This is probably one of the easiest recipes I make regularly. If you have a pressure cooker or an instant pot, do not skip this post. You will be surprised how quickly and easily this delicious stew will be on the table.
What type of beans are good for making a stew?
If you can choose Cannellini type of beans, they are also called White Kidney beans. They are larger than other types of beans and keep their shape well. If you want to read more about type of beans, Camellia brand has an explanatory post in their website.
When buying beans make sure to read the label. The beans should be produced in the current year, this way they will absorb all the flavors much better and will also cook faster.
Do you need to soak to beans over night?
There is an ever-ending discussion about to soak or not to soak beans before cooking. I soak the beans when I am sure that I will cook beans the next day and with the soaked beans, I follow this recipe. If I decide to make a dry bean stew instantly then obviously I do not soak, I boil them and then move on to making the stew.
For soaking place the beans in a glass or ceramic bowl and cover with exceeding water. It is this simple. I rinse the beans and discard the water and use fresh water for cooking. The beans might be dusty or might have chemicals on them – just to be safe, I prefer fresh water for cooking.
How to cook with the pressure cooker?
Toss in the rinsed beans, add a chopped onion and several chopped garlic cloves. For spices I suggest cumin, red pepper flakes, dry min flakes, salt and pepper to taste. A tablespoon of tomato paste and olive oil is all that you need. If available a tablespoon – hot or mild – pepper paste, a few chopped dry tomatoes, several chopped red peppers will be nice to have.
Once all the ingredients are in the pressure cooker add water to reach half height of the beans. Mix well until the tomato paste is well dissolved.
How long will beans need to cook?
Cover the lid of the pressure cooker. I use Fissler and at speed setting II, for 4 portions it takes 5 minutes to cook. Then I close the heat and wait for the valve to come down which takes about 15 minutes. Only then I open the lid and serve. The exact cooking times depend upon the brand, size and make of your pressure cooker or instant pot. It won’t take long for you to develop a feeling for your own.
What if I do not have a pressure cooker?
You can use canned beans or after soaking beans boil them until edible and cook the same way as described for pressure cooker owners.
What to serve with Dry Bean Stew?
I always prepare a carb dish such as a rice or bulgur pilaf. I Compote of Fresh and Dry Fruits or a Shepherds Salad are always other good options too.
I hope you will try and enjoy this tasty vegan recipe in minutes. Please let me know how you did in the comments.
Vegan Dry Beans Recipe
Equipment
- Pressure cooker
Ingredients
- 1 cup beans cannollini or similar
- 1 onion chopped
- 3 garlic cloves chopped
- 1 red pepper chopped
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon pepper paste optional
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes to taste
- ½ teaspoon dry mint flakes
- 1 teaspoon salt to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- water to cover half way
Instructions
- Soak the beans in water overnight. Rinse the next day and discard the soaked water.
- Add all the ingredients into the pressure cooker.
- Add water to half the height of the beans.
- Mix well until the tomato paste is dissolved.
- Cover and lock the lid.
- Cook until the indicator rod rises, this will take about 5 minutes. Then wait until the rod comes down completely and the steam is finished, which will take about 15 minutes.
- Open the lid, check a few beans, if ready serve, if not cook for another 5 minutes or less.
- Enjoy.
Notes
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