Porotos granados, a vegetarian recipe from Chile

Name: Porotos granados
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 70 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Chile
Ingredients: 500 g fresh shelled cranberry beans (or 400 g cooked borlotti); 700 g butternut or red kuri squash, cubed; Kernels from 3 ears of fresh sweetcorn; 1 large onion, finely chopped; 3 garlic cloves, chopped; 1 tbsp sweet paprika; 3 tbsp olive oil; 1 litre water; 1 large bunch fresh basil; Salt and black pepper

Method

Simmer the fresh beans in unsalted water for 25 minutes, until tender but still whole. Keep the cooking water.
Heat the oil in a casserole and sweat the onion for 8 minutes, then add the garlic and paprika and stir for 30 seconds off the heat so it does not scorch.
Add the squash and 600 ml of the bean water, season with salt and simmer covered for 15 minutes.
Crush a third of the squash cubes against the side of the pot until the broth turns orange and velvety.
Add the beans and sweetcorn and cook uncovered for 10 minutes more, until the corn is tender and sweet.
Blend half the basil with a ladleful of broth and stir the green purée back into the pot.
Adjust the seasoning, scatter over the remaining torn basil and serve warm, with a tomato salad if you like.

This dish marks high summer in Chile, when fresh cranberry beans reach the markets. Basil always goes in at the very end, or its perfume disappears entirely.

The techniques this recipe uses

Sweat the aromatics
Medium heat, no browning: the onion should turn translucent and sweet, not toasted.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use dried or tinned beans?

Yes, the recipe already gives the equivalent in cooked borlotti. Add them at the same time as the corn rather than boiling them for twenty-five minutes, and replace the fresh-bean cooking water with water or a light stock.

Why mash some of the squash?

That is what binds the dish: flesh crushed against the side of the pot thickens the broth and gives it its orange colour and velvety body, with no flour or cream. Keep two thirds of the cubes whole for texture.

When should the basil go in?

Always at the end, part of it blended with a ladle of broth and the rest torn over at serving. Left to simmer, its fragrance disappears entirely and only a greenish tinge remains.

Porotos granados

Method

The techniques this recipe uses

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Nutrition per serving

Frequently asked questions

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