This dish of Greek butter beans (lima beans) is an easy, but equally tasty, version of gigantes plaki. Butter beans are cooked in a rich tomato sauce which is made even more flavoursome with garlic and lots of herbs. A super healthy and gut friendly vegan meal.
400gfresh tomatoesor 1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes (I used Great White)
1tsporeganoor 8 sprigs fresh thyme
100mlwater
450gcooked butter beans (lima beans)180g dried butter beans or two 400g tins - drained and rinsed. (I used a 660g jar of queen butter beans (450g drained weight))
250gspinachor chard greens - washed
1handfulfresh parsleyfinely chopped
1handfulfresh mintfinely chopped
½tspsea saltor more to taste
freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
In a large shallow lidded pan, gently fry the onion in the olive oil until translucent - about 3 minutes.
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 1 large onion
Add the carrots and a pinch of salt. Gently fry for a further 5 minutes. Stir occasionally.
1 carrot
Add the chilli, garlic and tomato paste and stir. Cook over the same gentle heat for a couple of minutes.
1 red chilli, 2 cloves garlic, 2 tbsp tomato paste
Add the tomatoes, oregano or thyme and water. Stir, cover and cook gently for five minutes.
400 g fresh tomatoes, 1 tsp oregano, 100 ml water
Add the butter beans. Stir, cover and simmer for five minutes.
450 g cooked butter beans (lima beans)
Throw in the baby spinach leaves. If larger leaves, roughly chop first. If using chard, chop the leaves into small pieces and use the stalks for something else. Stir and at this stage check the consistency. If the sauce is fairly thick, put the lid back on the pan and simmer for another five minutes. If it's watery, leave the lid off and simmer so that some of the liquid can evaporate. You'll probably need to crank up the heat a little if this is the case.
250 g spinach
Add the herbs, remaining salt and plenty of black pepper. Simmer for another couple of minutes, with the lid on or off, depending on the thickness of the sauce.
1 handful fresh parsley, 1 handful fresh mint, ½ tsp sea salt, freshly ground black pepper
Stir then taste test the sauce and add more seasoning if required.
Serve hot, or at room temperature with a sprinkling of finely chopped parsley.
Notes
Serves four as a main meal and eight to ten as part of a mezze platter.Serve with crusty bread or Greek-style flatbreads and crumbled feta cheese, if liked.The greens are optional, but make the dish into an excellent one pot meal.If the sauce starts to catch on the bottom of the pan at any point, add a little water and stir.You’ll find additional tips and info about this recipe in the main body of the post.Please note: calories and other nutritional information are per serving. They’re approximate and will depend on exact ingredients used.