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    Home » Vegan Recipes » Vegan Main Courses » Butter Bean Stew

    Butter Bean Stew

    Published: Nov 24, 2021 · Modified: Nov 24, 2021 by Kate Ford · This post may contain affiliate links.

    Butter Bean Stew
    JUMP TO RECIPE JUMP TO VIDEO
    pin for butter bean stew

    This delicious butter bean stew with walnuts, sun-dried tomato and lemon is packed with flavour and nutritious too! Perfect to batch-cook and freeze.

    🍴 Why you will love this recipe

    This easy weeknight stew is full of punchy flavours and delicious textures. What's more, it is made from ingredients you probably already have in your cupboards!

    Butter beans are nutritional powerhouses. Creamy and nutritious, they are packed with protein, fibre, iron and vitamins to the point of being considered a 'superfood'. They don't have a strong flavour of their own, which works well here as they show off all the other punchy flavours and textures in the stew.

    You can enjoy the stew on its own for a hearty lunch, or serve it with steamed greens and a hunk of sourdough for a substantial supper.

    Jump to:
    • 🍴 Why you will love this recipe
    • 📝 What you need
    • 👩🏽‍🍳 How to make your Butter Bean Stew
    • 🔪 Top Tips & FAQs
    • 🍽 If you liked that...
    • 📖 Recipe
    • 💬 Comments and Reviews
    Ingredients for a butter bean stew

    📝 What you need

    Ingredients

    Butter beans are both delicious and nutritious, and very cheap too! If you don't have butter beans to hand you could use cannellini or borlotti beans instead, just as delicious.

    Sun-dried tomato paste is so much cheaper than a jar of sun-dried tomatoes, but with all the same intense tomato-ey flavour. If you prefer, you could slice up some sun-dried tomatoes instead or as well as the paste.

    Walnuts give both texture and flavour to this stew. Chop them roughly rather than finely, so they don't get lost! If you don't have any to hand you could use cashews instead.

    Kale I'm a huge fan of kale - another 'superfood', but you could use spinach, spring greens or cavolo nero if you prefer.

    Equipment

    A good, sturdy casserole dish with a lid is ideal for this butter bean stew. My trusty Le Creuset casserole gets used almost every day in our house, and thirteen years later (it was a wedding present!), it looks just the same as it did the day we got it. (Can't say the same about me or Mr F, sadly!!).

    👩🏽‍🍳 How to make your Butter Bean Stew

    For a full, printable recipe with ingredients and detailed instructions, scroll to the bottom of this page 👇🏼 .

    finely chop onion carrot and celery

    Finely chop the onion, carrot and celery and fry gently with the crushed garlic for 5 minutes.

    Halve tomatoes and add butterbeans

    Drain and rinse the butter beans, halve the cherry tomatoes and add both to the pan. Cook for a further 5 minutes. Add vegetable stock and sun-dried tomato paste. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

    Add kale and walnuts

    Remove tough stalks from the kale and roughly chop. Roughly chop the walnuts. Add to the stew with the zest and juice of the lemon. Cook for 2 minutes until the kale is just cooked. Taste, adjust seasoning and serve.

    🔪 Top Tips & FAQs

    Adjust the consistency as the stew cooks. Add a splash of water if it is getting a little dry, and leave the lid off and simmer for an extra few minutes if it needs thickening up.

    Chop the walnuts roughly, not too finely or they will get lost in the stew.

    Adjust the flavour to your own taste. Keep testing and adjusting the seasoning and lemon juice to your own taste. I often drizzle each portion with a little chilli oil just before serving.

    Butter Bean Stew Recipe
    Can I freeze the butter bean stew?

    Yes - the stew freezes really well and is perfect for batch-cooking, but I would recommend leaving out the kale and just stirring some kale or spinach through each portion when you defrost and reheat it. You may also need to adjust seasoning when you reheat as freezing dull the flavours.

    Can I make this in a slow-cooker?

    Yes it would be ideal for slow-cooking. If you can, I would really recommend frying the onion, celery, carrot and garlic over a gentle heat first, then when they are softened, tip them and the beans, tomatoes, stock and tomato paste into the slow cooker. Cook for 3-4 hours on high or 5-6 hours on low. Stir through the lemon, walnuts and kale right at the end of cooking.

    What shall I serve with this butter bean stew?

    It is lovely on its own for a hearty lunch, but for a more substantial dinner I like it with a hunk of sourdough and/or steamed green vegetables - Tenderstem broccoli and green beans are my favourites.

    Loved this recipe? ⭐️ Leave a star rating below! 📸 Snap a photo of your finished dish and share it with me on Instagram, tagging me @thevegspace or #thevegspace 📩 And get all my latest recipes in a weekly e-mail by subscribing to my newsletter.

    🍽 If you liked that...

