How to make escarole and beans with canned beans or dried white beans is here. Made on the stove in a skillet. Cook Northern Beans or cannelli to make this easy Italian side dish with ham or without as a vegetarian meal.
We will share how to make canned beans with escarole or with dried beans if you want to cook from scratch instead. A popular Southern dish full of healthy greens that can be made spicy or simple with just salt and pepper. (affiliate links present)
How to Make Escarole and Beans
Whether you wanted to make this into a heartier side or soup with meat this is How to Cook Ham Hocks with it. If you do choose to do this you would want to use soaked dried beans instead since shanks do need a few hours to cook properly so the meat pulls away from the bone and gives the dish a smoky flavor.
If you are familiar with How Long to Cook Collard Greens you will understand the first part basically, then you incorporate the rest with it. As with kale and other dark greens you will want to prep is properly by removing the hard stems and cutting into bite size pieces. Once tender it will absorb all the flavors you love.
Table of contents
Escarole and Bean Soup
If you wanted to make this into more of a hearty meal with more broth it is easy to do. It just involves that, adding more broth into the initial cooking process if you want so the liquids can absorb the flavors of the other ingredients. You can also make pressure cooker escarole and beans soup faster this way under high pressure.
You can also thicken it at the end with a cornstarch slurry or with some heavy whipping cream. If I do make this into more of a meal I will use dry legumes to begin with
How do you cut escarole for escarole and beans?
I had never used this vegetable myself until we made Crockpot Italian Wedding Soup one day, it was more wonderful than we thought it would be. It’s easy to prep. Just rinse under cold running water to remove any dirt or debris.
Shake off excess water or pat dry with paper towels. trim off the tough stem ends with a sharp knife. Discard the trimmed ends. Separate the leaves from the core, discard the hard middle. Slice or chop the leaves into smaller pieces.
How long does it take to cook escarole?
Not long, about 5-6 minutes. Put a Dutch Oven Filled with water on the stovetop over medium high heat, enough liquid to submerge escarole. Once boiling, add cut leaves and a pinch of salt to it, and press down gently to submerge. Gently boil for about 6 minutes until tender, drain in a colander, set aside.
- Set a large pan over stovetop over medium high heat with olive oil.
- Once warm add garlic to saute for a few minutes until it smells wonderful.
- Add broth into the mix with the drained, canned beans.
- Sprinkle in a bit of salt and pepper, stir and allow to cook to warm and soften a bit more for 2-3 more minutes.
- Add drained and tender escarole into the pan, gently fold together.
Lower heat to medium and cook together for about 5 minutes to meld flavors together. Taste, season again if desired, can add red pepper flakes for heat and serve.
How long does it take to cook dry beans
We share a printable chart here on our How Long Do Beans Take to Cook post here. I would use a white variety for this dish in particular but that is clearly up to your tastebuds.
Escarole and Beans Recipe Ingredients
If you use a can it is quite quick to make obviously but from scratch is easier than you might initially think. You just have to prep the night before to soak but from there, especially if you just throw them in like our Slow Cooker Ham and Beans.
- 1 can white beans drained, directions for using dry beans attached below
- 2 heads escarole
- leafy greens should be rinsed, stems removed and cut into large bite size pieces
- Minced garlic
- Olive oil
- Chicken broth
- water
- Pinch of salt and pepper and/or red pepper flakes for a bit of spicy
What type of beans do you use for escarole and beans
Typically most Italian dishes or recipes will call for cannellini beans, which are white. If you cannot find these there are many others that are similar. Butter beans would be the most common substitute out there as well as Northern, or some cans at the grocery store will just say white.
What is escarole used for?
Overall, this has a slightly bitter flavor and a hearty texture which makes it great tossed with other types of greens in a salads, added into soups, served as a main course with crusty bread or with Cornmeal Biscuits for a side dish. Experiment with different cooking methods and flavor combinations to see which flavors you prefer, and how wilted you want it to become.
Escarole and Beans
Equipment
- 1 dutch oven or large pan
- 1 cutting board
- 1 knife
Ingredients
- 1 can white beans, drained, directions for using dry beans below
- 2 heads escarole, rinsed, cut into large bite size pieces
- 2 tbsp minced garlic
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 c chicken broth
- water
- 1 pinch salt and pepper
Instructions
- How to prepare escarole – very similar to kale, rinse leaves, lay on a cutting board and cut along the sides of the hard inner stem, remove. Cut large leaves into large bite size pieces.
- Put a Dutch Oven Filled with water on the stovetop over medium high heat, enough liquid to submerge escarole. Once boiling, add cut leaves and a pinch of salt to it, and press down gently to submerge.
- Gently boil for about 6 minutes until tender, drain in a colander, set aside.
- Set a large pan over stovetop over medium high heat with olive oil. Once warm add garlic to saute for a few minutes until it smells wonderful. Add broth into the mix with the drained, canned beans. Sprinkle in a bit of salt and pepper, stir and allow to cook to warm and soften a bit more for 2-3 more minutes.
- Add drained and tender escarole into the pan, gently fold together. Lower heat to medium and cook together for about 5 minutes to meld flavors together. Taste, season again if desired, can add red pepper flakes for heat and serve.
- If using dry beans – Start with 1.5 cups of dry white beans, cannelli or other white beans are best. Soak overnight and then cook until tender using our cook times chart on How Long to Cook Dry Beans
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
