Baked Navy Beans with Kabocha, Sun Dried Tomatoes and Rosemary

posted in: Legumes, Recipes | 0

This baked bean recipe is a variation of a dish I taught in my cooking class last week. I love it and am excited to share it with you. If you live on the west coast of the US see if you can track down Hummingbird sun dried tomatoes at your local food co-op. They are fabulous. Thyme would be a nice addition as well. Enjoy!

Baked Navy Beans with Kabocha, Sun Dried Tomatoes and Rosemary

1 1/2 cups dried navy beans, rinsed and soaked at least 8 hours
Postage stamp size piece of kombu or kelp

1 medium onion, diced

2 cups 4″ size chunks of kabocha or red kuri squash, cut any rough bits off the skin

2-3 Tbsp sun dried tomato (I love Hummingbird brand)
1 sprig fresh rosemary
Sea salt
1/2 to 1 tsp unpasteurized shoyu or tamari

1. Oven to 350°. You can try 375° just make sure you watch the beans more closely.
2.
Drain the beans and place in a medium Le Creuset dutch oven. Add water to cover about 1” above top of beans. Bring to a boil and scrape off any foam that rises to the surface. Lower the heat to simmer. Add kombu/kelp, onion, winter squash, tomatoes and rosemary. If you want to keep the rosemary from running loose in the dish you can wrap it in cooking twine or put it in a cloth tea bag.
3
. Bring to a simmer again and cover. Place in oven on a middle rack taking care that the top of the pot isn’t too close to the top of the oven. Check frequently and add a little more water if necessary as the beans cook. Cook until the beans start to become soft then stir in 2 pinches of sea salt. Continue to check and add a little more water as
necessary. They may need to bake for 45-60 minutes depending on the freshness of the beans.

4.
As soon as beans and squash are done cooking, gently stir in the shoyu/tamari. Remove the cover and bake for 10 more minutes. Taste and adjust flavors adding a bit more sea salt or shoyu if needed.
5. Remove from oven and serve.

Note:
Be moderate with seasonings before baking. If the beans start out salty they will

become even more so while baking because they will lose moisture and become more

concentrated.

You can substitute the winter squash for sweet potato if desired.

You can also use a different variety of bean.

Baked Navy Beans with Winter Squash, Sun Dried Tomatoes and Rosemary

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Course Side Dish
Cuisine macrobiotic
Servings 6

Equipment

  • Cast iron dutch oven with lid

Ingredients
  

  • 1 1/2 cups dried navy beans rinsed and soaked at least 8 hours
  • Postage stamp size piece of kombu or kelp
  • 1 medium onion diced
  • 2 cups 4" size chunks of kabocha or red kuri squash cut any rough bits off the skin
  • 2-3 Tbsp sun dried tomato I love Hummingbird brand
  • 1 sprig fresh rosemary
  • Sea salt
  • 1/2 to 1 tsp unpasteurized shoyu or tamari

Instructions
 

  • Oven to 350°. You can try 375° just make sure you watch the beans more closely.
  • Drain the beans and place in a medium Le Creuset dutch oven. Add water to cover about 1” above top of beans. Bring to a boil and scrape off any foam that rises to the surface. Lower the heat to simmer. Add kombu/kelp, onion, winter squash, tomatoes and rosemary. If you want to keep the rosemary from running loose in the dish you can wrap it in cooking twine or put it in a cloth tea bag.
  • Bring to a simmer again and cover. Place in oven on a middle rack taking care that the top of the pot isn't too close to the top of the oven. Check frequently and add a little more water if necessary as the beans cook. Cook until the beans start to become soft then stir in 2 pinches of sea salt. Continue to check and add a little more water as necessary. They may need to bake for 45-60 minutes depending on the freshness of the beans.
  • As soon as beans and squash are done cooking, gently stir in the shoyu/tamari. Remove the cover and bake for 10 more minutes. Taste and adjust flavors adding a bit more sea salt or shoyu if needed.
  • Remove from oven and serve.

Notes

Be moderate with seasonings before baking. If the beans start out salty they will
become even more so while baking because they will lose moisture and become more
concentrated.
You can substitute the winter squash for sweet potato if desired.
You can also use a different variety of bean.
Keyword legumes