Gigandes-large white beans in tomato sauce

Ingredients for 20 servings:

• 500 g beans, dried, large, white
• 2 bay leaves, fresh
• 2 tbsp vegetable broth, instant
• Salt
• 6 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion(s), diced
• 4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 3 stalk(s) celery, cleaned, finely diced
• 5 tbsp tomato paste, double concentrated
• 1 can of chopped tomatoes, 400 ml
• 350 ml broth (cooking broth from the beans)
• 1 bay leaf, fresh
• 1 tsp, heaped sugar
• 1 tsp, heaped paprika powder, sweet
• ½ tsp chili powder, or Allspice d´Espelette
• 1 sprig(s) rosemary, fresh
• 6 sprigs of thyme, fresh
• Salt and pepper, black
• 4 small bay leaves, fresh, halved (optional)

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Rest period approx. 1 day; Cooking/baking time approx. 2 hours 30 minutes; Total time approx. 1 day 3 hours

ideal for a Mediterranean buffet – with instructions for preserving

Soak the beans in plenty of cold water for at least 12 hours. Drain and add fresh water. Bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the bay leaves and season with the vegetable stock and salt. Cook for another 40 minutes, until the beans are still quite firm to the bite. Let the beans cool in the cooking stock overnight. This allows the spices to infuse the beans. The next day, drain, reserving half a liter of cooking stock and setting it aside for the sauce. Heat oil in a large pot. Sauté the onions, garlic, and diced celery until translucent. Add the tomato paste and sugar and sauté together. Pour in the chopped tomatoes and 350 ml of cooking stock, add the bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, and the remaining spices, and season with salt and pepper. Simmer gently for about 20-30 minutes, until the beans are tender but still have a firm core. If the sauce becomes too thick, thin with a little more bean stock. Remove the herb stalks and bay leaves and season again. Allow to cool. This way the beans will keep in the refrigerator for a few days. OR: use them while still hot for preserving. To do this, rinse clean twist-off jars with very hot water and boil the lids for 10 minutes. Fill the jars with the beans, add half a small bay leaf and cover with the sauce to within 2 cm of the rim. Make sure the rims of the jars stay clean. Screw on the boiled lids. Place a cloth in a large, wide pot, place the jars in the pot, making sure they are not touching. Fill with warm water to within 2 cm of the rim of the lids and slowly bring to a boil. When the water is boiling, reduce the heat so that the water is just simmering and put a lid on. Boil the beans for 60 minutes. Then remove the jars from the pot and let them cool on a cloth. Check that the jars have created a vacuum. If you want to cook the beans cold, fill the jars with cold water and cook for 65-70 minutes from the moment the water boils. I use my homemade vegetable stock powder, which isn’t very salty. Alternatively, you can use a commercial product. You may need to reduce the dosage or adjust the salt quantity.