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Fasulye Pilaki; White Beans Cooked in Olive Oil with Vegetables

Fasulye Pilaki, White (Cannellini beans) cooked in olive oil with vegetables

Fasulye Pilaki, White (Cannellini beans) cooked in olive oil with vegetables

Fasulye Pilaki is a delicious and wholesome vegetarian Turkish mezze, where vegetables and white (or cannellini) beans are cooked with onions, garlic, carrot and potato in olive oil. As in the case with our Zeytinyagli dishes, the category in Turkish cuisine where we cook vegetables in olive oil, we add a little sugar to balance the flavors. We serve pilaki cold or at room temperature, garnished with parsley and wedges of lemon; the tangy, refreshing lemon juice is really a must here and complements this beans based mezze very well.

I love the ease of preparing this dish as you can prepare ahead of time; it tastes even better the next day as the flavors mature. You can serve fasulye pilaki as a side to grilled fish, meat or vegetables. It is delightful as part of a mezze spread and for lunch too. This dish is also naturally gluten-free.

Fasulye Pilaki, White (Cannellini beans) cooked in olive oil with vegetables

Fasulye Pilaki, White (Cannellini beans) cooked in olive oil with vegetables

The gorgeous plate that serves my Fasulye Pilaki in the photo is a gift from my very talented ceramic artist cousin, dear Nihal, who co-owns the beautiful Zen Ceramics in Istanbul with other seramic artists. Zen Ceramics combines the Anatolian Culture with contemporary designs at their hand made unique porcelain objects, suitable for daily life. I count myself lucky to have a wonderful collection of their beautiful plates so my heartfelt thanks to them!

Afiyet Olsun,

Ozlem

4.7 from 3 reviews
Fasulye Pilaki; White Beans Cooked in Olive Oil with Vegetables
 
Fasulye Pilaki is a delicious and wholesome vegetarian Turkish mezze, where vegetables and white (or cannellini) beans are cooked with onions, garlic, carrot and potato in olive oil, served at room temperature or cold. You can serve fasulye pilaki as a side to grilled fish, meat or vegetables. It is delightful as part of a mezze spread and for lunch too. This dish is also naturally gluten-free.
Author:
Recipe type: Mezzes & Vegetarian
Cuisine: Turkish
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1 can – 440 gr / 14 oz. of cooked white beans or cannellini beans, juice drained OR 275 gr/ 1½ cups/ 10 oz. dried white beans or cannellini beans*
  • 1 medium onion, finely diced
  • 1 medium carrot, quartered and diced in small pieces
  • 1 medium potato, cut in small cubes
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic, finely diced
  • 45 ml / 3 tablespoons of olive oil for cooking
  • 30 ml/ 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil to drizzle before serving
  • Handful of flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • 5 ml/ 1 tsp sugar
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • 8 fl oz. / 1 cup water
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. If using dried beans, soak the dried white or cannellini beans overnight or for at least 8 hours. Then drain the beans, rinse and transfer to a pot, filled with plenty of cold water.
  2. Bring the pot to the boil, partially cover the pot and simmer for about 30 – 35 minutes. Make sure the beans become tender, but not soft or mushy, they should still have a bite to them. Drain and rinse the cooked beans under cold water and set them aside.
  3. If you are using precooked beans in can, simply drain its juice and rinse under cold, running water and set aside.
  4. Heat the olive oil in the pot and stir in the onions, sauté for 2 – 3 minutes, until they start to soften.
  5. Add the garlic, carrots and potato, combine well and sauté for another 2 minutes. Pour in the water, cover and let them cook for 10 minutes in low to medium heat.
  6. Stir in the beans, sugar, lemon juice and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Combine well.
  7. Turn the heat to low, cover the pan.
  8. Simmer for another 10 – 15 minutes, until the beans and vegetables are cooked (but not mushy). Check the seasoning and add a little more salt or ground black pepper if needed.
  9. Drizzle the extra virgin olive oil over the Fasulye Pilaki and let it cool in the pan, covered.
  10. Serve Fasulye Pilaki at room temperature or cold as part of a mezze spread or appetizer, garnished with chopped parsley and wedges of lemon by the side to squeeze over.
Notes
If you are using dried beans, first soak the dried beans in plenty of water overnight. Next day, drain the water and boil the dried beans in fresh water for about 20 minutes, covered. Drain the water and set the partially cooked white beans aside (If you are using precooked white beans, simply drain the juice and rinse the beans under cold water).
 

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14 Responses to Fasulye Pilaki; White Beans Cooked in Olive Oil with Vegetables

  1. jaz September 17, 2015 at 4:51 pm #

    i’ll be trying this soon! thanks for the recipe!

    • Ozlem Warren September 18, 2015 at 9:03 am #

      you are welcome Jaz, afiyet olsun!

  2. Peri's Spice Ladle September 18, 2015 at 4:34 am #

    Lovely mix of natural colors on a beautiful classy plate…the beans sounds perfect as a side. xxPeri.

    • Ozlem Warren September 18, 2015 at 9:02 am #

      Thank you dear Peri 🙂 Ozlem xx

  3. Alan September 18, 2015 at 6:00 am #

    . . another favourite from our long list – it’s great living here where ordinary, everyday foods are quite extraordinary. The photo looks edible and the plate collectable!

    • Ozlem Warren September 18, 2015 at 9:02 am #

      So well described Alan, many thanks for your lovely comment! Sana ve J’ye cok selam ve sevgiler, Ozlem

  4. Senior dogs September 18, 2015 at 6:06 am #

    Ozlem’cigim,

    We love pilaki so much. It’s always a regular on our menu. Thanks so much for this white bean version. We’ll be sure to have it soon. Best to Mark, Emma and Angus. Opuyoruz. J

    • Ozlem Warren September 18, 2015 at 9:00 am #

      Merhaba Jolee’cigim, Pilaki has a regular spot on our table too; so easy to make, yet so delicious and wholesome, it ticks many boxes, glad you liked this one too. Cok selam ve sevgilerimizle, Ozlem xxx

  5. Joy @MyTravelingJoys September 22, 2015 at 11:24 am #

    What a nice reminder about this recipe! I haven’t made anything like it for ages. Tessekuler! 😉

    • Ozlem Warren September 23, 2015 at 7:59 pm #

      Thank you Joy, most kind – afiyet olsun & many thanks for stopping by!

  6. Rob January 10, 2016 at 5:01 pm #

    Hi Ozlem,

    Lovely recipe, many thanks!

    One question, before you leave it to cool are you draining it? Mine is still really wet, but your photo looks pretty dry…

    Cheers,
    Rob.

    • Ozlem Warren January 10, 2016 at 5:50 pm #

      Merhaba Rob, you are welcome, glad you enjoyed Fasulye Pilaki; it is quite saucy, juicy meal, and I love dipping my bread to the juice or drinking with spoon- I must have had a good go on the juice in the photo before I took it – definitely keep the juice, not only delicious, with a squeeze of lemon, but also very nutritious. Many thanks for your note, afiyet olsun, Ozlem

  7. Amy April 5, 2019 at 12:30 pm #

    My children and I love this dish. I am trying to learn more bean and lentil based dishes, and how to cook with dry beans instead of canned beans, so I appreciate the step by step directions on cooking dried beans.

    I live in Ankara and have seen a white bean dish where the white beans seem to be sautéed with the Turkish red pepper paste and a few small chunks of tender lamb or beef. My children also love that dish. Do you know what that dish might be called?

    Teşekkür ederim Özlem Hanım!

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