Cooking with Grace, Deli, Food, Recipes

Cooking with Grace: Christmas Lima Bean Pilaf

christmaslimabeanspilaf

Grace Singleton, a Managing Partner of Zingerman’s Delicatessen, loves to cook at home, using the great products we sell at the Deli. Her most recent meal was the simple and delicious Christmas Lima Bean Pilaf. The Lima beans she included in the dish came from her home garden, but you’ll also find them on our shelves along with Gardeny Cava Rose Vinegar and Onsa’s Oil, which she also used.

How to start: Grace first lets the beans simmer in water (no salt) for about 3 hours. You can add bay leaf or thyme or other herbs to the water as well, if you choose. To determine if they are cooked though, she takes one out and tastes it. You’ll know they’re ready if they have a bit of texture. You don’t want them to be completely soft, but they also shouldn’t have any crunch in the middle. “Everyone may have a different level of  doneness they prefer,” says Grace. “If they do get really soft, they are still tasty, but can become more of a mashed bean, not a whole bean pilaf.”

christmaslimacooked

trinity

Sauté the trinity (onions, carrots, celery): Start with chopped onions, and sauté them in Onsa’s Oil until translucent. Then, add carrots and celery and cook until tender. Salt the veggies to taste. Grace uses Portuguese sea salt.

christmaslimasteps

Add the drained beans: Combine the drained beans with the sautéed veggies. Now, add more salt to taste. Add 1-2 tablespoons of Gardeny Cava Rose vinegar until you reach the flavor you’re looking for. Vinegar is a nice flavor addition to many foods—it perks up the flavors and adds to the depth of flavors. Grace says that if you don’t have Spanish vinegar, no problem. Any traditionally made wine vinegar will do.

Try this at home! You’ll love it!