Info
- Course: Side Dish
- Skill Level: Moderate
- Cost: Inexpensive
- Favorited: 13 Times
Can be made ahead of time.
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White Beans with Garlic and Tomatoes
Cookbook
Haricots a la Bretonne
Brittany-style white beans are dried white beans that are cooked and mixed with a fresh tomato sauce. They are excellent when served with roast lamb, but more important, they serve as my base for a marvelous cassoulet (Cassoulet Maigre).
After cooking the beans, I reduce the cooking liquid, which is usually discarded, to form a sauce. This recipe can be used to cook other beans and legumes (such as pinto beans, limas, black-eyed peas, and lentils), which can be served with or without the reduced liquid and/or the tomato sauce.
Yield : Serves 10 to 12
Ingredients
- 2 pounds dried white beans, washed and drained
- 1 large carrot
- 1 onion, studded with 2 cloves, plus 3 onions, chopped
- 1 head garlic, unpeeled, plus 4 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 Bouquet Garni (see Notes)
- 5 tablespoons butter*
- 2 pounds tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped or 4 pounds canned tomatoes, drained and chopped
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 3 sprigs parsley, chopped, for garnish*
Directions
1. Place the beans in a large casserole or saucepan, cover with cold water, and bring to boil over high heat. Remove from the heat and allow to stand covered for 20 to 30 minutes.
2. Rinse the beans in cold water, drain, and return them to the casserole with the carrot, closed onion, head of garlic, and one bouquet garni. Add water to cover by 1 inch (2 to 2½ quarts). Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, partially covered, until the beans are tender yet still firm, 1 to 1½ hours.
3. Drain the beans, reserving the cooking liquid, and discard the carrot, onion, head of garlic, and bouquet garni. Reduce the liquid over high heat until it thickens and only 1 cup remains. Pour this sauce over the beans and set aside.
4. In a skillet, heat 3 tablespoons of the butter over low heat. Add the chopped onions, cover, and cook slowly until soft, about 6 minutes.
5. Add the tomatoes, chopped garlic, and remaining bouquet garni. Season with the salt and pepper, cover, and simmer gently until the tomatoes soften and a sauce forms, about 30 minutes. Remove the bouquet garni.
6. Add the tomato sauce, which should not be watery, to the cooked beans. (At this point the beans may be stored in the refrigerator for several days or frozen.)
7. Before serving, bring the beans slowly to a boil. Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and sprinkle with chopped parsley. Serve hot.
Notes
* If you are making these beans for the Cassoulet Maigre, omit the final butter and parsley from step 7.
A bouquet garni consists of 4 to 5 sprigs parsley, 1 bay leaf, and 2 to 3 sprigs fresh thyme (or ¼ teaspoon dried) which I tie up in a celery stalk cut in half. The reason for tying the ingredients together is to enable you to discard them easily once the cooking is finished. If you plan to strain the stock or sauce in which the bouquet garni has been cooking, it is not necessary for you to tie up the ingredients, although it makes skimming easier.
1. Place the fresh or dried thyme in the hollow of the celery stalk half and cover with the bay leaf and parsley sprigs.
2. Cover with the remaining celery stalk half and tie together.
© 1988 Richard Grausman
Nutritional Information
Nutrients per serving
Nutritional information is based on 12 servings.
316 kcal
20 % daily value
20 % daily value
2 % daily value
1561 mg
153 mg
18 g
5 g
13 g
51 g
13 mg
114 mg
3 g
6 g
45 % daily value
