Chef Isabel
Fabada Asturiana
Fabada Asturiana is Asturias in a pot: fat fabes de la granja, cured compango, and a slow tremble on the stove until the beans turn creamy and the broth shines.
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Fabes con Pulpo Asturianas
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Fabes con pulpo are Asturias at the spoon: creamy fabes de la granja, tender octopus, and its own sweet broth, joined by a slow pimentón sofrito that gives the stew its body.
Soups & Stews
Spanish
Special Occasion
Celebration
One Pot
25 min
Active Time
2 hr 45 min cook•11 hr 10 min total
Yield6 servings
Fabes con pulpo are Asturian, not just white beans with seafood. The dish belongs to the same northern spoon table as fabada, but here the compango steps aside and the octopus gives the broth: clean, sweet, marine, with the fabes de la granja turning creamy around it. Esto es de Asturias, no de "España" a secas.
The method that decides it is simple: cook the pulpo first, then use that cooking water for the beans. If you throw raw octopus into the pot with the fabes, the timing fights you and somebody loses. Tender octopus first, slow beans after, and a low sofrito, the slow onion base, cooked until dark gold and sweet before the pimentón goes in. That is where the stew gets depth without turning heavy.
If you can't find fabes de la granja, use a large dried white bean, judión if you can, cannellini if that is what your shop has. The texture will be a little less buttery, so simmer even more gently and don't stir with a spoon. Frozen octopus is not second best here; it helps tenderness, the old kitchen truth made easy for cooks far from a Galician or Asturian fishmonger.
Give the beans their overnight soak, keep the pot at the barest tremble, and rest the stew before serving. Pésalo, no lo adivines. Siempre sale, si lo sigues, it turns out if you follow it.
Fabes con pulpo belongs to Asturias's cocina de cuchara, spoon food, where fabes de la granja anchor both inland stews and seafood pots from the Cantabrian coast. The dish shows the old northern habit of letting the market decide the pot: beans from the land, octopus from nearby waters, and pimentón brought from the preserved larder. It sits close to fabes con almejas in spirit, but the octopus makes it more festive and gives the broth a deeper, sweeter sea taste.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
dried fabes de la granja
Quantity
500g
soaked overnight
cleaned octopus
Quantity
1.2kg
thawed if frozen
bay leaf
Quantity
1
onion for cooking the octopus
Quantity
1
halved
small onion for the sofrito
Quantity
1
finely chopped
small leek
Quantity
1
white and pale green parts finely chopped
garlic cloves
Quantity
3
2 lightly crushed and 1 minced
extra virgin olive oil
Quantity
80ml
sweet pimentón de la Vera
Quantity
1 teaspoon
hot pimentón de la Vera (optional)
Quantity
1/4 teaspoon
dried ñora pepper (optional)
Quantity
1 small
soaked and flesh scraped
saffron threads (optional)
Quantity
1 pinch
flat-leaf parsley
Quantity
1 tablespoon
chopped, to finish
salt
Quantity
to taste
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| dried fabes de la granjasoaked overnight | 500g |
| cleaned octopusthawed if frozen | 1.2kg |
| bay leaf | 1 |
| onion for cooking the octopushalved | 1 |
| small onion for the sofritofinely chopped | 1 |
| small leekwhite and pale green parts finely chopped | 1 |
| garlic cloves2 lightly crushed and 1 minced | 3 |
| extra virgin olive oil | 80ml |
| sweet pimentón de la Vera | 1 teaspoon |
| hot pimentón de la Vera (optional) | 1/4 teaspoon |
| dried ñora pepper (optional)soaked and flesh scraped | 1 small |
| saffron threads (optional) | 1 pinch |
| flat-leaf parsleychopped, to finish | 1 tablespoon |
| salt | to taste |
Equipment Needed
- •Large pot for cooking the octopus
- •Wide heavy pot or olla for the beans
- •Fine sieve
- •Small frying pan for the sofrito
- •Skimmer
Instructions
- 1
Soak the fabes
The night before, cover the fabes with plenty of cold water and leave them 10 to 12 hours. They swell more than you think, so give them room. Drain them before cooking and discard any split or broken beans.
