Beans with courgette
A winter stew with all the nutritional benefits of legumes, but without the fat typically added to many traditional legume dishes.
These white beans with zucchini are an excellent opportunity to experience the advantages of a Dutch oven when it comes to slow cooking with precise temperature control.
This is an absolutely synergistic recipe: it tastes much better than it looks. It’s a very simple alternative to bean recipes heavy on pork or seafood; but we’re telling you, as a vegan option, the combination of beans, vegetables, and pepper is delicious. The hardest part with beans is finding the right point for a slow, steady simmer; with our Dutch oven’s thermometer, that’s taken care of.
Serves: 3 people
Preparation time: as long as the beans need
Difficulty: easy
You will need:
For 3-4 people
- 300g of reliable white beans—there are many varieties to choose from
- 1 L/XL zucchini
- 1 onion
- 1 clove
- Peppercorns of any color you have
- Oil
- Salt
- Bay leaf
How is it done?
Soak the beans for about 12 hours in cold water. Place them in the Dutch oven with a bit of their soaking water and bring to a rolling boil. “Shock” and skim them two or three times (you know the drill: when it’s boiling hard, add a glass of cold water to stop the boil instantly until it starts boiling again, then repeat twice more).
Once they’ve been “shocked,” add the onion cut in half with the clove pinned into it, the bay leaf, the pepper, and a splash of flavorful oil. Then, simply ensure the water stays at 80°C for as long as it takes for the beans to become tender without falling apart, adding small amounts of water if necessary—they should always be covered by at least a finger’s width of water.
When you taste one and feel they are almost ready, add salt to taste and the chopped zucchini. Let it finish cooking, with or without the lid, depending on whether you need to evaporate some broth or not. Let it rest for a few minutes once the zucchini is cooked (it shouldn’t fall apart; it’s very pleasant if it still has a bit of a crunch).
If you want to thicken the broth, you can always remove the onion, blend it with a little broth, and add it back to the stew. The red peppercorns will be almost soft and edible, depending on your preference. We even like to add a bit of ground pepper. Enjoy!
