Fragrant and flavourful, this delicious borlotti bean stew is a wonderful crowd-pleasing and make-ahead meal. Packed with creamy borlotti beans, melt-in-your-mouth pork belly and spiced with garam masala, it makes a hearty and nutritious one-pot dish.
I love stews. I like them mostly because they are easy to make, you only need one pot and they taste delicious. Simply add some vegetables, potatoes and/or beans (lentils also work great), maybe tomatoes, a piece of meat and spices.
In fact, spices are the heart of stews. They give warmth, sweetness, freshness and spiciness to the stew. For instance, in this recipe, I only used some delicious and aromatic ones. Turmeric, coriander, paprika and most amazing between them, garam masala.
Turmeric or Curcuma is known for its bright yellow colour. It is a strong antioxidant and it has powerful anti-inflammatory effects, too. The flavour is warm, a bit peppery and bitter. On the other hand, we have ground coriander with a very versatile and unique mild flavour. This spice falls into a warm and sweet category.
More, sweet paprika, adds a lovely vibrant colour to your dishes and it has a sweet flavour without any heat. Last but not least, a few words about the queen of spices. Garam masala is a fragrant and flavourful spice. The blend of different spices adds warmth, floral notes, a touch of heat and sweetness to any dish. In fact, each of the spices play its own part in delivering a unique symphony of flavours. Garam masala pairs wonderfully with soups, curries, stews, chicken, lentil dishes (Garam masala lentil soup) and many more (just like this spice roasted pumpkin salad).
Borlotti beans
Aren’t these beans beautiful? I know, I know. I keep saying that about beans. But, it is true. In fact, borlotti beans (also called cranberry beans) are some of the most colourful beans out there. You can recognize them by the beige-pink colour with spots of reddish-brown streaks all over. Also, even if they lose their colour during cooking, they keep their shape, they can’t be easily overcooked and they gain the signature creamy texture.
Beans in general are a highly nutritious and really good staple food. In other words, they can be easily stored (as dry) and eaten throughout the year. For instance, some other staple food examples are cereals (rice, wheat, corn, quinoa), starchy root vegetables (potatoes, sweet potatoes, jams), and animal products, such as eggs, fish, meat, milk and cheese. Last but not least, legumes (beans, lentils, chickpeas, peas).
These are some of my/your favourite staple food recipes: with beans (chicken black-eyed peas soup, wonderful quinoa-beans patties, healthy bean pastrami protein soup and beef black-eyed peas stew), with quinoa (carrot quinoa muesli, lovely vegetarian quinoa crust pizza), with potatoes (rosemary smashed potatoes, gorgeous Hasselback potatoes) and with eggs (a Slovenian egg stuffed meatloaf, a simple egg fried rice, easy egg stuffed portobello mushroom).
When using dry borlotti beans or any other dry beans, it’s best to soak them overnight or for 10-12 hours. Add two times the water, as they will soak it and double in volume. More, soaking them reduces the cooking time. In fact, instead of cooking them for 3-4 hours, they’ll only need one hour.
Ingredients for 4-5 portions of borlotti bean stew with pork belly:
- 200 g dry borlotti beans (soaked 10-12 hours)
- olive oil
- 150 g pork belly (cut into chunks)
- 1 lemongrass stalk (thinly sliced)
- 2 Tbsp of garam masala
- 1 tsp of turmeric
- 1 tsp of paprika
- 2 tsp of ground coriander
- 1 medium sweet potato (cubed)
- 3 garlic cloves (sliced)
- 400 g peeled plum tomatoes or pelati (in a can)
- a couple of stems of fresh cilantro or parsley
- salt
To begin, cut the pork belly into 1-2 cm chunks and slice the garlic. Then, peel the potato and cut it into cubes. Also, thinly slice the lemongrass and roughly chop the fresh coriander.
Furthermore, in a deep pot, drizzle some olive oil and once hot, add the pork belly chunks. Stir fry for a couple of minutes on each side or until golden brown. Then, lower the heat to medium-low and stir in the lemongrass, garam masala, ground coriander, turmeric and sweet paprika. Continue stirring for a minute, until the spices release the aromas.
At this point, add the potato cubes, garlic, drained beans and tomatoes. Give it a stir, pour over hot water (2 fingers above the ingredients) and bring to a boil. Once it starts boiling, reduce it to medium-low, season with salt, add the coriander, cover with a lid and cook for 1,5 hours.
Finally, divide the borlotti bean stew between the bowls, maybe with some bread or top it with a big spoon of sour cream. You’ll love this hearty and rustical stew.
Enjoy!
