4 Easy And Delicious New Recipes For Beans
Recipes and text by Chantal Braganza; produced by Sun Ngo; photography by Christie Vuong; food styling by Sage Dakota; prop styling by Nicole Billark.
Conventional cooking wisdom says beans are a useful, humble food: tasty and cheap, but not particularly glamorous. The more I cook with them, the more I’m convinced there’s nothing humble about beans at all. Treasured in almost every cuisine across the globe, they’re flavour shapeshifters, nutrition powerhouses and a sustainable, regenerative crop that Canada happens to grow in abundance. Here are four recipes to get more beans, canned and dried, into your rotation.
Pico de Gallo Bean Salad
A popular salsa that, in my opinion, also qualifies as a salad, pico de gallo hits every note I want in a fresh and savoury dish: salty, sour, a little bit sweet and as spicy as you’d like it to be. Adding corn and beans ups the vegetable and protein content and turns it into something resembling a meal. Now I can feel good about eating salsa all day—and you can too. Get this pico de gallo bean salad recipe.
Rajma Masala (Red Kidney Bean Curry)
This fiery stew is one of those beloved comfort foods that’s named after the ingredient itself: rajma means red kidney beans in both Hindi and Punjabi. While it’s possible—and quicker—to use canned beans (see tip for instructions on this), it’s worth the prep time to experience just how creamy kidney beans taste when cooked from dried. Get this rajma masala recipe.
Puttanesca Beans On Toast
Beans on toast—but make it Italian. Use thick slices of the crustiest loaf bread you can find to hold up to the saucy weight of these salty, briny beans. Get this puttanesca beans recipe.
Herby Spring Soup With Beans
Welcome spring with this Sardinian greens-loaded soup that comes together quickly with canned beans, but packs a special punch when you use dried: the cooking liquid’s starches add body to the broth. Get this herby spring soup recipe.
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Chantal Braganza is a writer and editor living in Toronto. She is deputy editor, food at Chatelaine, a cookbook nerd, lover of vintage dish ware, and currently training for yoga teacher certification. Her first book, Story of Your Mother, is out with Strange Light Press.
