Beans, lentils & pulses · Beans
Dried white beans
Dried cannellini, navy or haricot beans that are soaked and slow-cooked into creamy Mediterranean and Balkan bean dishes.
Also called: dry white beans, dried cannellini, dried navy beans, dried haricot beans, tetovac beans, gigantes (dried)
Around the world: grav (mk) · pasulj (sr) · fasolia (el)
A kind of beans
Photo: Rasbak, via Wikimedia Commons (CC-BY-SA-3.0)
What it is
Dried white beans are the uncooked form of cannellini, navy, haricot and Balkan types such as tetovac, and Greek gigantes when named. They need overnight soaking and an hour or more of simmering, but give firmer, more flavourful beans and a starchy cooking liquid that thickens soups. Larger beans take longer to cook.
Phaseolus vulgaris
How it’s used
- Baked in Balkan tavče gravče and Serbian pasulj
- Slow-cooked into Greek fasolada and gigantes plaki
- Simmered for cassoulet and Italian bean soups
- Cooked from scratch for home-made baked beans
Characteristics
- Texture
- Creamy inside once fully cooked; skins stay intact if simmered gently.
- When cooked
- Simmer gently, not at a rolling boil, after the initial hard boil to keep skins whole.
- Sold as
- dried, canned
- Cooking uses
- Commonly cooked, Suitable for boiling, Suitable for baking
Storage
Cool, dry and dark. Keep in an airtight container away from humidity; older beans take longer to soften.
Diet, allergens and safety
No major allergens in typical versions.
- Vegetarian
- Vegan
- Dairy-free
- Egg-free
- Gluten-free
- Nut-free
- Soy-free
- Caffeine-free
- Soak, drain and boil hard for 10 minutes before simmering; undercooked dried beans contain lectins that cause digestive upset.
- Cool cooked legumes quickly and refrigerate; reheat until piping hot and use within a few days.
Nutrition per 100 g
- Energy
- 333 kcal
- Protein
- 23.36 g
- Carbohydrate
- 60.27 g
- Fat
- 0.85 g
- Fibre
- 15.2 g
- Sugars
- 2.11 g
USDA FoodData Central: Beans, white, mature seeds, raw.
Substitutes
Optional — what works if you don’t have it, and how it changes the dish.
- White beans (canned) — Use about 2½–3 times the dried weight in canned beans and shorten cooking.
Related ingredients
Recipes with dried white beans
Prebranac (baked beans with onions)
Serbian · 14 h 40 min · 422 kcal · VeganTavče gravče
Macedonian · 14 h 15 min · 383 kcal · Vegan
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