Stews, Bakes and Chilli
Cooking Skills: Pulses and Beans 1
Chapter 6 · Stews, Bakes and Chilli
Skill goal
Slow-cook pulses with tomato and spices into thick, deeply flavoured stews that improve overnight.
Shopping list for this chapter
The basics
Pulses and long, slow cooking are made for each other. A stew gives the beans time to take up flavour from tomato, spices and smoked paprika, while they thicken the sauce from within. The method is always: soften the base, fry the spices, add tomatoes and stock, add the beans and simmer. A bake does the same in the oven, in a covered dish, with less watching.
Four flavour tricks: smoked paprika gives a campfire taste without meat, tomato paste fried for a minute deepens the sauce, a spoon of sugar or syrup balances the acid, and a splash of vinegar at the end brightens everything. Chilli con carne with beef is in Cooking Skills: Beef and Steak 1, chapter 6; for a meaty version of the chilli here, brown 400 g of mince first, then follow the recipe. All use no alcohol.
The method
- Soften the base slowly, then fry the spices and tomato paste for a minute.
- Add tomatoes and stock, and simmer the sauce for 10 minutes before the beans go in.
- Add the beans and simmer with the lid ajar until thick, stirring so it doesn't catch.
- Balance with sugar and vinegar at the end, then taste for salt.
- Rest it, ideally overnight; these stews improve.
| Dish | Beans | Flavour | Time (approximate) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home-made baked beans | Haricot or cannellini | Tomato, brown sugar, vinegar | 1 hour |
| Bean chilli | Kidney and black beans | Cumin, chilli, cocoa | 50 minutes |
| Butter beans with feta | Butter beans | Tomato, oregano, feta | 1 hour |
| Sausage and bean stew | Haricot or cannellini | Sausages, tomato, paprika | 55 minutes |
Hot stew, hot oven, raw sausages and allergens
Thick soups catch and spit: a thick soup sticks to the base of the pan and blobs and spits when it bubbles. Stir often, keep the heat low, use a pan with a heavy base and a long spoon, and keep your face back.Hot oven and heavy dishes: a casserole or baking dish of bean stew is heavy and bubbling hot. Use dry oven gloves, pull the shelf out before lifting, put the dish on a heatproof surface, and open foil away from your face because the steam scalds.
Raw sausages and meat: raw sausages and other pork must be cooked right through, with no pink inside and juices running clear, until about 75°C in the centre (general guidance). Keep them on their own board and plate, wash hands, boards and knives in hot soapy water afterwards, and never wash raw meat.
Allergens in pulses: soya, peanuts and lupin are legumes and major allergens, and sesame (in tahini) is one too. Check labels on tinned pulses, flours and sauces, tell guests what is in a dish, and use separate pans and spoons if someone is allergic. Celery is in many stock cubes.
Try it
Level 1 · Start here
Home-made baked beans
The tin's big secret is how little you need: beans in a sweet, tangy tomato sauce. Use tinned haricot beans to make it quick, simmer until thick, and serve on toast. It is much less sweet than the tin, and you control the salt.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, grated
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 400 g tin of chopped tomatoes
- 2 tins of haricot beans (400 g each), drained and rinsed
- 1 tbsp dark brown sugar
- 1 tbsp malt or cider vinegar
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce (or soy sauce)
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 100 ml water
- Soften the onion in the oil for 8 minutes. Add the garlic, tomato paste and paprika and fry for 1 minute.
- Add the tomatoes, beans, sugar, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce and water and simmer, lid ajar, for 30 to 40 minutes until thick.
- Season to taste and serve on toast.
Thick sauce and allergens
Thick soups catch and spit: a thick soup sticks to the base of the pan and blobs and spits when it bubbles. Stir often, keep the heat low, use a pan with a heavy base and a long spoon, and keep your face back.Tinned pulses: tinned pulses are cooked and ready to eat once drained and rinsed, which also washes off much of the salt. Check the use-by date, never use tins that are bulging or leaking, and keep opened tins in a covered container in the fridge for up to 2 days rather than in the tin.
Allergens in pulses: soya, peanuts and lupin are legumes and major allergens, and sesame (in tahini) is one too. Check labels on tinned pulses, flours and sauces, tell guests what is in a dish, and use separate pans and spoons if someone is allergic. Celery is in many stock cubes.
