Chef Isabel
Aguaillo de la Sierra de Cadiz
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Verdinas Asturianas con Verduras
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Verdinas are Asturias in a quiet bowl: small green dried beans, sweet vegetables, and a slow sofrito cooked until the broth thickens without meat.
Soups & Stews
Spanish
Comfort Food
One Pot
Budget Friendly
25 min
Active Time
1 hr 45 min cook•10 hr 10 min total
Yield4 to 6 servings
Verdinas con verduras are Asturian, from the wet green north, and the bean tells you so before the spoon does. Verdinas are not green beans from the garden. They are small dried fabes, pale green and thin-skinned, cooked until creamy with leek, carrot, squash, and olive oil. Esto es de Asturias, no de "España" a secas.
The method that decides the stew is gentleness. Soak the beans, start them in cold water, then keep them at a low tremble, not a boil. A hard boil splits the skins and muddies the broth. The sofrito, the slow onion base, goes in later, cooked low until sweet and golden, because that is where the depth comes from when there is no compango, no cured pork, doing the work for you.
If you can't find verdinas where you are, use small dried cannellini or navy beans. They won't have the same delicate green skin or buttery finish, but they will give you a good Asturian-style potaje if you keep the simmer low and the vegetables honest. Blend one ladle of beans and squash back into the pot and the stew thickens by itself. Siempre sale, si lo sigues.
Verdina beans are tied to eastern Asturias, especially around Llanes, where their fine skin and pale green colour made them prized for gentle stews. They are often cooked with seafood in coastal kitchens, but Asturian cocina de cuchara, spoon food, also gives them to vegetables when the market and the household budget point that way. The creaminess comes from the bean and the slow pot, not from cream or flour.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
dried verdina beans
Quantity
350g
soaked overnight
cold water
Quantity
1.7 litres, plus more as needed
bay leaf
Quantity
1
leek
Quantity
120g
white and pale green parts, finely sliced
onion
Quantity
180g
finely chopped
carrot
Quantity
120g
diced small
squash or pumpkin
Quantity
250g
peeled and diced
green pepper
Quantity
120g
diced small
garlic
Quantity
3 cloves
minced
extra virgin olive oil
Quantity
80ml
sweet pimentón de la Vera
Quantity
1 teaspoon
saffron threads (optional)
Quantity
1 pinch
flat-leaf parsley (optional)
Quantity
1 tablespoon
chopped
fine sea salt
Quantity
10g, plus more to taste
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| dried verdina beanssoaked overnight | 350g |
| cold water | 1.7 litres, plus more as needed |
| bay leaf | 1 |
| leekwhite and pale green parts, finely sliced | 120g |
| onionfinely chopped | 180g |
| carrotdiced small | 120g |
| squash or pumpkinpeeled and diced | 250g |
| green pepperdiced small | 120g |
| garlicminced | 3 cloves |
| extra virgin olive oil | 80ml |
| sweet pimentón de la Vera | 1 teaspoon |
| saffron threads (optional) | 1 pinch |
| flat-leaf parsley (optional)chopped | 1 tablespoon |
| fine sea salt | 10g, plus more to taste |
Equipment Needed
- •Heavy 4 to 5 litre pot or olla
- •Wide frying pan for the sofrito
- •Ladle
- •Immersion blender or fork for mashing one ladle
Instructions
- 1
Soak the beans
Put the verdinas in a large bowl, cover them with plenty of cold water, and soak them overnight, 8 to 12 hours. Drain them and rinse gently. Pésalo, no lo adivines: old beans and guessed water are how a simple stew becomes stubborn.
- 2
Start them cold
Put the drained beans in a heavy pot with 1.7 litres cold water and the bay leaf. Bring them up slowly over medium heat, skimming the grey foam as it rises. When the pot begins to move, lower the heat until the surface only trembles. Do not boil them hard.
- 3
Cook the sofrito
While the beans begin to soften, warm the olive oil in a frying pan and add the leek, onion, carrot, green pepper, and a small pinch of the measured salt. Cook low and slow for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is dark gold, the leek is sweet, and almost no liquid is left. Add the garlic for the last 2 minutes. This slow sofrito is the floor of the stew; rush it and the pot tastes thin.
- 4
Add squash and pimentón
Stir the diced squash into the sofrito and cook for 5 minutes so it takes the oil. Pull the pan off the heat, add the pimentón, and stir until fragrant. Keep it off the flame when the pimentón goes in, because scorched pimentón turns bitter and there is no hiding it.
- 5
Simmer together
Scrape the sofrito and squash into the bean pot. Add the saffron if using. Keep the stew at that low tremble until the beans are tender and creamy, usually 60 to 90 minutes more depending on their age. If the water drops below the beans, add a small splash of cold water. Shake the pot by the handles instead of stirring hard.
- 6
Thicken the broth
When the beans are tender, lift out one ladle of beans, squash, and broth. Mash or blend it smooth, then stir it back into the pot. Add the remaining salt, taste, and cook 5 minutes more until the broth looks creamy and lightly green-gold from the oil.
- 7
Rest and serve
Turn off the heat and let the verdinas rest for 15 minutes. The broth settles and thickens as it stands. Serve in deep bowls with a little chopped parsley if you like, and a thread of olive oil. Bread is not decoration here; it is for the last spoonfuls.
Chef Tips
- •Verdinas are dried beans, not fresh green beans. If the label says judias verdes, that is a different vegetable entirely. Look for fabes verdinas or verdina beans.
- •If verdinas are out of reach, use small cannellini or navy beans. The stew will be a little less fine-skinned and less green, but it will still eat well if you keep the simmer gentle.
- •Salt near the end, once the beans are mostly tender. Salt too early can toughen the skins, especially if the beans have been sitting in the cupboard too long.
- •This is better after a rest. Make it in the morning for lunch, or the day before for an even silkier broth. Reheat gently with a splash of water.
Advance Preparation
- •Soak the verdinas the night before in plenty of cold water. They need space to swell and cook evenly.
- •The stew can be made 1 day ahead and chilled. Reheat over low heat, loosening with water a little at a time.
- •The sofrito can be cooked up to 2 days ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 520g)
Calories
435 calories
Total Fat
16 g
Saturated Fat
2 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
13 g
Cholesterol
0 mg
Sodium
830 mg
Total Carbohydrates
59 g
Dietary Fiber
14 g
Sugars
7 g
Protein
18 g
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