TABELIAAUTHENTIC RECIPE
Fabada asturianaAsturian Bean and Cured Pork Stew
Large white beans are simmered with salted pork and two kinds of sausage. They become tender to the centre while keeping their skins intact, and the cooking liquid takes on the rich flavour of the meat.
AUTHENTICITY SCORE
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Ingredients (4 servings)
- Dried white beansSoak in the refrigerator for 12 hours.400 g
- Lacón (salted pork shoulder)Desalt in the refrigerator for 12 hours.200 g
- Pork belly150 g
- Chorizo (cured sausage)160 g
- Morcilla (blood sausage)160 g
- Saffrona little
- Water1.5L to soak the beans, 1.5L to desalt the meat, 1.2L for cooking and 300ml for adjustments.4500 ml
Method
Soak the dried beans and salted meat
- 1 Rinse 400g white beans, cover with 1.5L water and refrigerate for 12 hours.
- 2 Put 200g lacón in a separate container with 1.5L water and desalt in the refrigerator for 12 hours.
Ready when
Continue when the beans are evenly swollen and their skins are less wrinkled.
Begin cooking the beans in fresh water
- 1 Discard the soaking water from both the beans and the lacón, and cut the lacón and 150g pork belly into large chunks.
- 2 Put the beans and 1.2L fresh water in a pot, bring to a boil and boil vigorously for 10 minutes, skimming off the foam.
- 3 Add the lacón, pork belly and 0.1g saffron.
Ready when
Continue when the large patches of foam have disappeared from the surface.
Simmer gently without breaking the bean skins
- 1 Leave the lid slightly ajar and simmer for 90 minutes over heat low enough to keep the beans from moving about.
- 2 Check the water level every 30 minutes; if the beans are about to become exposed, add the 300ml adjustment water in 100ml increments.
- 3 Add 160g chorizo and 160g morcilla whole and simmer for another 30 minutes.
Ready when
Continue when a bean crushes without a hard centre and the lacón is tender.
Caution
Stirring vigorously with a spatula breaks the bean skins.
Slice the meats and rest with the beans
- 1 Remove the meat and sausages, cut into portions to share among 4 people and return to the pot.
- 2 Turn off the heat, cover and rest for 30 minutes, then divide among deep plates.
Ready when
It is ready when the liquid clings to the beans and the fat does not form a thick layer.
About this dish
Beans for fabada are grown in fields along the rivers of Asturias. The large white beans known as fabes are a product that underpins local cooking, and locally grown beans also have geographical indication protection.
Fabada, simmered with chorizo, morcilla and pork, is popular in the region’s restaurants. The combination of pork products varies between versions of the dish, with each cook adding their own balance around the beans.
In Villaviciosa, a fabada competition grew out of a food-culture event devoted to beans. Beans cultivated in the fields and stews prepared in restaurants are connected through a single regional dish.
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