Italian Style Beans
These beans I’m told by several people are just amazing. They are very rich and luxurious. The secret ingredient is chicken fat that you save from your roasted chicken. Only chicken fat can give that deep intense taste that is the backbone to this dish. Also instead of adding salt I use chicken base and think of it as chicken flavored salt for more flavor. The taste with the beans, spices with tomato and chicken is almost like pasta fagioli. This is one of those recipes that I don’t usually measure but made a point this time to measure.
I also make this dish slightly different because that depends on what I have in my pantry. Last time I used canned Italian tomatoes in this dish and this time I used fresh roasted tomatoes.
I’ve made these beans often using local dried beans from the farmer’s market. Those are the only dry beans that come out well all the time. Often the beans from any store are old and an old bean will never be tender. Although the farmer’s market beans are by far the best I ever cooked I went with the second best bean, the low sodium canned varieties. I had one problem with the farmer market’s beans and they are always packed with small stones and I always miss a few. I don’t want to damage my teeth or anyones so I went with low sodium beans because they taste the best of the canned beans.
Ingredients for 20 small servings
1/2 onion chopped fine
3 garlic cloves smashed
6 hot/sweet cherry peppers chopped fine (maybe 4 if you don’t want heat)
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup chicken fat
1/4 cup flour
3 cups chicken stock
1 6.2oz. can tomato paste
2 15.5 cans reduced sodium cannelloni beans rinsed well and drained
1 15.5 oz. can reduced sodium garbanzo beans rinsed well and drained
1 15.5 oz. can reduced sodium pinto beans rinsed well and drained
1/2 cup roasted bell peppers chopped
1 cup (heaping) roasted tomatoes – rough chopped
2 15.5 cans of large butter beans rinsed well and drained
1 15.5 can reduce sodium cannelloni beans rinsed well and drained
1 15.5 can reduce sodium kidney beans rinsed well and drained
1 15.5 can reduce sodium garbanzo beans rinsed well and drained
2 teaspoons reduced sodium all natural chicken base ( I use better than bullion brand) (this is instead of salt)
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 Tablespoon pluss 1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 Tablespoon dried basil
1 Tablespoon savory
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (cut to 1/4 if you don’t want heat)
1 Tablespoon sugar
Directions
In your medium/large sauce on medium high heat add your, onion, cherry peppers, and olive oil after a minute or two add your garlic and cook a few minutes till onions are translucent. Remove mixture from pot and set to the side. Add your chicken fat and flour and cook till it bubbles. Whip in the chicken stock, tomato paste, 2 cans cannelloni beans, garbanzo beans and pinto beans and blend this all up with your stick mixer. Bring this to a slow boil. Next is adding everything else you have left. Lower heat slightly and bring to slow boil and lower again to low and let simmer at least a half hour.
You will have this much left after someone in your house helps himself to two bowls.
Freezes well to be used for latter.
People just forking love this dish.
This is Forking great and that’s The Forking Truth
