I’m a dietitian here to tell you that there’s a reason these are called butter beans. Imagine this, send yourself back to when you were a kid and your mom was cooking a meal with butter, a pasta, a bread of some kind, a chicken roasting in the oven, the smell of butter gives you a sense of warmth and coziness. This is how I feel about these Cozy Cilantro & Lemon Butter Beans, but without the actual butter. I want you to be able to feel a sense of nostalgia and coziness when you make these beans. Everyone should have a bowl of beans they can fall back on and these are mine.
Beans in general are very nutrient dense foods - 1 cup of these butter beans will provide your body with 13 grams of fiber and more than 15% of your daily recommended amounts of folate, iron, magnesium, potassium, and B6. Beans bring a sense of joy in my opinion because of the vitamins and minerals they provide your body. B6, magnesium, iron, folate all essentially (directly and indirectly) will provide your body with energy and help boost your mood/regulate your nervous system. Beans are a happy food that your body loves.
There are plenty of ways for you to enjoy these beans - they can be enjoyed alone as a snack if you'd like (yes, I've done that, this is a judgement free zone). They can act as the perfect side dish next to a fish, chicken, or steak, paired with a fresh salad or roasted veggie. They can also be a part of a nourish bowl or salad as your source of protein/fiber. No matter how you enjoy them, you will love them. I hope they make you feel warm and cozy the way they did for me.
This recipe is a plant-based recipe that takes less than 30 minutes to make. Yes, you'll have to soak the beans overnight but after that, you just have to boil them, prep the onion, cilantro, and garlic, and then it's just sautéing for 15 minutes after that. Did I mention that this is a budget-friendly recipe too? I used the Simpli brand of gigante beans for $7.99, but you can also opt for the Goya lima beans for $3.99. Gigante beans and lima beans are basically the same thing, so don't worry if you can't find one of them. Let's get to cooking!
Yields: 2
Portion: 1 bowl
Prep time: 30 minutes (overnight to soak the beans)
Total time: 50 minutes
This recipe is dairy free, gluten free, and vegan.
Ingredients:
10oz (1 ¼ cup) gigante beans
Dash of baking soda
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
⅓ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro (or more if you love cilantro)
½ yellow onion, finely diced
3 garlic cloves, mashed into puree
¼ tsp paprika
¼ tsp cumin
½ tsp salt (or more to taste)
Juice of ½ lemon
Maldon salt to garnish
Extra virgin olive oil to garnish
Instructions:
1. Soak: soak beans overnight for 12 hours in lukewarm water. Add baking soda.
2. Boil: the next morning, drain the remainder of the water in the beans. Grab a medium-sized saucepan and fill it half way with water. Allow the water to come to a boil, add the the beans. Allow the beans to cook for 30 minutes or until you can pierce a fork through the beans. You do not want them to soften too much otherwise they'll fall apart when you're sautéing them. I cooked mine 5 minutes over and some fell apart, so be careful of that.
3. Prep ingredients: while the beans are cooking, prep the cilantro, onion, and garlic. Have the olive oil, salt, paprika, cumin, and lemon on hand.
4. Sauté: once the beans are done, drain them and rinse with cold water. In a large frying pan on medium heat, pour in the olive oil. Add in the onion and garlic. Mix well and allow the onion to lightly brown for 1-2 minutes. Add in the beans. Allow the beans to be incorporated well with the onion and garlic, don't let the onion to burn. Lower the heat to medium low, and add in the cilantro, salt, paprika, and cumin. Sauté on medium low heat for 5 minutes, or until the beans are well-cooked (tender, but not mushy, they should fall apart with a fork but not be mush). Squeeze in the lemon juice, mix. Taste for salt, adjust, and stir for 1 more minute.
5. Serve: garnish with flaky salt and olive oil if you would like and enjoy!
I hope you love this recipe as much as I did, so if you do, please leave me a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! I always read through my suggestions and comments, so please let me know your thoughts. If you have any questions you can feel free to DM me here or through Instagram. Speaking of Instagram - please tag me in all of your creations! I love seeing how the recipes come out and seeing how talented you all are. Sending my love.
xoxo,
Jasmin D the RD
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