Pasulj

Ingredients

Beans

• 600 gdried white beans, tetovac or cannellini

Meat

• 500 gsmoked pork ribs
• 200 gsmoked bacon or slanina, diced
• 1smoked sausage, optional

Pot

• 2onions, chopped
• 2carrots, sliced
• 1bay leaf
• 4 clovesgarlic
• 2 litreswater

Zaprška, the roux

• 4 tbsplard or oil
• 2 tbspplain flour
• 1 tbspsweet paprika
• 1onion, finely chopped

To finish

• salt
• black pepper
• 1 tspdried savory or thyme
• 1hot chilli, optional

To serve

• raw onion
• pickled peppers
• bread

Directions

1. Soak the beans overnight in plenty of cold water. Drain them, cover with fresh water, bring to a boil and boil hard for 10 minutes, then throw that water away. Discarding the first water takes away the compounds that cause the worst of the digestive trouble, and it is standard practice in the Balkans.
2. Return the beans to the pot with 2 litres of fresh water, the smoked ribs, bacon, onions, carrots, garlic and bay. Bring it to a boil, skim the foam, then turn it right down. Simmer very gently for 2 hours, partly covered.
3. Keep it at a bare simmer throughout. A hard boil breaks the beans apart into mush and the point is whole beans in a thick liquid. Salt added before the beans are soft toughens the skins and they never soften properly. The smoked meat is salty enough on its own for now.
4. Top up with hot water as it reduces, keeping the beans just covered. The beans are ready when they crush easily between your fingers with no chalky centre.
5. Lift out the ribs, pull the meat from the bones, and return it to the pot. Melt the lard in a small pan and fry the finely chopped onion until soft and golden. Stir in the flour and cook it 2 minutes until it smells nutty and turns pale gold. Now take the pan off the heat entirely before the paprika goes in.
6. Stir the paprika into the hot fat off the flame, then immediately add a ladle of the bean liquid and whisk it smooth. Adding hot liquid straight away stops the paprika cooking further and prevents lumps.
7. Pour the zaprška back into the pot and stir it through. Simmer a further 20 minutes to cook out the flour and thicken the stew. It should be thick enough that a spoon leaves a trail, not soupy. Rest it off the heat for at least half an hour before serving. Serve hot with raw onion, pickled peppers and plenty of bread.

Technique

• Tetovac, the large flat white bean from Tetovo, is the prized variety.
• Prebranac is the related baked bean and onion dish, made without meat.
• A meatless Lenten version is standard during fasting periods.

Substitutions

• Any large white bean: cannellini, butter beans or haricot.
• Smoked hock or ham bone in place of ribs.

Variations

• Meatless, as a Lenten dish.
• With sausage added at the end.
• Baked in the oven after the zaprška, as pasulj iz rerne.

History

Bean stew with smoked meat, a staple of Serbian workers’ canteens and army kitchens, cooked slowly with paprika.

Frequently asked questions

What is Pasulj?

Pasulj is a soup & stew from Serbia: slow-cooked beans with smoked ribs and paprika. Bean stew with smoked meat, a staple of Serbian workers’ canteens and army kitchens, cooked slowly with paprika.

How long does Pasulj take to make?

Pasulj takes 20 min plus overnight soaking of preparation and 2 hr 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 8 servings. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Pasulj?

Yes, within limits. Any large white bean: cannellini, butter beans or haricot. Smoked hock or ham bone in place of ribs.

What is the most important thing to get right in Pasulj?

Keep it at a bare simmer throughout. A hard boil breaks the beans apart into mush and the point is whole beans in a thick liquid. Salt added before the beans are soft toughens the skins and they never soften properly. The smoked meat is salty enough on its own for now.