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Gigantes Plaki — Greek Giant Beans Baked in Tomatoes
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Source: https://recipheon.com/en/recipes/main-dishes/gigantes-plaki-greek-giant-beans-baked-in-tomatoes
About this recipe
Gigantes plaki is a dish of very large white beans baked in a thick tomato sauce with olive oil and parsley. Start the evening before: the dried beans need 12 hours of soaking, followed by gentle cooking until completely tender. Add the tomatoes only when the beans have creamy centers without a hard core. In the oven, the sauce thickens around the whole beans and the top lightly browns. This makes six main-course portions; a short rest after baking lets the sauce thicken without drying out the beans.
Ingredients
Beans and Tomato Sauce
500 g dried very large white beans: Greek gigantes or the Piękny Jaś variety; weight before soaking
800 g canned chopped peeled tomatoes, including all their juice
200 g raw onion, peeled weight
150 g raw carrot, peeled weight
3 garlic cloves, about 9 g peeled
80 ml extra virgin olive oil, divided: 60 ml for the sauce and 20 ml before baking
20 g fresh parsley leaves and tender stems
8 g salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper, about 0.5 g
6.3 l water: 3 l for soaking and 3 l for cooking the beans (discarded), plus 300 ml for the sauce; up to an additional 500 ml water for topping up during cooking if needed (also discarded)
Steps
Sort through the beans, rinse and place in a large bowl. Add 3 l cold water, cover and refrigerate for 12 hours; leave room in the bowl for the beans to expand. After soaking, discard all the water and rinse the beans again.
Transfer the beans to a pot with a capacity of at least 6 l and add 3 l fresh water. Bring to a rolling boil and boil uncovered for 10 minutes, skimming off the foam. Reduce the heat, partially cover and simmer gently for 90–120 minutes; if the producer specifies a longer cooking time, follow it. Keep the beans submerged: if needed, top up with hot water from the additional 500 ml, without letting the liquid boil away.
Before draining the beans, press a cooked bean with a fork: the center should be uniformly creamy, without a hard or chalky core. If the centers are still firm, cook longer until completely tender, especially if the beans are older. Drain only once the beans are tender, discarding all the cooking water; the tomatoes will be added later.
AI-generated Toward the end of the beans' cooking time, chop the onion and garlic, cut the carrot into thin half-moons and finely chop the parsley with its tender stems. Heat 60 ml olive oil in a wide, deep skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onion and carrot and cook for 10–12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent and the carrot begins to soften; do not brown them deeply. Add the garlic and cook for about 1 more minute.
Add the tomatoes with all their juice, 300 ml fresh water, the salt and pepper to the skillet. Simmer uncovered over low heat for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally; keep the sauce fluid so the beans can bake in it. Stir in all the chopped parsley. Meanwhile, preheat a conventional oven (no fan) to 200°C.
Transfer the fully cooked, drained beans to a baking dish measuring about 35 × 25 cm and about 6 cm deep. Add all the sauce from the skillet and the remaining 20 ml olive oil. Gently stir to coat the beans with sauce without crushing them, then spread evenly.
AI-generated Place the dish on the middle oven rack and bake uncovered for 50–60 minutes. The sauce should thicken noticeably and cling to the tender beans, while the exposed beans lightly brown. If the top starts drying out or browns too quickly, loosely cover the dish with aluminum foil and finish baking; do not bake the beans until they form a dry crust.
AI-generated Remove the dish and let rest for 15 minutes so the sauce thickens a little and the beans stay moist. Divide into 6 main-course portions and serve warm, scooping up sauce with each portion.
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