Miso butter beans and greens

Adding miso to beans and green vegetables stir-fried in butter with garlic and shallots creates a very flavorful dish. This mixture can be combined with whole grains or served with toasted bread for an easy and nutritious meal.

There is no easier or more nutritious meal appetizer than a mixture of beans and vegetables.

After years of eating a plant-based diet, I’ve come to rely on this duo for protein and a wide range of micronutrients, including iron, zinc, and calcium.

When I don’t know what to make for dinner or any other meal, I turn to beans and vegetables. When in doubt, beans and vegetables can help.

At my house, it’s usually served with whole wheat or some kind of bread.

A combination of grains, beans, and vegetables is sure to leave you feeling satisfied. (It’s so important to me that I wrote an entire cookbook about it.)

Beans and vegetables are canvases of flavor in themselves. They can be very simple, or they can be as elaborate as you like.

The Miso Butter Beans and Vegetables I’m sharing today shows how a few bold seasonings (in this case, white miso, garlic, and shallots) can transform plain food into a memorable dish.

Butterbeans are having a (well-deserved) moment

Beans have been my staple food for many years. My pantry will always have canned chickpeas, black beans, kidney beans, and pinto beans.

I’m also a big fan of white beans for their creamy texture and versatility. I make a pot of white beans once a month or more often.

Over the past few years, I’ve noticed that one particular type of white kidney bean has been popping up in recipes trending on social media. Suddenly, butter beans are all the rage.

What are butter beans? It may actually be known as lima beans.

In the United States, lima beans are often sold frozen. They are pale green in color and are actually baby or immature lima beans.

Mature lima beans are pale white or beige in color and have a wide, flat shape. It can be dried or cooked, canned and sold.

These are the beans used to make Gigantes Plaki, a classic Greek dish that I remember from my childhood. Now, I am one of the many people who love butter beans for their softness, filling, and plump size.

I buy canned butter beans, but you have options. Wegmans, Busch’s, and Goya all make canned butter beans.

If you like to cook dried beans from scratch, look for large bags of white beans labeled “lima” or “gigante.”

Ingredients for miso butter bean vegetables

Most of my go-to bean and vegetable recipes have simple ingredient lists, such as cumin-spiced lentils or rice, beans, and vegetable pasta.

This Miso Butter Beans and Vegetables is no exception. You don’t need much to make this meal happen.

green vegetables

I like to use kale as my dark leafy vegetable of choice here, especially Tuscan or Lacinato kale.

You can also use another leafy vegetable in place of kale. Spinach, Swiss chard, broccoli rabe, and bok choy are just a few examples of vegetables that work well here.

beans

I’ve grown to love butter beans, but they aren’t the only legumes you can use in recipes. Other white beans such as cannellini or Great Northern can also be used.

If you don’t have either, you can try recipes using kidney beans or pinto beans.

white miso

White miso is the type I often use in recipes because I like its mild, slightly sweet flavor. If you have red miso or brown miso at home, it is okay to replace it.

Note that white miso generally has less salt than other types. If you use brown or red miso, you may want to reduce the amount of miso to 3 teaspoons instead of 4 teaspoons.

broth

Vegetable soup is my go-to at home, but I also keep vegan chicken-style soup on hand for soy curl chicken strips and chickpea noodle soup. It doesn’t matter which style of dashi you use for the miso beans and vegetables.

shallot & garlic

I always have shallots at home to make a simple champagne vinaigrette, but I also love cooking with them. It has a slightly sweeter and mellow taste than onions.

Shallots are small and can be easily chopped and added to simple dishes.

If you don’t have shallots at home, it’s fine to use a small white or yellow onion (or half a large onion) instead.

Meanwhile, the recipe calls for 2 cloves of garlic. I’m a super taster and tend to be conservative when it comes to garlic, so feel free to increase the amount to 4-5 cloves if you prefer it more.

lemon juice and zest

Lemon juice and zest give beans and vegetables the brightness and acidity they need. As with the garlic, add more or less lemon juice to your taste.

Preparing miso butter beans and vegetables

Ah, the wonders of recipes that can be easily made with just one frying pan.

This meal is like an easy version of my big pot boiled beans and kale. The main difference between them is that you don’t have to cook the beans from scratch and you have the option of using a spacious frying pan or frying pan rather than a large, heavy-bottomed pot.

Step 1: Fry the shallots and garlic

It only takes about 2 minutes, as shallots tend to cook quickly.

Step 2: Add beans and broth to frying pan

Next, add the beans and broth (vegetable or chicken style) to the skillet. When the soup comes to a boil, use a ladle to remove 1/4 cup from the skillet and transfer to a heatproof bowl or measuring cup.

This stock will become part of the miso slurry.

Step 3: Add vegetables to skillet

Add chopped kale (or other leafy greens) to the skillet in handfuls at a time, stirring to wilt the vegetables as you work.

Cover the skillet, bring the vegetables to a boil, and simmer for 7 to 8 minutes or until tender.

Step 4: Make miso

Add the white miso to the reserved hot soup and mix until you have a creamy miso slurry.

Once the vegetables are cooked, mix this slurry with the lemon zest and juice into the beans and vegetables.

Step 5: Season and serve

Apply the golden rule of cooking here and taste the miso beans and vegetables before eating. At this point, you can adjust the salt, freshly ground black pepper, and lemon juice to your taste.

Finally, add the beans. I think it would be really delicious with farro, rice, barley, or quinoa. But I’ll probably eat them most often over toasted bread.

That bread might be large slices of your favorite sourdough or peasant bread. I also really like pairing this recipe with an easy vegan multigrain bread. It’s great with a few slices of Vegan Week’s focaccia.

To make your vegan pasta recipe more protein-rich, you can easily mix in a spoonful or two of miso butter beans and vegetables.

Regardless of how you serve them, I think beans and vegetables taste even better with a drizzle of olive oil. A squeeze of lemon or a little red pepper flakes won’t hurt.

storage and freezing

Another benefit of this meal is that it is easy to store or freeze. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 8 weeks.

A friend of mine once described this type of meal as “like soup on toast.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. This is a great way to sum up many of my daily lunches, including this flavorful mix with lentil braised toast.

I hope this meal resonates with you and makes it into your meal rotation.

Shit