SIMON PEARCE

27 Essential Bean Recipes

Legume love for days

Published on January 7, 2020

There are very few things you can’t do with beans, which is part of why we love them so much. You can cook them in a pasta, throw them in all kinds of soups with all of your other vegetables, or stick them on top of a cheesy piece of toast. You can put them in cold or hot salads. You can even eat them for breakfast, because what better way is there to start your day? Fava beans, lima beans, Cannellini beans—we love them all. Check out some of our favorite bean recipes below.

Pasta e Fagioli

This version of the soup bean and pasta dish reverses the order of its stars turning it into a pasta dish laden with creamy beans and a creamy sauce. Get the recipe for Pasta e Fagioli »

Cretan Bean Stew with Spinach

Dark leafy greens are the predominant vegetables in Crete, where more than 100 types grow and they are often paired with beans in sautés, stews, and pies. Get the recipe for Cretan Bean Stew with Spinach »

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Lobiani (Georgian Bean-Stuffed Bread)

A traditional Georgian recipe for spiced mashed beans in a simple flatbread. Get the recipe for Lobiani (Georgian Bean-Stuffed Bread)

Fatback and Heirloom Bean Soup

You can serve this soup the day you prepare it, but after an overnight rest on the refrigerator, the beans will have absorbed some of the broth and the soup will have a deeper flavor. Get the recipe for Fatback and Heirloom Bean Soup »

Green Chicken and White Bean Chili

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This rich tomatillo- and green chile-based stew cooks much faster than versions made with red meat, but tastes like it cooked all day. Get the recipe for Green Chicken and White Bean Chili

White Bean Soup

Finely ground ham infuses a simple soup with smoky richness in this recipe from Omaha's Piccolo Pete's. Get the recipe for White Bean Soup »

Hungarian Bean and Ham Soup

A paprika-laced roux of lard, flour, and sour cream transforms a simple bean and ham soup into something luxurious. Get the recipe for Hungarian Bean and Ham Soup (Csülkös Bableves)

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Mexican Fava Bean Soup

The secret to this soup is a flavorful aromatic base of tomatoes, garlic, and onions—called a recado—that is pureed and fried before the beans go into the pot. Get the recipe for Mexican Fava Bean Soup (Sopa de Habas) »

White Bean Soup with Fennel Seeds and Broccoli Rabe

This kind of luscious puréed bean soup is made all over Italy with either white or fava beans. Prepare the soup several days in advance, but sauté the broccoli rabe just before serving. Get the recipe fr White Bean Soup with Fennel Seeds and Broccoli Rabe »

Full English Breakfast

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English breakfasts, or fry-ups—hearty assemblages of meat, eggs, tomatoes, mushrooms, and baked beans—are traditional all over the UK. Get the recipe for Full English Breakfast »

White Bean and Lacinato Kale Soup with Smoked Ham Hock

After flavoring the beans for this creamy winter soup, smoked ham hock is shredded and pan-fried, rendering it crisp and intensifying its flavor. Get the recipe for White Bean and Lacinato Kale Soup with Smoked Ham Hock »

Cannellini Bean Salad with Radicchio and Celery

For this winter bean salad, a zippy vinaigrette adds brightness to crisp radicchio and celery. Get the recipe for Cannellini Bean Salad with Radicchio and Celery »

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Escarole, Sausage, and Cannellini Bean Stew

In this stew, escarole ("shcadall", as the Campos call it) is simmered with pieces of pecorino romano cheese, whose taste provides a nutty counterpoint to the spicy sausage and creamy beans. Get the recipe for Escarole, Sausage, and Cannellini Bean Stew »

Sausage with Broccoli Rabe and Cranberry Beans

In autumn, markets in Italy begin to fill with such staple winter vegetables as broccoli rabe. This pungent, bitter flower is not broccoli at all but comes from a variety of turnip. Get the recipe for Sausage with Broccoli Rabe and Cranberry Beans »

Artichokes and Fava Beans

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Tender artichoke hearts and fava beans pair beautifully in this simple Greek side dish. Get the recipe for Artichokes and Fava Beans (Aginares Me Koukia) »

Beans with Walnuts and Spices

Carla Capalbio's traditional Georgian bean stew is enriched with pulverized walnuts and seasoned with sour plum sauce and dried marigold. Get the recipe for Beans with Walnuts and Spices

Cilantro and Lime Chicken with Grilled Corn and Black Bean Salad

A simple and fresh black bean salad with grilled corns pairs perfectly with a quick marinated and grilled chicken. Get the recipe for Cilantro and Lime Chicken with Grilled Corn and Black Bean Salad »

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Cincinnati Chili

Redolent of warm spices, deeply flavored Cincinnati-style chili, whether prepared two-way (chili over spaghetti), three-way (with cheese), four-way (with onions), or five-way (with a finishing flourish of kidney beans), is an enduring American classic. Get the recipe for Cincinnati Chili »

Veal and Kidney Bean Stew

Fenugreek, an aromatic dried herb, lends a distinctly floral flavor to hearty veal stew. Get the recipe for Veal and Kidney Bean Stew (Ghormeh Sabzi) »

Bread Crumb Dumplings and Bean Stew with Parsley-Speck Pesto

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In Emilia-Romagna, chef Carla Rebecchi taught Jenn Louis to make this borlotti bean stew with shell-like gnocchi called pisarei. A fresh herb sauce laced with speck tops it off. Get the recipe for Bread Crumb Dumplings and Bean Stew with Parsley-Speck Pesto »

Italian Bean and Vegetable Soup

In this traditional Lucchese soup, vegetables and beans are slow-cooked until little to no bite remains, making it a rustic, comforting dish. Be sure to give any tougher vegetables all the time they need to scompare, or disappear. The quantities are flexible, so use whatever you have on hand. Get the recipe for Italian Bean and Vegetable Soup »

Irish Bean and Sausage Stew

At Gubbeen Farm, a 250-acre coastal plot of land in West Cork, an Irish twist on French cassoulet results in a flavorful, brothy stew of lima beans and thin Irish pork sausages. Get the recipe for Irish Bean and Sausage Stew »

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Brazilian Beans with Smoked Pork, Rice and Collards

This hearty dish of beans and pork is the quintessential Brazilian comfort food. It is traditionally served with garlic rice, sautéed collard greens, a tangy vinaigrette, and farofa, toasted cassava flour. Get the recipe for Brazilian Beans with Smoked Pork, Rice and Collards (Feijoada) »

Black Bean Nachos with Red Chile Beef

This appetizer is loaded with spicy chorizo, assorted chiles, and hearty black beans. Get the recipe for Black Bean Nachos with Red Chile Beef »

Black Bean Burger with Salsa Fresca and Avocado Crema

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Cumin, paprika, coriander, and both poblano and chipotle chiles lend their robust flavor to this earthy black bean burger. Get the recipe for Black Bean Burger with Salsa Fresca and Avocado Crema »

Dominique Ansel’s Cassoulet

Made with confit duck legs, pork belly, and two kinds of sausage, this meaty, resplendently rich cassoulet is worth treasuring all winter. Get the recipe for Dominique Ansel's Cassoulet »

Lima Bean Gratin with Herbed Bread Crumbs

Think of this gratin as a meatless cassoulet, meant to accompany a roast, or as a stand alone, next to a tartly-dressed green salad. Get the recipe for Lima Bean Gratin with Herbed Bread Crumbs »