If your beans are old, no recipe can fully rescue them. Buy from a shop with good turnover; fresh dried beans cook creamy, stale ones stay chalky. - 2
Cook the octopus
Put a large pot of water on to boil with the halved onion, bay leaf, and 2 crushed garlic cloves. Hold the octopus by the head, dip the tentacles into the boiling water three times, then lower it in. This is asustar el pulpo, setting the skin so it stays neat. Reduce to a gentle simmer and cook until a skewer slides into the thickest tentacle with slight resistance, about 45 to 60 minutes.
- 3
Rest and cut
Turn off the heat and let the octopus rest in its cooking water for 20 minutes. Lift it out, strain and reserve 1.5 litres of the cooking water, and cut the tentacles into thick coins. Keep the thinner tips a little longer so they do not disappear in the stew.
- 4
Start the beans
Put the drained fabes in a wide heavy pot and cover with the reserved octopus water by about 3cm, adding plain water if needed. Bring up slowly over medium heat, then lower to the barest tremble. Skim the foam. Do not boil hard and do not stir with a spoon; shake the pot by the handles if you need to settle the beans.
- 5
Cook the sofrito
While the beans begin to soften, warm the olive oil in a small pan and add the chopped onion, leek, and minced garlic with a pinch of salt. Cook low and slow for 20 to 25 minutes, until dark gold, soft, and jammy. Pull the pan off the heat, stir in the sweet pimentón, hot pimentón if using, ñora flesh if using, and saffron. Pimentón burns fast, and burnt pimentón tastes bitter. There is no rescuing it.
- 6
Join the pot
When the fabes are tender at the edges but not yet creamy, usually after 1 hour 15 minutes, spoon in the sofrito and shake the pot gently to spread it through the broth. Keep simmering at that quiet tremble until the beans are fully tender and the broth turns silky, about 45 to 75 minutes more. If the surface drops too low, add a small splash of cold water.
- 7
Add the pulpo
Add the sliced octopus for the final 10 minutes only, just long enough to warm through and give its flavour back to the beans. Taste before salting; octopus water can carry more salt than you expect. Season carefully.
- 8
Rest and serve
Take the pot off the heat and let it rest 15 minutes. The broth settles and clings to the beans instead of running thin. Serve in deep bowls with parsley and a thread of olive oil if you like. Bread beside it, nothing clever. Tal como se hace allí.
Chef Tips
- •Frozen octopus is a good choice. Freezing helps tenderize the flesh, so buy it frozen or freeze it yourself for a day, then thaw slowly in the refrigerator.
- •Use the octopus cooking water as the bean broth, but taste it before salting. Some octopus is naturally briny, and the stew needs restraint, not a heavy hand.
- •If fabes de la granja are out of reach, use judión or good cannellini. The broth will be a little less creamy, so keep the simmer lower and let the stew rest before serving.
- •Do not add chorizo to this pot. Asturias has chorizo dishes enough. Here the point is the octopus and the fabes, and chorizo would cover both.
- •A crisp Asturian sidra is the natural glass beside this. Albariño also works well if you want wine, especially with the sweet sea taste of the pulpo.
Advance Preparation
- •Soak the fabes 10 to 12 hours ahead in plenty of cold water.
- •Cook the octopus up to 1 day ahead, keeping it covered in a little of its cooking water in the refrigerator.
- •The finished stew can be made several hours ahead and reheated gently. If it thickens, loosen with a splash of reserved octopus water or plain water.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 470g)
Calories
575 calories
Total Fat
16 g
Saturated Fat
2 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
13 g
Cholesterol
95 mg
Sodium
1050 mg
Total Carbohydrates
60 g
Dietary Fiber
14 g
Sugars
3 g
Protein
49 g
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