Bangers and beans in April’s kitchen

I still love opening up a pod of beans to see what’s inside – it’s still magical and of course the grandchildren love it too! We had a good harvest of Borlotti Beans in the summer and it really is time to use them up.

High in fibre and protein beans have good levels of vitamins and minerals. They have a mildly sweet and nutty flavour with a soft and creamy texture making them great for mashing into a dip. They’re also extremely filling when added to soups and casseroles.

Bangers, Bacon and Beans

Serves 4 Takes about an hour and a half plus soaking time

300g dried borlotti beans, rinsed

500ml water plus soaking water

Oil

1 onion, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 medium carrot, diced

125g pancetta

100g molasses sugar

2 tspns wholegrain mustard

1 tblspn tomato puree

1 tblspon Worcestershire sauce

100ml white wine vinegar

1 tblspn balsamic vinegar

150ml passata

1 tspn cayenne pepper

1 tblspn corn flour mixed with 1 tblspn water

8 sausages

Put the rinsed beans in a large bowl and cover with cold water. Leave overnight then drain.
Put the plumped-up beans and 500ml of water into a large pan and bring to the boil. Boil for 10 minutes then turn down the heat, cover and simmer gently for about 40 minutes until the beans are tender. Drain, saving the cooking water.
Heat a large, deep frying pan and cook the pancetta until brown and crispy. Add a little extra oil then add the onion, garlic and carrot. Cook until the onion is softened.
Add the sugar, mustard, puree and Worcestershire sauce, stirring until the sugar has melted. Cook gently for 5 minutes then mix in the
drained beans, vinegars, passata and cayenne.
Pour three quarters of the remaining cooking water into the pan and heat to near boiling. Pour in the corn flour mix and stir until the mixture has thickened. Bring to the boil stirring occasionally and simmer for 30-40 minutes until the beans are squashy and really tender. Add more water or thicken with more cornflour as required.
Cook your sausages as you like them then serve with a jacket potato and a good spoonful of the beans.

Quick tip

Beans do need to be thoroughly dried before storing away in a cool dark cupboard. The sun dry method isn’t always possible in this country, so I tend to use my oven!

Lay out a single layer on a baking sheet then dry at 50degreesC for 2-3 hours depending on their size. Cool completely before storing.

Dried beans must be soaked before cooking. Ideally overnight for at least 8 hours then rinse and drain before cooking.

I boil mine rapidly for 10 minutes to remove any toxins then leave to simmer for a good hour until they are soft and creamy