    .... you might also enjoy these vegan recipes from The Veg Space:

    Gigantes Plaki
    Greek Gigantes Beans
    Butter Bean Soup
    Butter Bean Soup
    Butter Bean Mash
    Butter Bean Mash
    Tuscan Bean Stew
    Tuscan Bean Stew

    📖 Recipe

    butterbean stew

    Butter Bean Stew

    Kate Ford | The Veg Space
    This delicious butter bean stew with walnuts, sun-dried tomato and lemon is packed with flavour and nutritious too! Perfect to batch-cook and freeze.
    5 from 7 votes
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    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time 30 minutes mins
    Total Time 40 minutes mins
    Course Main
    Cuisine British
    Servings 4 servings
    Calories 354 kcal

    Ingredients
     
     

    • 2 tablespoon olive oil
    • 1 red onion
    • 2 cloves garlic
    • 2 small carrots
    • 2 sticks celery
    • 2 x 400 g tins butter beans
    • 200 g cherry tomatoes
    • 250 ml vegetable stock (I use 1tsp vegetable stock powder in 250ml boiling water)
    • 2 tablespoon sun-dried tomato paste
    • 50 g walnuts
    • 1 lemon
    • 50 g curly kale

    Instructions
     

    • Heat the oil in a large, lidded casserole or sauté pan.
    • Peel, trim and finely chop the onion, carrot and celery, then add to the pan.
    • Peel and crush the garlic cloves and add to the pan. Cook gently for 5 minutes until soft.
    • Drain and rinse the butter beans and add to the pan. Halve the cherry tomatoes and add to the pan. Cook for a further 5 minutes.
    • Add the vegetable stock and sun-dried tomato paste, season with salt and black pepper, then cover and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring from time to time. If the stew becomes too dry at any time just add a splash more water.
    • Remove any tough stalks and roughly chop the kale. Roughly chop the walnuts. Add both to the pan.
    • Grate the lemon zest into the pan then squeeze in the lemon juice.
    • Cook for just 2-3 minutes until the kale is cooked through. Taste and adjust seasoning if required. Serve immediately.

    Video

    Notes

    Adjust the consistency as the stew cooks. Add a splash of water if it is getting a little dry, and leave the lid off and simmer for an extra few minutes if it needs thickening up.
    Chop the walnuts roughly, not too finely or they will get lost in the stew.
    Adjust the flavour to your own taste. Keep testing and adjusting the seasoning and lemon juice to your own taste. I often drizzle each portion with a little chilli oil just before serving.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1servingCalories: 354kcalCarbohydrates: 39gProtein: 13gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 7gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gSodium: 442mgPotassium: 1051mgFiber: 12gSugar: 9gVitamin A: 6153IUVitamin C: 45mgCalcium: 89mgIron: 5mg
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was! Mention @thevegspace or #thevegspace
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    Vegan in 15 by Kate Ford

    For more quick and easy vegan recipes take a look at my latest book Vegan in 15.

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    About Kate Ford

    Hi! I'm Kate, vegan home cook and blogger behind The Veg Space and author of Vegan in 15. I'm passionate about creating easy vegan recipes that even a first-time cook can follow.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Jen says

      May 11, 2023 at 6:32 pm

      This was my first plant based recipe that I have made, I tweaked it a little to include some marmite because I just love the savoury flavour that it adds (I used the reduced salt one) and also include a block of tempeh that had been simmered for 10 minutes in the vegetable stock. It was absolutely amazing! I really enjoyed it. Can’t wait to try more recipes. I am not a vegan or a vegetarian just someone who is consciously trying to eat more plants and less meat and this made a hearty meal.

      Reply
      • Kate Ford says

        May 13, 2023 at 2:56 pm

        That's great to hear Jen and love the idea of adding tempeh - yum! X

        Reply
    2. Barbara Anderton says

      May 11, 2023 at 1:24 pm

      Hi Kate, I love this recipe and as I've just bought an air fryer can I cook a stew in it?

      Reply
      • Kate Ford says

        May 13, 2023 at 2:58 pm

        Hi Barbara, Glad you like the recipe, thanks for the feedback! I'm not sure how this would work in an air-fryer to be honest, haven't tried it and don't know quite how you would do it.... if you give it a go please let me know! Kate x

        Reply
    3. Tavo says

      November 24, 2021 at 3:07 pm

      I need to make this recipe soon! It is the season here in Italy to get the best cannellini beans and the best kale! 🙂

      Reply
    4. Michelle says

      November 24, 2021 at 2:49 pm

      I've some cans of butter beans in the pantry and now I know what to make! Can't wait to try it, looks so comforting and delish!

      Reply
    5. Dana Sandonato says

      November 24, 2021 at 2:36 pm

      Such a perfect and cozy dish for these chilly evenings! I'm all about these types of dinners right now. Thanks for the delicious recipe!

      Reply
    6. Gloria says

      November 24, 2021 at 2:23 pm

      I have never cooked with butter beans. What a delicious-sounding stew. Just in time for comfort food season. Hearty and warming for the winter months.

      Reply
    7. Jess says

      November 24, 2021 at 2:16 pm

      I love the addition of walnuts in this stew. So yummy!

      Reply
    5 from 7 votes (1 rating without comment)

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