Description
A simple recipe for Corona Beans – giant butter beans (also known as lima beans or Gigante beans) seasoned with olive oil, garlic, fresh herbs, and lemon zest. Serve as a vegan main dish or side dish or add to salads, soups and Buddha Bowls. Can be made in an Instant Pot!
Ingredients
- 1 lb dry Royal Corona Beans (or sub dried butter beans, gigante beans, lima beans, white beans or cannellini beans), soaked in water 6-24 hours with 2 tablespoons salt. ( See notes)
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 bay leaves
- 3 celery sticks, cut into 3 inch pieces, or slice them small if you will to eat them.
- 1 onion, quartered
- 4 garlic cloves, smashed
- a few fresh sage leaves or thyme sprigs (optional)
After they are cooked
Instructions
- Soak beans in ample salted water for 6-24 hours. Drain. Place soaked beans in a large dutch oven (or Instant Pot-see notes) and cover with 3-4 inches of water. Add salt, celery, garlic, onion, bay leaves and herbs.
- Bring to a boil, lower heat and cover, simmering until tender, about 1 ½-2 hours.
- Drain, saving a cup of liquid, and remove aromatics. Place in a serving dish or back into the pot, adding back ½ cup-1 cup of the warm cooking liquid.
- Drizzle with olive oil, lemon zest, fresh Italian parsley and add salt and pepper to taste. Add Aleppo chili flakes if you like for heat.
- Optional: For an extra burst of flavor stir in a couple tablespoons of chermoula, gremolata or zhoug!
Notes
To make them in the instant pot, place the soaked beans and cover with 4 inches of water. Add salt, celery, garlic, onion, bay leaves and optional herbs. Add a tablespoon of olive oil ( to minimize foaming).
Pressure cook soaked Royal Corona Beans on High for 60 minutes. Naturally release. Continue with recipe. Pressure cook White Beans 25-30 minutes, Cannellini Beans 35-40 minutes.
*Adding salt your soaking water and your cooking water will actually help soften tough skins ( it helps break apart the calcium and magnesium ions in the outer skin) which makes the skin softer and more permeable, allowing water to penetrate more easily into the bean itself, and promotes even cooking. I realize there are a lot of opposing views on this out there- and for years, I never salted until after cooking, but I’ve found I have better results (better texture and flavor) with salting- and especially salting the soaking water. Do whichever method you please. 🙂
If using canned beans, drain, heat in a saucepan, season with salt, pepper, granulated garlic powder, and a generous splash of water or veggie broth. Once heated through, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with lemon zest and fresh parsley.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 329
- Sugar: 2.8 g
- Sodium: 403.7 mg
- Fat: 7.8 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 49.5 g
- Fiber: 12.2 g
- Protein: 18.4 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg