Legume Ragu

The ‘ragu’ in the picture is using green ‘French-style’ or Puy lentils. It’s easily my favourite. But don’t let that deter you from exploring other beans or split peas or even chickpeas.

takes: about 40 minutes
makes: enough for 3-4
2 onions, diced
3-4 tablespoons butter
dash of flavouring highlight (see variations), optional
2 cans tomatoes (400g / 14oz each)
500g (1lb) cooked beans or lentils (or 2 cans)

1. Cook onions, butter, a little olive oil and the flavouring highlight (if using) in a large frying pan or skillet on a low to medium heat for 5-10 minutes until onions are soft but not well browned.

2. Remove flavouring highlight, if using. Add tomatoes and simmer for 15-20 minutes on a medium heat until the sauce has thickened.

3. Add legumes and simmer for another 5 minutes or until hot. Taste and season.

Variations

onion-free – just skip the onion (but not the butter!) or replace onions with celery or diced carrots or a combo of both.

dairy-free – replace butter with olive oil. Be generous!

flavouring highlight – a small star anise is great for boosting the ‘meaty’ flavours of the onion. Other options include chilli, rosemary leaves, thyme, bay leaves or sage.

tomato-free – I much prefer tomato based ragus, but if you needed to make it tomato-free for some reason I’d double the onions and replace the two cans of tomatoes with 1 1/2 cups vegetable or chicken stock.

cooked or canned legumes – any cooked or canned legumes are good. Try green lentils, red lentils, brown lentils, yellow split peas, green split peas, cannellini beans, chickpeas, butter beans, lima beans, black beans or red kidney beans. Just be careful with red lentils and brown because they turn to mush easily.

Usage Suggestions

main course – I like to serve on a bed of either baby spinach, carrot ‘noodles’ or zucchini ‘noodles’ or our ‘ready-to-eat’ veg.

pasta – serve with your favorite cooked pasta.

lasagne – replace the meat sauce in your favourite lasagne recipe. You might like to try my ’15 minute’ lasagne for something different.

middle eastern – serve on a bed of hummus with toasted pine nuts and some flat leaf parsley.

soup – turn the ‘ragu’ into an instant soup by diluting with a little water or stock. Serve with lashings of freshly grated parmesan.

Prepare Ahead?

Absolutely. Takes about 40 minutes. I like to make up a big batch to have on hand for quick meals during the week.

Storage Best Practices

Store in an airtight container. Will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks or so. Can be frozen for up to 12 months.

Waste Avoidance Strategy

onions, tomato, dried legumes – pantry.

butter – keeps in the fridge for months.

cooked legumes – freeze really well.

Problem Solving Guide

bland – keep simmering to reduce and concentrate the flavours. If you’re short on time you may like to add a few tablespoons of tomato paste. An extra tablespoon or two of butter may also help.

too thick – add water if too thick.

too runny – keep simmering and next time use a more shallow pan to get maximum evaporation.

mushy legumes – be careful not to overcook the legumes next time.

hard legumes – keep simmering until they are just tender. Crunchy legumes can be difficult to digest. Next time cook the legumes for longer before adding to the ragu.