Recipe
Italian White Beans
Dried beans, a slow simmer, and almost nothing else — this is pantry cooking at its most honest. The beans turn creamy and the olive oil pools into a sauce you will want bread for. It also reheats beautifully, which makes it a meal you look forward to a second and third time.
Ingredients
- 41 bay leaf?
- 2 cupgood olive oil
- 4 bunchItalian parsley
- 8 tspssalt?
- 4 cupchicken or vegetable broth
- 4 lbsmall dried white beans
- 123 large cloves of garlic (1 left whole, 2 minced)
- 21/2 medium yellow or white onion, minced
Cook's notes
- Soaking the beans overnight shortens the simmer and makes them easier to digest.
- Reserve a splash of the cooking liquid when you reheat leftovers — it loosens the beans back to creamy.
- In a hurry? Canned cannellini beans work: skip the long cook and simmer everything together for about 15 minutes.
Recipe questions
- Do I need to soak the beans overnight?
- It helps, but it is not a hard rule. A quick soak (boil for 2 minutes, rest for an hour) gets you most of the way there, and canned beans skip it entirely.
- What do you eat this with?
- Crusty bread and a handful of greens, or spooned over pasta. Leftovers also make a great base for roasted chicken.
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