Here comes a perfect dish for the autumn days. White cannellini beans cooked with sage leaves and tomato sauce, this combo makes the stew so rich in taste. Fagioli all’uccelletto originates from Tuscany and is a delicious meal on its own or a fantastic side dish. You can prepare this bean stew with tasty salsiccia or without making the dish vegetarian.
All you need for 2-3 main dishes:
500g cannellini beans (preferably dried)
1/2 red chili
2 cloves garlic
Pinch of fresh sage leaves
6 sausages (salsicce) – for vegetarian option leave out
1 can (500g) pealed San Marzano tomatoes or other tomatoes
10g tomato purée
A splash of extra virgin olive oil
How to:
1. Soak the dried cannellini beans in water for about 12 hours. After this, cook the beans in water with a bit or rosemary (no added salt) for 1-2 hours until thy get a bit soft. If you use canned beans just rinse them in water and continue with the recipe.
2. Press holes with a fork in the skin of the sausages.
3. Pour olive oil to a stew pot. Smash the garlic cloves to peel the skin off, and throw to the pan. Cut the chili, and place together with the sage leaves to fry in the pot.
4. Place the sausages to the pan and let them get a bit of color , frying about 2-4 minutes (or skip this if you are making the dish vegetarian of course).
5. Add the tomato sauce and lower the heat so the stew will start to simmer.
6. Add the tomato purée and the cannellini beans to the pot. Let the stew cook on a low temperature for about 20 minutes without the lid so that the amazing flavours get more intense. Try the beans and when you feel them nice and soft the dish is ready to be served.
Buon appetito!