I was once invited by a friend for dinner. She told me that she was going to make fabada, a spanish bean stew from Asturias. While the beans take center stage, the stew is taken a step further with the addition of chorizo, morcilla (blood sausage) and pork. She even boasted that her fabada was better than my Mom’s version.
“Wait a minute… are you telling my that YOUR fabada is BETTER than my Mom’s?” I asked her over the phone.
“Yes. Yes… you must come over to try it. I managed to get hold of a secret recipe from an aunt.” She replied.
Hmmm…. this I had to see.
A few days later I had dinner at her place. Sadly, the fabada was no where near as good. The taste was oddly familiar but I couldn’t identify where I had tried it before.
“Do you like it?” She asked.
“You know, I can’t lie to you.” I told her. “I think my Mom’s is better.” I added.
“Well, I may have taken a shortcut or two…” she told me. “I used a can of pork and beans.” she added, now looking a bit embarrassed.
“PORK and BEANS?! The nerve! Never ever serve canned pork and beans and pass it off as fabada!” I told her that night.
Which is why many years later, I am slightly embarrassed to admit that I DID use a can of beans for this bean and chorizo stew. Given that the beans takes only a fraction of the time to cook (think 15 minutes instead of 2 days!), this dish DOES stand up to my Mom’s fabada. I saw the recipe in Jason Atherton’s new cookbook: Gourmet For a Fiver. He uses a can of butter beans and is able to re-create that creamy texture which comes from hours of slow simmering by adding some chicken stock and cream. The secret (I think) is to use the best quality chicken stock you can afford (if homemade, even better!) The beans are accompanied by a roast chicken flavoured with thyme and garlic. The roast chicken is my own recipe, the original recipe in the book calls for a confit of chicken.
Roast Chicken with Butter Beans and Chorizo
Recipe serves 2
For the Roast Chicken
- 2 chicken marylands
- 4 cloves garlic
- 30 grams butter
- 3 sprigs thyme
- salt and pepper to taste
- Pre heat the oven to 180c (fan forced).
- Chop the butter, garlic and thyme and mix this together
- Loosen the skin of the chicken with your fingers and spread the butter mixture generously underneath
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper and roast in the oven for 40 minutes
For the Butter Beans with Chorizo
Inspired by Jason Atherton’s Gourmet for a Fiver
- 400 grams canned butter beans, drained
- 1 piece chorizo, chopped
- 100 ml chicken stock
- 100 ml cream
- salt and pepper to taste
- Place the butter beans in a strainer and run them under cold running water. Allow to drain for a few minutes and set aside.
- Over high heat in a medium saucepan, place the chorizo and cook until it is well browned. Remove the chorizo with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- In the same saucepan, add the chicken stock and the cream and simmer until the volume is reduced by half.
- Add the beans and the chorizo and simmer until the sauce has thickened.
- Season with salt and pepper.
trissa,
i’d love to meet this “friend” of yours who made fabada out of canned pork and beans!!!!!!!
joking aside, i must try your “fabada” recipe, which is real quick to make.
Ok, don’t tell anyone but I also use a can of beans sometimes… Nothing wrong with that I think and your dish looks absolutely beautiful Trissa. I love the light on the top photo. Gorgeous!
Mmmm, I love butter beans because, umm, they’re so buttery in texture. Adding cream and chorizo guilds the lily. A great weeknight dish that looks like you spent hours on.
looks sooo delicious Trissa, I’m going to make this for sure! 🙂
Oh man, I just love the combo between the beans & the chicken. Sounds awesome! Simply healthy delicious.
I’ve been craving a dish like this for about a week now. Looks beautiful!
This dish reminds me of the cassoulet I had with you at La Grande Bouffe. It’s YUM!
Roast chicken has become our go-to Sunday recipe! Love the beans + chorizo!
that looks so moist!!!! yum! and probably healthy too!
I am back from the land of report cards are due: this looks fantastic! great photography and I am really into beans lately. YUM!!!! … and I am going to try to my my own chorizo this summer. I love it.
You’ve read my mind – roast chicken is the perfect dinner for 2. And canned beans? I won’t tell if you don’t!
I love butter beans! Yum.
I can’t compare -and didn’t taste both recipes- but I go for yours! I have the mouth watering watching your photo!
I always love your anecdotes. They’re always so funny and honest. That beautiful crackle on your chicken skin looks divine and tinned butter beans with chicken stock, cream and chorizo sounds pretty good to me!
I never use canned beans. Well, perhaps only the red beans which I could never find in Greece in theire dried form. But it sure is a nice little shortcut to making this wonderful dish of yours Trissa. The chorizo always steals my heart 😉
Magda
Pork and beans in the same tin? She was expecting that to be better than your mother’s recipe? Unless your mother uses a less quality tin of pork & beans…
Such a simple dish but you make it look so nice!
I have mastered roasting chicken after some years of cooking and this one is pretty simple! So boastful! LOL But yeah, roasting is difficult.
