Lobio from green beans

Georgian cuisine is famous for its seemingly simple yet extraordinarily appetizing dishes, and one of them is lobio from green beans. The beans can be either fresh or frozen. Young green pods are stewed with a mix of vegetables (onion, tomatoes, sweet peppers, garlic) and are seasoned at the very end with crushed walnuts.

Yield: 5 servings.

Cooking time: 30 minutes.

Calories: 104 kcal per 100 grams of the dish.

Cuisine: Georgian.

Ingredients

• young green beans – 500 g;
• tomatoes – 400 g;
• onion – 250 g;
• garlic – 2 large cloves;
• odorless vegetable oil – 50 ml for frying;
• parsley, basil – large bunch each;
• walnuts – 100 g;
• bell color pepper (red or yellow) – 1 pc;
• freshly ground pepper – to taste;
• rock salt – to taste.

Preparation

1. Prepare the ingredients for lobio from green beans. You can use frozen green beans, but unlike fresh ones, they do not need to be boiled; instead, you put them directly into the pan for stewing without thawing. Instead of fresh tomatoes, it is acceptable to use canned tomatoes or tomato paste, but of course, it tastes better with fresh tomatoes.

2. Rinse the beans and cut off the tough tips, then divide the pod into 2-4 pieces with a knife.

3. Prepare the entire amount of legumes this way. Pour water into a large pot and place it on the heat.

4. While the water is boiling, prepare the other vegetables. Cut the bell pepper into fairly large pieces.

5. Cut the tomatoes into a similar size (the skin can be left on – in-season tomatoes' skin does not cause much inconvenience).

6. Chop the onion into half rings.

7. First, toast the nuts in a pan (after this, they will not only be disinfected but will also better reveal their nutty aroma and become brittle, which is especially important for grinding). Then, either blend the nuts in a blender or chop them manually with a knife.

8. Finely chop the fresh parsley along with the basil.

9. By this time, the water will start boiling – it needs to be salted (for 2 liters, about 0.5 tablespoons of salt).

10. Add the beans to the boiling water and cook for 2-3 minutes after it comes to a boil again. The pods should remain crisp but also acquire some pliability.

11. Transfer them to a colander and rinse immediately under cold water to stop the cooking process.

12. In vegetable oil, sauté the onion until it becomes slightly translucent.

13. Then add the bell pepper.

14. And immediately add the tomatoes to the mixture.

15. At this stage, season the vegetables with salt.

16. Cover the pan with a lid, set the heat to medium and simmer the mixture for 5 minutes, stirring about three times during this stage. Under the lid, the tomatoes will release juice, which is necessary for further stewing.

17. In the following steps, the lid will not be needed. Add garlic pressed through a garlic press to the vegetables and mix. At this point, a warm garlic-vegetable aroma will spread.

18. Finally, it is time for the beans, which should be added to the pan.

19. Mix the contents.

20. Immediately add the greens and simmer everything for a couple of minutes.

21. Turn off the heat, then season the hot vegetables with walnuts and add pepper to taste if desired. Mix everything, and you can serve the lobio from green beans at the table.

Lobio from green beans is usually served with meat, although this dish can also stand alone – it is eaten with lavash or bread. Very filling and caloric, although made only with plant ingredients, this lobio will surely become one of the favorite treats for many hosts.