I've been exploring beans a bit more than usual and still have several bags of cooked beans in my freezer (I don't buy canned) but after I make Smoky North African Beans this week I'll have run out of new recipes to try on them. I'd be grateful if anyone has any bean (they can include lentils) recipes they enjoy that I could try; they can be anything - bean loaves (as in "meatloaf" ), patties, stews, baked beans, bread, anything.... thanks!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/14/2019 11:45PM by J1.

This makes a good vegetable side dish, and can also be served as a dip.

White Bean & Rosemary Purée

1c white beans, soaked & cooked (keep liquid) i.e. 1 c dried beans (about 3 c when cooked)
3 tab olive oil
1 tab tomato paste
1 tsp chilli flakes
1 clove garlic chopped
1 tab rosemary chopped
1 tab lemon juice (or more)
salt

Sauté oil, tomato paste, garlic & rosemary a few min. Puree drained beans, add and cook a few min. Add lemon juice & salt, enough liquid to make smooth purée which holds its shape. Check balance of lemon & salt.

Serve at room temperature

White Bean Soup with Bay and Pancetta

serves 4

2 tab olive oil
1 tab butter
2 onions, chopped
1 tsp salt
2 bay leaves
1200g cooked cannellini or other dried beans, drained
1 litre fresh chicken stock

extra virgin olive oil
50g pancetta, fried crisp

Sauté oil, butter, onion and bay until onion is soft. Add beans and stock, simmer 10 min. Remove bay and purée, check salt. Garnish with oil and pancetta.

I like adding cooked dried beans, lentils or chick peas to Mexican-style braises, making a kind of Tex-Mex Chile con Carne or Picadillo. Let me know if you would like specific recipes.

Just last night I had red lentil dhal with rice and will be having it again tonight as there were leftovers. There are numerous recipes out there and I'm sure you don't need one but if you want mine let me know.

Thanks for your replies. The bean puree is something I'd probably make, thanks TPANDAV.

About 10 years ago I read a delightful book about a young couple taking on a highland hotel. It is called The Highland Feast by Millie McQuarrie and it contained this recipe for pearl barley risotto, which I have made on several occasions:

Pearl Barley Risotto

2 tablespoons olive oil
200g pearl barley, rinsed in cold water
1 med leek, finely chopped
1 med onion, finely chopped
20g raisins
20g currants
50g pine nuts
Grated rind of half an orange
1 tsp finely chopped rosemary
480ml boiling water
1 vegetable stock cube dissolved in the boiling water
250ml red wine
1 cup mushrooms, cut into chunks

Heat oil in a wide pan.
Add barley and keep turning in hot oil until it starts to colour pale brown.
Add the chopped leek and onion and when softened add the raisins, currants, pine nuts, orange rind, rosemary and seasoning.
Stir all together, pour in the vegetable stock and wine.
Bring to the boil and simmer uncovered. Add the mushrooms when nearly all the liquid has been absorbed and continue simmering until all the liquid has been absorbed. The risotto should be served al denté.

I made this recipe for Smoky North African Beans and it was absolutely delicious: [www.safe.org.nz] . It's "adapted from a recipe by Kelly Gibney" which featured in Dish magazine 18 July 2016 [dish.co.nz] . I was curious what changes safe.org.nz made to Kelly's original recipe but her full recipe isn't available for free online. Does anyone make Kelly's original recipe and, if so, would you be able to tell me what the differences are? Thanks for any help! It was so delicious!

Have you tried Turkish Brides Soup J1. Made with red lentils and fresh mint leaves. Rather nice. I don't use a particular recipe but this one is close.
[www.allrecipes.com]

J1, also had the Smoky North African Beans for dinner last week and agree, it is delicious. I used dried black-eyed beans instead of a tin of beans, but that was the only change I made. I think the recipe was in the Viva section of NZ Herald, wasn't it?

Thanks for the recipe recommendation Kone.
Lorna, I don't know if it was in the Herald or not....

In a nod to my husband's southern US roots, he enjoys pinto beans and tex mex-ish foods. This is a comfort food of his from growing up.

2 cups (420g) pinto beans
2 garlic cloves,
2 slices of raw streaky bacon,
1 1/2 litres of water, approx.
1tsp salt (yes, added at the start!)

bring to a boil, turn down to low simmer heat.
Cook 3-4 hours, adding water if needed.
Add butter and salt to taste at the end, I use about a dessertspoon of butter. You can serve in many ways, with the liquid, remove some of the liquid and smash the beans, a mix of both. In my family it is enjoyed topped with diced red onion, grated cheese, sour cream and cilantro. Freezes very well.

I usually serve the beans with Mexican Red Rice or southern style cornbread. Yes, this is a carb heavy meal!

Mexican Rice

Because the spiciness of jalapeños varies from chile to chile, we try to control the heat by removing the ribs and seeds (the source of most of the heat) from those chiles that are cooked in the rice. Use an ovensafe pot about 12 inches in diameter so that the rice cooks evenly and in the time indicated. The pot's depth is less important than its diameter; we've successfully used both a straight-sided sauté pan and a Dutch oven. Whichever type of pot you use, it should have a tight-fitting, ovensafe lid. Vegetable broth can be substituted for chicken broth.

Serves 6-8 as a side dish

2 ripe tomatoes (about 12 ounces), cored and quartered (or one can chopped or pureed tomatoes)
1 medium onion , preferably white, peeled, trimmed of root end,and quartered
3 medium jalapeño chiles , optional
2 cups long grain white rice
1/4 cup oil of your choice, I use evoo
4 cloves garlic , minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 4 teaspoons)
2 cups low-salt chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoons table salt
1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
1 lime , cut into wedges for serving


1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Process tomatoes and onion in food processor until smooth and thoroughly pureed, about 15 seconds, scraping down bowl if necessary. Transfer mixture to liquid measuring cup; you should have 2 cups (if necessary, spoon off excess so that volume equals 2 cups). Remove ribs and seeds from 2 jalapeños and discard; mince flesh and set aside. Mince remaining jalapeño, including ribs and seeds; set aside.

2. Place rice in large fine-mesh strainer and rinse under cold running water until water runs clear, about 1 1/2 minutes. Shake rice vigorously in strainer to remove all excess water.

3. Heat oil in heavy-bottomed ovensafe 12-inch straight-sided sauté pan or Dutch oven with tight-fitting lid over medium-high heat, 1 to 2 minutes. Drop 3 or 4 grains rice in oil; if grains sizzle, oil is ready. Add rice and fry, stirring frequently, until rice is light golden and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, add garlic and seeded minced jalapeños; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 1/2 minutes. Stir in pureed tomatoes and onions, chicken broth, tomato paste, and salt; increase heat to medium-high and bring to boil. Cover pan and transfer to oven; bake until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, 30 to 35 minutes, stirring well after 15 minutes.

4. Stir in cilantro and reserved minced jalapeño with seeds to taste. Serve immediately, passing lime wedges separately.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/25/2019 04:36AM by Jenna.

Jenna, it took me a few weeks to get around to it but on Saturday night I made the refried pinto beans and mexican red rice from above. WOW - it was so good. It is now saved into my favourites. Thanks for sharing.

Excellent! It's certainly not high cuisine, but it is a tasty and relatively economical meal.

Jenna & Lynette, the meal may not be high cuisine but it is certainly one that is good for you. Rice and beans when eaten together form a complete protein, plus lots of carbs, excellent for meat-free meals and beneficial when exercising. See this website, which has some interesting recipes:

[www.livestrong.com]

I especially like the 'offshoot' articles on the right-hand side of each page which lead on to more articles detailing the health benefits of the various types of legumes. Anyone wanting to lose weight would do well to save the website to favourites and refer to it often for a huge variety of tasty meals.