Why It Works
- Brining the beans in a solution of salt and baking soda before cooking them makes them tender and creamy.
- Cooking the spices in hot oil for a few minutes until fragrant ensures their flavors are well developed, complex, and come through in the stew.
There are few things as comforting as a bowl of warm, creamy white beans studded with pieces of tender meat. It’s even better when the recipe for that bowl of beans practically cooks itself. And that’s the case with this loubia, a Moroccan white bean stew.
Loubia is my ultimate comfort food—rich, flavorful, and nourishing. It features white beans, lamb, broth, onions, and tomatoes simmered with cumin, paprika, ginger, and turmeric. The buttery beans are infused with sweet and earthy flavors for a satisfying, easy to prepare meal that only requires one pot for cooking. While many versions of loubia focus on just the beans and omit the meat entirely, my version below includes spoon-tender chunks of lamb that are simmered with the beans for rich meaty flavor. Think of the meat as a savory seasoning accent, while the beans are the star of the stew.
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My goal with this recipe was to cook the white beans and lamb until they both achieved the best textures possible: creamy, almost melting (yet still intact) beans and spoon-tender meat. The best way to do this is by simply simmering the stew over low heat and letting time do its work, but there are two key techniques I use to ensure my white bean stew has the best flavor and ideal texture.
The first crucial step to ensure the stew’s flavor is robust and well developed is to bloom the spice mixture—cumin, paprika, turmeric, and ginger—in hot oil until the spices are fragrant and fully coated in the oil before adding the lamb, beans, tomatoes, and broth. Ground spices, such as the ones used here, have flavor molecules that are largely fat-soluble, which means they will dissolve more readily into the oil than they would into a watery broth base. As these seasonings heat and toast in the oil, their flavor will become more fragrant and complex. Just make sure to add the meat before the seasonings scorch.
The second critical tip that guarantees soft but intact beans is to soak the beans in a brine of salt and baking soda before cooking. As Nik Sharma’s deep dive into why you should brine your beans with baking soda explains, the baking soda acts as a chelating agent, which means it removes the calcium and magnesium that reside in the bean’s natural pectin. The salt provides sodium ions, which go into the now-empty spaces in the pectin left by the calcium and magnesium. Nik found in his testing that these combined processes soften the pectin to produce the most creamy and tender cooked beans.
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Typically, this stew is eaten on its own as a filling meal with plenty of good crusty bread and olive oil, but you could also serve it as a hearty breakfast with eggs and toast, or for dinner alongside seared meat or roast chicken. It’s the kind of meal that can slowly simmer away on a Sunday, and it’s sure to leave you full and satisfied.
This One-Pot Moroccan White Bean and Tomato Stew Practically Cooks Itself
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For the Beans:
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1 pound (454 g) dried Great Northern or cannellini beans, picked over to remove debris and rinsed
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3 tablespoons (36 g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use about half as much by volume or the same weight
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1 3/4 teaspoons (10 g) baking soda
For the Stew:
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3 tablespoons (45 ml) olive oil, plus more for serving
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1 large yellow onion (10 ounces; 285 g), chopped
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3 cloves garlic (15 g), minced
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2 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste
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1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
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1 1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
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1 teaspoon ground turmeric
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1 teaspoon ground ginger
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4 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt use half as much by volume
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1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
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1 1/4 pounds (567 g) boneless lamb stew meat (lamb neck, leg, or shoulder, or a combination),trimmed of excess fat and cut into 2- to 3-inch pieces
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Drained brined white beans from above
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2 large tomatoes (about 10 ounces; 285 g), halved and grated on the large holes of a box grater, with their juices (alternatively use 7 ounces canned chopped tomatoes)
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1 quart (960 ml) homemade chicken or vegetable stock or store-bought low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
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Chopped cilantro, for garnish, if desired
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For the Beans: In a large bowl, cover beans with 8 1/2 cups (2 L) water. Add salt and baking soda, stir briefly to combine, then cover loosely and let soak at room temperature at least 8 and up to 12 hours. Drain the beans, then rinse well under running tap water.
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For the Stew: In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion, garlic, tomato paste, cumin, paprika, turmeric, ginger, salt, and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, about 3 minutes.
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Add lamb and mix to combine, then let cook, stirring occasionally, until meat is lightly browned, about 5 minutes.
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Add drained and rinsed white beans, grated tomatoes, and stock. If beans aren’t completely covered with liquid, add enough water to just cover them. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to low; cover, and cook, stirring occasionally and adjusting heat as needed to maintain a gentle simmer, until lamb is tender and beans are fully cooked and creamy, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. As beans cook, add water if needed to avoid scorching and to maintain a stew-like consistency.
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Season to taste with salt. Serve in shallow bowls with crusty bread on the side. Drizzle with olive oil and garnish with cilantro, if desired.
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Special Equipment
Large pot or Dutch oven
Make-Ahead and Storage
The stew can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Reheat gently before serving.