Giant white beans with clams
This is a two-day job, because you have to put the beans in soak the night before in cold water and a teaspoonful of bicarb.
- 250g beans
- 1 white onion – chopped
- 2 or 3 cloves of garlic – chopped
- 1 very ripe tomato – chopped
- 1 dried red pepper
- 300g clams – well rinsed
- salt
- extra virgin olive oil
- 1 bay leaf
As you can see, the beans triple in size and will grow again when cooked. We bought our beans in Barco de Ávila, home of this type of big legume.
- Rinse the soaked beans, put in a big pan, cover with water and bring to the boil
- Add a drop of oil, the bay leaf and the dried pepper
- Turn down the heat until it is barely simmering and cook for about 2 hours
- Meanwhile, gently fry the onion and the garlic until golden brown
- Add the tomato and cook for about 10 minutes, leave to cool
- Take the pepper out of the pot (by this time it will have reconstituted) and add to the tomato mixture
- Blitz the tomato and onion mixture with a few beans and some of the “stock” from the beans – this helps thicken the sauce
- Add this to the beans and add salt
- Don’t forget to take the bay leaf out
- Leave to rest for at least an hour so that the beans soak up the juices
- Meanwhile, gently heat a drop of oil in a big pan, add the clams and cover, shake from time to time and take off the heat when they have all opened (about 5 minutes). Discard any that don’t open
- Add to the beans
- Heat again and serve with fried red peppers
judethecook 