There is already a chorizo and butter bean soup on this blog, and very nice (and popular) it is too. But ever since I posted that version, which uses tinned beans, I have vowed to post another way of making it – with dried beans. This way, which is actually how Olive my mother-in-law makes it, produces a completely different result. With tinned beans it is still really good – so please do use that recipe if that’s what you have available to you – but if you have the foresight to buy and then soak dried butter beans the night before, then I would say that this recipe is preferable (in my opinion). The dried beans, when cooked, go really sludgy (in a good way) and are so creamy. The tinned ones tend to keep their shape and be firmer. This version also contains more vegetables and therefore I feel perfectly justified in calling it a stew.
It is insanely good, if I do say so myself… I ate 4 bowls of it last night, drizzling each fresh portion with extra virgin, sprinkling with fresh parsley and a little Maldon sea salt and hoovering up more than was necessarily ladylike. The kids (who also love it) and Adam left the table about 15 minutes before me. Then I remembered I had a yoga class. Oh dear. I felt a bit lethargic during that class I can tell you with 4 bowls of this in my tummy. Lesson learned: eat a bowl of cereal for dinner before exercising in the evening.
I used a picante (hot) chorizo. My kids seem to enjoy things with a little background heat. It wasn’t too hot for them. We like to introduce heat in small amounts like this and we hope this way they will get to enjoy spice.
Serves: approx 6/8 adults
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 2 1/2 – 3 hours
Total time: 3 hours 20 minutes
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
500g butter beans, soaked overnight
200g hot cooking chorizo, sliced into coins (or dice if you want them to be more event dispersed)
1 onion, diced
1 leek, diced
2 carrots, diced
7 cloves of garlic, chopped roughly
500g tomatoes, diced
1 tablespoon of cumin seeds, ground
1 teaspoon of smoked paprika
1 teaspoon of sweet paprika
2 teaspoons of salt
Pepper
Fresh parsley, chopped roughly, to serve
Instructions:
- Soak your beans overnight. Discard the water. Cover with fresh cold water and bring to boil. Boil for 30 minutes.
- Heat olive oil over a medium heat. Sweat onions, leek, carrots and garlic for 15 minutes.
- Add your sliced chorizo and turn up heat a little. Now the spices and cook for 5 more minutes.
- Now throw the chopped tomatoes in. And, once the beans are getting going, tip the contents of the pan, both beans and boiling cooking water – carefully – into the stew. Season well with salt and pepper. Let it simmer for 2 1/2 – 3 hours.
- Serve with crusty bread, fresh parsley, more olive oil and seasoning.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
May be interesting with the Instant Pot cooking the dried beans and then making the stew as a revised recipe?
Good idea to try this in the IP, I will give it a whirl! : )
This recipe looks delicious, I'll have to try it next time I'm making butter beans. I actually make something really similar and have been making it for a while now. I end up putting mine in the oven so i get a nice crispy-ness on top and I serve with crusty bread and some feta. It's a Greek dish, check it out, I think you'll like it: http://joanavsworld.com/2015/01/29/mediterranean-butter-beans-in-chunky-tomato-sauce/