Allergens: contains fish (Worcestershire sauce) and sulphites; use soy sauce to avoid fish.
Level 2 · Spice
A bean chilli
Kidney beans and black beans in a smoky, cumin-spiced tomato sauce, with peppers and a teaspoon of cocoa for depth. For a meaty version brown 400 g of mince first. Serve with rice, soured cream or yogurt and coriander.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 2 tbsp rapeseed oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 red pepper, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, grated
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp mild chilli powder
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 400 g tin of chopped tomatoes
- 400 g tin of kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 400 g tin of black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 200 ml water or stock
- 1 lime, juice
- Soften the onion and pepper in the oil for 10 minutes. Add the garlic, spices and tomato paste and fry for 2 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes, beans, cocoa and water and simmer, lid ajar, for 30 minutes, stirring, until thick.
- Add the lime juice, season, and serve with rice and yogurt.
Chilli, thick sauce and tinned pulses
Chilli and spices: chilli can sting skin and eyes, so wash your hands well after chopping it and don't touch your face. Add heat in small steps and keep portions for children mild.Thick soups catch and spit: a thick soup sticks to the base of the pan and blobs and spits when it bubbles. Stir often, keep the heat low, use a pan with a heavy base and a long spoon, and keep your face back.
Tinned pulses: tinned pulses are cooked and ready to eat once drained and rinsed, which also washes off much of the salt. Check the use-by date, never use tins that are bulging or leaking, and keep opened tins in a covered container in the fridge for up to 2 days rather than in the tin.
Raw kidney beans are toxic: dried red kidney beans (and, to a lesser degree, other dried beans) contain a toxin that causes severe sickness if they are undercooked. Soak them, drain, then boil them hard in fresh water for at least 10 minutes (general guidance) before simmering until soft. A slow cooker does not get hot enough to do this safely. Tinned beans are already cooked.
Level 2 · Greek
Butter beans with tomato and feta
A Greek-style bake (gigantes), with large butter beans in a thick tomato and oregano sauce, baked until the top is slightly crusty, and finished with crumbled feta. It is the easiest recipe in the course: stir, cover and bake.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, sliced
- 400 g tin of chopped tomatoes
- 2 tins of butter beans (400 g each), drained and rinsed
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp sugar
- 100 g feta, crumbled
- 3 tbsp chopped parsley
- Heat the oven to 190°C (170°C fan, gas 5). Soften the onion and garlic in the oil for 8 minutes, add the tomatoes, oregano, bay and sugar and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Stir in the beans, season, tip into a baking dish and cover with foil. Bake for 35 minutes, then uncover and bake for 15 minutes more.
- Scatter with feta and parsley and serve with bread.
Hot oven, heavy dish and allergens
Hot oven and heavy dishes: a casserole or baking dish of bean stew is heavy and bubbling hot. Use dry oven gloves, pull the shelf out before lifting, put the dish on a heatproof surface, and open foil away from your face because the steam scalds.Tinned pulses: tinned pulses are cooked and ready to eat once drained and rinsed, which also washes off much of the salt. Check the use-by date, never use tins that are bulging or leaking, and keep opened tins in a covered container in the fridge for up to 2 days rather than in the tin.
Allergens in pulses: soya, peanuts and lupin are legumes and major allergens, and sesame (in tahini) is one too. Check labels on tinned pulses, flours and sauces, tell guests what is in a dish, and use separate pans and spoons if someone is allergic. Celery is in many stock cubes.
Allergens: contains milk (feta).
Level 3 · Hearty
A sausage and bean stew
Pork sausages (or vegetarian ones) browned, then simmered with cannellini beans, tomato and paprika. Brown the sausages hard for flavour, then finish cooking them in the stew until no pink remains. Even better the next day.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 8 good pork sausages (or vegetarian sausages)
- 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 carrots, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, sliced
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 400 g tin of chopped tomatoes
- 2 tins of cannellini beans (400 g each), drained and rinsed
- 300 ml stock, unsalted
- 2 bay leaves
- 3 tbsp chopped parsley
- Brown the sausages in the oil for 6 to 8 minutes, lift out, and soften the onion and carrots in the same pan for 8 minutes. Add the garlic and paprika for 1 minute.
