GIANT BEANS BAKED WITH ROASTED RED PEPPERS AND PASTOURMA

Giant Beans Baked with Roasted Red Peppers and Pastourma image

_Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are excerpted from Diane Kochilas's book [](http://www.amazon.com/Meze-Small-Plates-Savor-Mediterranean/dp/0688175112/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1236793044&sr=8-1)_[Meze: Small Plates to Savor and Share from the Mediterranean Table.](http://www.amazon.com/Meze-Small-Plates-Savor-Mediterranean/dp/0688175112/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1236793044&sr=8-1) _Kochilas also shared some helpful cooking tips exclusively with Epicurious, which we've added at the bottom of the page._ _To read more about Kochilas and Greek cuisine, [click here.](http://eat.epicurious.com/eat/going_global/?/eat/going_global/greek/intro.html)_ Giant beans in some form or another are never absent from Greek meze menus. The key to making this dish taste as good as possible is to use high-quality roasted sweet peppers preserved in extra virgin olive oil. I usually make my own oil, and have them on hand. All you need to do is roast the peppers whole under the broiler, let them cool, peel them, and store them in a container in the fridge covered with good olive oil. You can pour a few tablespoons of the pepper-infused oil into the baking dish for added flavor. As for the beans themselves, the trick is to get the texture right. Giant beans need first to be soaked, then boiled, and finally baked. Once done, they should be soft, almost buttery, without being baked to the point that they fall apart.

Provided by Diane Kochilas

Yield Makes 4 to 6 servings

Number Of Ingredients 10

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Ingredients

1/2 bag (1/4 pound) Greek giant beans or butter beans
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons plus 1/2 cup extra virgin Greek olive oil
1 large red onion, finely chopped
1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
4 large roasted red bell peppers, preserved in olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 bay leaves
4 to 6 slices pastourma to taste
2 to 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar to taste

Steps:

1. Soak the beans according to package directions or in ample water for 6 to 8 hours. Remove from soaking liquid, and place in a pot with ample fresh water (enough to come about 3 inches above the beans). Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the flame to low and simmer the beans for approximately 1 hour, or until al dente. About 15 minutes before removing the beans from the heat, season with salt. Drain and reserve the boiling liquid.
2. As the beans simmer, heat the 3 tablespoons olive oil in large skillet over medium heat, and sauté the onion and garlic until translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove the peppers from their oil and finely chop. Add them to the onions and garlic, and stir over medium heat for about 3 minutes to meld the flavors a little. Remove.
3. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the beans and onion-pepper mixture in an ovenproof glass or ceramic baking dish. Add about 2/3 cup of the reserved bean cooking liquid, as well as 2 tablespoons olive oil and a little of the oil that the peppers were preserved in. There should be a fair amount of liquid in the dish. Season with the salt, pepper, and bay leaves. Cover the dish and bake for about 1 hour, or until the beans are very tender and their centers creamy.
4. In the meanwhile, prepare the pastourma: Cut away the tsimeni, or sticky spice rub, and cut the pastourma across the width of each slice into thin 1/3-inch-wide strips. Twenty minutes before the beans are done, toss in the pastourma. Five minutes before the beans come out of the oven, pour in the vinegar. Season to taste with additional salt. Remove from the oven, pour in the remaining olive oil, and serve. You can let the beans cool to room temperature as well. They also taste great the following day.