French Flageolet Beans

  4.5 – 15 reviews  • Bacon Recipes
Level: Easy
Total: 14 hr
Active: 30 min
Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

  1. 1 pound dried flageolet beans
  2. 2 tablespoons good olive oil
  3. 4 ounces bacon, diced
  4. 2 cups medium-diced yellow onion (2 onions)
  5. 2 cups medium-diced fennel, trimmed and cored
  6. 2 carrots, scrubbed and medium-diced
  7. 4 teaspoons minced garlic (4 cloves)
  8. 2 cups canned beef or vegetable broth
  9. 2 bay leaves
  10. 1 large sprig fresh rosemary
  11. Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  12. Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

  1. The night before cooking, place the beans in a large bowl and cover them with water by 1 inch. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
  2. The next day, preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Drain the beans, rinse well, and drain again. In a large ovenproof pot such as Le Creuset, heat the olive oil over medium to medium-low heat, add the bacon, and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until the bacon starts to brown. Add the onion, fennel, and carrots and cook for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables begin to soften but aren’t browned. Add the garlic and saute for 1 to 2 more minutes.
  3. Add the flageolets to the pot and stir in the broth, bay leaves, and rosemary. (Don’t be tempted to add salt! The beans will become tough.) Add 2 cups of water, which should just cover the beans, and bring to a simmer on top of the stove. Cover the pot tightly and bake in the oven for 45 minutes. Remove the lid, stir in 1 tablespoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper, and return the pot to the oven without the lid. Raise the temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 30 to 45 more minutes. The beans will be very tender and there will be just a little liquid in the bottom of the pan. (If the beans are dry, add a little more water.) Discard the bay leaves and rosemary. Taste for seasonings and serve hot.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 of 8 servings
Calories 307
Total Fat 9 g
Saturated Fat 2 g
Carbohydrates 42 g
Dietary Fiber 11 g
Sugar 4 g
Protein 16 g
Cholesterol 9 mg
Sodium 472 mg

Reviews

Sarah Garrett
I must say it wasn’t as delicious as I was expecting. The next day, same…disappointing. I froze the leftover beans. Later as I was planning to make chili, I cooked deer burger and pork sausage with chili flakes and onion, added the leftover beans and oh, my goodness! I didn’t add another thing, it was so good we couldn’t stop eating them. The beans had a beautiful floral flavor that came through and the chili flakes provided nice heat. I will make the recipe again with a few tweaks for more flavor.
Edwin Hamilton
Absolutely delicious !! Served with roasted pork tenderloins seasoned with coriander and fennel and a chutney. The beans were a great side – flavorful but not competing with the other rather strong flavorings. Once assembled the cooking was worry free while I prepared other time consuming items. Beans held their shape beautifully. Will definitely make this again.
Sheri Lewis
Outstanding. I served this with pork steaks for dinner and the compliments kept coming. Everyone had seconds.
Jaime Perkins MD
I made these using the quick soak method of boiling for one minute, then soaking for one hour prior to making the recipe rather than an overnight soak.  Otherwise,  I followed it exactly as written and the beans came out amazing.  They maintained their shape but were creamy and delicious to the bite.  The aroma while cooking filled the house with savory smelling goodness.  I placed a pork loin rubbed in garlic and olive oil on a small sheet pan next to the beans during the last 45 minutes of baking and everything was ready at the same time.  Wonderful meal. 
Rhonda Medina
Very good – needed another 20 min or so in the oven, then put on stove to reduce liquid down a bit more. Added a little extra water in the beginning but shouldn’t have. Would put the fresh rosemary in a sachet d’épices  next time as the leaves came off the stem and preferred not to eat them!
Susan Thompson
Superb recipe. In my oven it needs 325F, and an hour for each step to get the desired result. Suggested adapatations, depending on how you will use these:

– use white chicken stock
– omit the bacon, increase olive oil to 3 Tbl
– sub in thyme for rosemary.
Pairs wonderfully well with grilled lamb, pork, or chicken.
Jessica Garcia
Outstanding and EASY!
Stephen Scott
Wonderful recipe. I did cook the beans for roughly another 20 minutes in the oven to get them to my preferred level of tenderness but that could just be my oven. I made this for several friends that usually do not like beans and they all had seconds!
Emily Lopez
I think this is the first Ina recipe I’ve ever made. It was easy and delicious. I never found flagolet beans-even at my whole foods but the cannelini beans worked very well. 
Julia Barnett
As with all of Ina’s recipes… a winner!! I used the quick soak method of boiling and then letting the beans sit an hour and didn’t have to wait until tomorrow! BTW.. found the beans at Whole Foods! REALLY YUMMY AND EASY!!!

 

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