
Loobia chiti (pinto bean stew)
Reflecting the food of Tehran's hole-in-the-wall kabab houses, Berenjak restaurant's convivial cooking is ideal to recreate at home. Try this vegan bean stew as part of a meze feast
- 250g dried pinto beans
- 5 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 cloves garliccrushed
- 1 onionchopped
- 2½ tbsp tomato purée
- 1½ litres vegetable stock
- 1 large (such as Désirée or Maris Piper) floury potatopeeled, diced and kept in water
- 1 lemonjuiced
- 1/8 tsp ground golpar or ground cumin(see notes below)
- to serve extra-virgin olive oil
- to serve flatbreads
Nutrition: per serving
- kcal638
- fat27.7g
- saturates1.9g
- carbs71.4g
- sugars9g
- fibre5.5g
- protein23.1g
- salt1.3g
Method
step 1
The day before cooking, put the beans into a large bowl and cover completely with cold water.
step 2
The next day, heat the vegetable oil in a casserole and cook the garlic for 1 minute until starting to turn golden, then add the onion and cook for 10 minutes until soft and translucent. Add the tomato purée and cook for 2 minutes, then drain the beans really well and tip into the pan. Pour in the stock, season, put on the lid and simmer gently for 2 hours.
step 3
Drain the potatoes from the water then add to the pot and cook without the lid for 30 minutes or until the potatoes have broken down. Stir regularly as it may stick.
step 4
Season the stew, add the lemon juice, pour into a serving bowl and top with the ground golpar or ground cumin and a good drizzle of olive oil. Serve with flatbreads.