Seasonal local food recipe No.292 – Hugh’s porotos granados
If you can’t eat corn off the cob you could try cutting the kernels off the cob and putting them in this hearty soup. The recipe can be found in River Cottage Veg Every Day by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.
Serves 6
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour 45 minutes if using dried beans
Ingredients
2 Tbsp rapeseed or olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tsp sweet smoked paprika
a handful of fresh oregano or marjoram, chopped
100g small dried beans, such as pinto, navy or cannellini beans, soaked overnight or 400g tin beans, drained and rinsed
1 litre vegetable stock
1 bay leaf
750g squash, such as butternut or onion, peeled, deseeded and cut into 2cm chunks
200g French beans, trimmed and cut into 2cm pieces
Kernels cut from 2 cobs corn
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté gently for about 10 minutes. Add the paprika and 1 Tbsp of the oregano. Cook for another minute.
If using dried beans, drain them after soaking and add to the pan, with the stock and bay leaf. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 45 minutes, or until the beans are completely tender (dried beans vary, and sometimes this may take over an hour).
Add the squash, stir well and simmer for 10-15 minutes until the squash is just tender. If using tinned beans, add the drained, rinsed beans, the squash, bay leaf and stock at the same time, and simmer until the squash is just tender, 10-15 minutes.
Then add the French beans and corn kernels and simmer for a further 5 minutes. To finish, season well with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Stir in the remaining oregano, leave to settle for a couple of minutes, then serve.
