Ingredients
- 500 g dried large white beans, soaked overnight
- 2 Spanish cooking chorizo sausages, about 200 g
- 1 morcilla, about 150 g
- 200 g smoked pork belly or pancetta, in one piece
- 1 onion, halved
- 4 cloves garlic, unpeeled
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp sweet smoked paprika
- 1 pinch saffron threads
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp fine sea salt, added at the end
Make it step by step
- Drain the soaked beans and put them in a wide heavy pot with the chorizo, morcilla, pork belly, onion, garlic and bay leaf.
- Add the olive oil and cold water to cover by 3 cm.
- Bring slowly to the boil and skim off the grey foam that rises.
- Add a splash of cold water to stop the boil — this is called scaring the beans, and it keeps the skins intact.
- Turn the heat right down so the surface barely moves, and cook uncovered for 2.5 to 3 hours.
- Shake the pot by its handles every half hour rather than stirring, and top up with hot water if the beans ever come uncovered.
- After 2 hours, crush the saffron and stir it into a ladleful of the broth with the paprika, then pour it back in.
- When the beans are completely tender and the broth has thickened, season with salt. Salting earlier toughens the skins.
- Take the pot off the heat and leave it, ideally overnight — the broth thickens further and the flavour settles.
- Reheat gently, lift out the meats, slice them and return them to the pot to serve.
Nutrition and portions
Nutrition estimates and Zone blocks are not available for this recipe.
Ingredient substitutions and portion changes need a new calculation.
Recipe source
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