaurants for a quick meal served with some rice either on the side or under the beans. In fact, on a small street in Istanbul in the shadows of the Süleymaniye Mosque, a restaurant almost exclusively serves “kuru fasulye,” and people flock to get a taste of it. There are many different ways to prepare this dish (for example, with or without meat), but here is a pretty basic one to get you started on
your bean journey. INGREDIENTS
360 grams dry cannellini beans 2 onions
1 tablespoon tomato paste 2-3 cloves garlic vegetable oil salt sugar mint (optional)
INSTRUCTIONS
You can – you don’t have to but it is strongly advised – let the beans rest in water the night before to speed up the cooking. Just do not forget to pour the water out, and start anew in the morning. Cook your beans for about 20-30 minutes and turn the heat off. Let the beans rest in the pot sealed with the lid.
Add to a separate pot, a bit of vegetable oil, finely chopped onions and garlic and sautee them for a bit, until they soften. Add the tomato paste and give it a good stir. Finally pour the cooked beans with the water they were cooked with to the onion mixture. Let the beans simmer for about 30-40 minutes until they have softened. Close to the end of the cooking, you should add a pinch of sugar and salt to taste. Serve with some mint if you like the taste of it.
TIPS
Every family has their own recipe and a favorite addition. My aunt always adds just a tiny bit of fenugreek (çemen otu in Turkish). It is a very potent spice, so just a tip of a knife or ¼ of a teaspoon – depending on how much you make – will suffice. Keep in mind that even cannellini beans have different kinds, and hence your cooking time must change accordingly. For ease and efficiency, you should cook beans beforehand and toss them into the freezer for faster cooking.