← Nouns Cooking · Lebanese & Turkish

Ingredients

• 400 g dried white beans (cannellini or haricot)
• 300 g beef or lamb, cut into 2 cm cubes
• 40 g Butter
• 1 tbsp Olive oil
• 1 Onion, diced
• 2 cloves Garlic, sliced
• 2 long green peppers, sliced
• 1 tbsp Tomato purée (paste)
• 1 tbsp Turkish pepper paste
• 2 Tomato, grated or finely chopped
• 1.2 l hot water
• 1 tsp Pul biber (Aleppo-style pepper flakes) (optional)
• 1 tsp Salt
• ½ tsp Black pepper

Method

1. Soak the beans overnight in plenty of cold water. Drain, cover with fresh water in a pan and boil for 40–50 min, skimming, until just tender but holding their shape. Drain.
2. Meanwhile, melt the butter with the oil in a heavy pot over medium-high heat and brown the meat for 6–8 min. Add the onion and cook for 5 min until soft, then the peppers and garlic for 3 min.
3. Stir in the tomato and pepper pastes for 1 minute, then add the tomatoes and cook for 3 min. Pour in 500 ml of the hot water, cover and simmer for 30 min until the meat is getting tender.
4. Add the beans and enough of the remaining hot water to just cover them, with the pul biber, salt and pepper. Simmer gently, partly covered, for 30–40 min until the beans are creamy and the sauce has thickened.
5. Rest off the heat for 10 min, then serve with rice or bulgur pilaf, pickles and a little raw onion on the side.

Tips

• Short on time? Use 2 × 400 g tins of beans, rinsed, and simmer for just 15 minutes at the end.
• For a vegan version, skip the meat, swap the butter for olive oil and use vegetable stock.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Turkish Foodie Ozlem's Turkish Table Give Recipe