A simple, tasty dish perfect for a midweek meal
This juicy chicken in a creamy butter bean broth is so simple but packs loads of flavour.
- SERVES: 4
- PREP TIME: 10 mins
- COOK TIME: 30 mins
- DIFFICULTY: easy
Juicy chicken in a creamy butter bean broth
I love this recipe.
It’s inspired by a recipe from Tart London.
And includes my 2022 discovery and love of all things beans.
But especially giant butter beans!
Giant butter beans
Let’s get any confusion out of the way.
Giant butter beans are the same as lima beans.
Lima beans are named after the capital city of their country of origin, Peru.
And are a common side dish in South America.
I’ve also started using them as a snack or side dish.
What do butter beans taste like
They are deliciously smooth and creamy texture.
Almost buttery in flavour.
And they are brilliant at taking on other flavours.
Like when you cook them in a great stock.
How to use butter beans
I fell in love with beans and butter beans in particular through my love of Italian cooking.
And also learning to have my store cupboard stocked with ingredients.
This means on any of those days when you realised you need to go shopping again.
But don’t have the time… or the energy.
You can open up your larder and make an incredible dish from a handful of ingredients,
And this is where beans come in.
Dried butter beans or tinned/jarred are a dependable pantry staple.
You can use them in soups, stews, braises, casseroles, dips, spreads, and salads.
Or whip up a little snack or side with a simple dressing of butter, salt, and a squeeze of lemon juice.
One of my fave recipes for a snack or simple starter is vinegar-marinated giant butter beans.
Vinegar-marinated giant butter beans
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2 tins (giant) butter beans or lima, drained and rinsed
- 1 small garlic clove, minced
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1⁄2 cup red wine vinegar or white wine vinegar
- Freshly grated lemon zest
Method
- Heat the olive oil in a small pot over medium heat.
- Add the beans and garlic and season with salt and pepper.
- Cook a minute or two, just to warm them through.
- Remove from the heat and add the vinegar and combine.
- Leave for at least 30 mins.
- Place in a bowl and season with some black pepper and lemon zest.
- Tip: if you are entertaining you can make this a day or two ahead.
- Just over and put in the fridge.
Recipe from: Nothing Fancy
Dried butter beans can be boiled and then simmered on the stovetop or braised in the oven for a few hours.
If you want to shorten the cooking time of dried beans.
Then soak them for several hours or overnight.
Juicy chicken in a creamy butter bean broth
The key to this simple midweek meal, in my opinion.
Is finding really good quality butter beans (I use Bold Beans).
Then, as always, the best quality meat you can find.
As we know, chicken has a lot of complicated marketing around it.
Just take a read of my post on ‘Organic, free-range, corn-fed…‘
But a good start is using a butcher who can tell you where it came from and how it spent its life.
Lastly, to make this dish fantastic, add a little salsa verde as a nice flourish.
Now, I love a good salsa verde with chicken.
My absolute favourite chicken dish is JW’s roasted chicken with salsa verde.
It’s simple, yet epic.
So, if you want a good salsa verde recipe, check it out.
Having said that, it’s not necessary to make this salsa verde for this dish if you don’t have the fresh herbs.
Or you don’t have the time to make one.
And in that case, perhaps a little sprinkle of basil and/or chopped mint would happily do the trick.
Juicy chicken in giant butter bean stew
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breast with the skin on
- 1 onion, sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, sliced
- 1 fresh sprig of rosemary, leaves chopped
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 glass of white wine
- 500 ml chicken stock
- 1 x 600 g jar of Queen Butter Beans or two tins of ordinary butter beans
- small bunch of parsley, chopped
- 1 lemon juice
Instructions
- Season the chicken breasts and place skin side down in a deep-sided pan with a little oil, turning them until they are browned all over. Then remove them from the pan to a plate.
- Add the onion and garlic to the pan, saute for a few mins then add the rosemary, bay leaves and chilli and cook for a further 5 minutes.
- Now, add the white wine, stock and the butter beans to the pan and bring to a simmer and place the chicken back in, Gently simmer for 10 mins, or until the chicken is cooked through, then, season and add a squeeze of lemon juice.
- Serve in large bowls and place on top of the beans with some lovely soupy broth and sprinkle with some parsley (or salsa verde if you made some).
Notes
Recipe inspired by: Tart London