While I do love to make my own beans, I often use canned cannelini beans to make a white bean dip. And, from the picture your food looks more than appetizing.
I loved reading the post…the nerve of pork & beans…lol….
This is such an excellent mix of ingredients that it is impossible to resist. Fabulous pics and even better flavors.
I will need to come back one day to retrieve this recipe 🙂
Ciao, Devaki @ weavethousandflavors
That chicken looks delicious. Hey I do have fond memories of pork and beans!
That dish looks amazing, Triss! I don’t have any problem with using canned bean! 😀 But now I do make my own bean from the dried stuff. Not that I’m hardworking. I just use the slow cooker lol 🙂
Trissa, It’s a clever version of cooking this dish with success. Love the short cut, wait… it must be tested and tasted, I mean.
Yumm, I love butter beans! Great to hear that you can recreate something just as good with canned beans, it looks fantastic!
Oh Trissa, I never seen butterbean look so pretty on a plate. It makes me drool!
Butter beans, never heard of it…but the chicken looks delicious with beans and chorizo…great meal…the picture is awesome 🙂
What a gorgeous meal. I love everything about it!
Wow, your friend is brazen with those types of inflammatory statements and then serving you canned goods. You can’t make comments like that without having an trump card you’re confident about! Not boasting about it and using canned goods in a recipe like this though is totally sanctioned – this looks like great wintery comfort food!
love short cut cooking. your chicken looks moist and flavourful =)
I have never heard of “Fabada” but it sounds delicious. Anything combining chorizo and butter beans has got to be good!
Canned beans are life savers – no need to be embarrassed over using them 🙂 You photographed your dish looks Amazing!
I don’t think I have seen butter beans….
Good idea to use beans to create creamy textures and thicken stews a little
I use can beans all the time…. no shame. Too busy on wkdays to make everything from scratch.
sometimes shortcut s dont work does it? but sometimes it does . I think it depends very much on the cook/chef :)) your s looks fab n im sure tasted fab too.
Ohh, there’s always danger afoot when ppl claim their food is better than your mom’s! Great photo 🙂
There are some shortcuts that should never make it to the table but there are always one which offer us all a great convenience =)
a can of pork and beans has its place in certain recipes, but it for sure doesn’t belong in others. 🙂
i think this meal is superb from a to z–well done, trissa!
That looks delicious Trissa! And you know what, I’m not embarassed to say I often used canned beans because it saves so much time. I know the texture and flavour isn’t as good, but so often I forget to pre-soak beans, at least I can still make the dish I need if I look to the can.
I’ve never had fabada before, need to try it, your description interests me greatly.
Hi Trissa, it was lovely meeting you yesterday. Love the recipes on your blog. Am definitely going to try some of them soon!
Oh, but this looks delicious. I love the chicken and chorizo and bean combo!!! Your photo makes it look just perfect!!!
I love to make things the traditional way, with age old methods. But there are times when shortcuts are needed and using canned prepared ingredients are necessary.
How did my cope with cooking from scratch every night all those years ago with 6 young girls to look after. I am awestruck.
Personally, I’m not so sure about those products that have meat AND veg in a can! However, I am a big proponent of using canned legumes as I find them very convenient whilst retaining their nutrients. Butter beans, chorizo, cream AND chicken? I’m sold Trissa…yum!
You told her! The nerve to assert that a recipe with canned pork and beans is superior. Your fabada looks so good, and I like how huge those butter beans are.
Ooo Yum! Such a country style dish, I love chorizo and it goes so well with both chicken and beans 🙂
It’s really hot here right now, but this still looks soooooo delicious!
I always feel a little like I’m cheating when I use a can of beans in something, but it really is so much more convenient… It takes too much planning to cook them from dry beans sometimes 😛
I love chorizo!! i think it enhances the flavor of anything that it is used in! :)) i have to try this stew! I know, so much easier to cook with canned beans.. I used them too for my Indian dishes because it’s faster and I do think the texture is better..
I have never had Fabada – in fact this is the first time I hear about this dish. Whenever it is, this looks really comforting. Sounds like a wholesome dish.
It looks sumptuous.I love roasted chicken.
You are making me hungry, again! I can’t read your blog before lunch! 🙂 This dish looks divine, even with canned beans!
Well, that photo is worth a thousand words! Looks so good, I’d eat it for breakfast.
And I think you are so funny, Trissa, using canned butter beans after you berated your friend! I should think the cream mixed in the butter beans would make them lovely and creamy too. It’s really quite a simple dish when you come right down to it. And I bet it packs a big flavor.
Bookmarking now!
How wonderful. This looks very rich and delicious, its hearty but still elegant. What time should I come for dinner daaaaahling?
*kisses* HH
I always use canned beans, it’s so much easier =P and anything is better with chorizo!
This looks like a great accompaniment to roast chicken. The skin on your chicken is golden brown and looks very tasty.
A really delightful & special meal this is!!
I so love chicken with beans & chorizo!!
MMMMMMMMM,..This dish surely ROCKS, dear Trissa!