White Beans with Tomato Mint and Parsley

Introduction

White beans cook with onion, tomato sauce, parsley, and mint until the liquid reduces to a thick broth that sits about ½ inch above the beans. You get a straightforward bean dish with enough richness from the olive oil to serve as a main with bread or rice, and there is a pressure cooker option if you need a shorter cook.

Recipe Details

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 2 hours 40 minutes
• Total Time: 2 hours 50 minutes
• Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 2 cups of dry white beans
• ½ cup chopped onions
• ½ cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons tomato sauce
• 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
• 1 tablespoon chopped mint
• Salt
• Chile powder

Instructions

1. Boil beans in hot water in an uncovered pot for 5 minutes. Rinse and boil for another 15 minutes in a covered stock pot in 3 cups hot water.
2. Sauté onion in olive oil until it turns yellow. Add 2 tablespoons bean stock from the pot along with tomato sauce, parsley, salt and chili powder for taste. Cook for 10 minutes or until a thick sauce is formed, then pour everything into the pot.
3. Add chopped mint, cover tightly and cook for 2 hours over low heat, or for 30 minutes in a pressure cooker. This should produce a thick juice, covering beans by ½ inch (1.5 cm). Serve hot.

Variations

• Replace the dry white beans with cooked white beans to cut the total cooking time sharply; the finished dish will be softer and the broth may stay a little looser.
• Increase the tomato sauce from 2 tablespoons to 3 tablespoons if you want a deeper color and a slightly sharper, more savory finish.
• Reduce the olive oil from ½ cup to ⅓ cup for a lighter dish; the sauce will be less rich and slightly less silky.
• Double the parsley and keep the mint at 1 tablespoon if you want a greener, fresher flavor with less mint forwardness.
• Use the pressure cooker option in the final step for a faster version; you may get a broth that needs a few uncovered minutes at the end to thicken.

Tips for Success

• Do the initial 5-minute boil and rinse as written so the beans start cooking evenly before the long simmer.
• Cook the onions only until yellow, not brown, so the sauce stays mellow instead of turning sweet or bitter.
• In the second step, wait until the tomato mixture looks thick before adding it to the pot; that keeps the final broth from tasting watery.
• Check the beans near the end of cooking: they should be tender, and the liquid should still cover them by about ½ inch.
• If you use a pressure cooker, hold back on adding extra water at first because the liquid will reduce less than it does on the stovetop.

Storage and Reheating

Store the beans in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. For longer storage, freeze them in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months, leaving a little space for expansion.

Reheat on the stovetop over low heat with a small splash of water if the broth has tightened, stirring occasionally until hot. You can also microwave them in a covered bowl in 1-minute bursts, stirring between each, until heated through.

FAQ

Do you need to soak the beans first?

No. The recipe starts with a short boil and rinse, then a second boil before the long cook, so you can make it without an overnight soak.

Can you use canned beans?

Yes. Use cooked white beans, skip the initial boiling steps, and simmer the beans in the sauce just long enough to absorb flavor and thicken the broth.

Which white beans work best?

Cannellini, navy beans, and great northern beans all work. Larger beans hold their shape better, while smaller beans break down a bit more and make the broth thicker.

How much chile powder should you add?

Start with a small amount and adjust after the sauce cooks for a few minutes. The heat level depends on the chile powder you use, so tasting matters more than a fixed amount.