White beans braised with tomato (alubias blancas con tomate)

These hearty white beans are the perfect accompaniment to crusty bread and a glass of sangria. The combination of jamón and sweet paprika delivers a salty, rich flavour to this Spanish side dish. Soak the beans for three hours before starting this recipe.

• serves

  6

• prep

  5 minutes

• cook

  45 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 190 g (1 cup) butter beans, soaked for 3 hours 
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 
• 1 small carrot, peeled, finely chopped 
• 1 onion, finely chopped 
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped 
• 50 g jamón (see Note), chopped 
• 1 tsp sweet paprika 
• 1 bay leaf 
• 420 g (1½ cups) tomato purée 
• chopped parsley and crusty bread, to serve

Soaking time 3 hours

Instructions

Rinse beans, place in a pan with 1.5 litres water and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for 20 minutes or until almost tender. Drain and rinse under cold running water. Remove any loose skins and set aside.

Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add carrot, onion and garlic, and stir for 3 minutes or until onion is softened. Add jamón, paprika and bay leaf, and cook for a further 2 minutes or until jamón starts to turn golden. Stir in beans, tomato purée and 60 ml water, and cook for 10 minutes or until sauce is thickened and beans are tender.

Season with salt and pepper, scatter with parsley and serve with crusty bread.

Note

• Jamón, available from delis, is a type of Spanish cured ham. You could use either Ibérico or serrano for this recipe.

As seen in Feast magazine, Feb 2012, Issue 6. For more recipes and articles, pick up a copy of this month's Feast magazine or check out our great subscriptions offers here.

Photography by Brett Stevens.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.