- Add the tomatoes, stock, bay and beans, and return the sausages. Simmer, lid ajar, for 30 minutes until the sausages are cooked through and the sauce is thick.
- Check a sausage is cooked in the middle, season, and scatter with parsley.
Raw sausages, hot pan and allergens
Raw sausages and meat: raw sausages and other pork must be cooked right through, with no pink inside and juices running clear, until about 75°C in the centre (general guidance). Keep them on their own board and plate, wash hands, boards and knives in hot soapy water afterwards, and never wash raw meat.Hot pan and hot oil: roasting tins and frying pans for browning are very hot and fat spits. Use dry oven gloves, pull the shelf out a little before lifting a tray, put hot things on a heatproof surface and keep children away.
Thick soups catch and spit: a thick soup sticks to the base of the pan and blobs and spits when it bubbles. Stir often, keep the heat low, use a pan with a heavy base and a long spoon, and keep your face back.
Allergens in pulses: soya, peanuts and lupin are legumes and major allergens, and sesame (in tahini) is one too. Check labels on tinned pulses, flours and sauces, tell guests what is in a dish, and use separate pans and spoons if someone is allergic. Celery is in many stock cubes.
Experiments
Experiment
Simmered or baked
Texture.
- Cook the same butter-bean stew on the hob and in the oven.
Look for: The oven version thickens evenly and has a slightly crusty top; the hob version is looser and needs stirring.
Experiment
Tomato first or last
Flavour.
- Add tomatoes to one pot at the start and to another after the beans have softened.
Look for: Acid slows beans softening, so dried beans cooked with tomatoes can stay hard; for tinned beans the difference is small.
Experiment
Smoked paprika
Smokiness.
- Taste a bean stew with and without a teaspoon of smoked paprika.
Look for: The smoked paprika adds a smoky, meaty depth; without it the stew is sweeter and plainer.
Experiment
A day older
Flavour.
- Taste the stew the day it's made and again after a night in the fridge.
Look for: The next-day stew is thicker and more rounded, so add a splash of water when reheating.
Tasting notes
| What I tried | Method or amount | What I saw | What I thought | Will I do it again? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home-made baked beans | ||||
| Bean chilli | ||||
| Butter beans with tomato and feta | ||||
| Sausage and bean stew | ||||
| Simmered or baked | ||||
| Tomato first or last | ||||
| Smoked paprika | ||||
| A day older |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Stew too thin | Too much liquid | Simmer uncovered, or mash some beans |
| Stew sticks and burns | Heat too high, no stirring | Keep it low and stir; use a heavy pan |
| Flat flavour | No acid, sugar or salt | Add vinegar, a pinch of sugar and salt |
| Hard dried beans in tomato | Acid early | Cook dried beans soft first (chapter 2) |
| Greasy stew | Fatty sausages | Skim the fat off the top |
| Sausages pink inside | Not simmered long enough | Cook until no pink remains and juices run clear |
Hot stew, leftovers and allergens
Thick soups catch and spit: a thick soup sticks to the base of the pan and blobs and spits when it bubbles. Stir often, keep the heat low, use a pan with a heavy base and a long spoon, and keep your face back.Cooling and keeping stock: stock is an ideal place for bacteria to grow. Strain it, then cool it quickly in shallow containers or an ice bath, chill within 1 to 2 hours, and use within about 2 days (fish stock within 1 day) or freeze it. Never leave a big pot to cool slowly on the hob or worktop overnight. Reheat until steaming hot all the way through.
Reheating soup: reheat soup only once, until it is steaming hot all the way through (bubbling for a couple of minutes), not just warm. Do not reheat soup that has been left out at room temperature for more than 2 hours.
Allergens in pulses: soya, peanuts and lupin are legumes and major allergens, and sesame (in tahini) is one too. Check labels on tinned pulses, flours and sauces, tell guests what is in a dish, and use separate pans and spoons if someone is allergic. Celery is in many stock cubes.
Checkpoint: can you do this now?
- I can build a tomato and bean sauce.
- I can use smoked paprika for depth.
- I can balance a stew with sugar and vinegar.
- I can bake beans in the oven.
- I know stews improve overnight.
Next chapter
Cooking Skills: Pulses and Beans 1, chapter 7 is Pulses as the Main Event: binding, browning and replacing meat.