Loubia – Baked Beans, Moroccan Style

Here I go returning to Moroccan cooking, trying to emulate another dish we tried while touring the country.  When we ordered assorted mixed salads for a lunch or dinner, there was always at least one bean or legume salad in the group: sometimes white beans, sometimes chickpeas and sometimes lentils.  The white bean salad is called Loubia.  Some had tomato added, some did not.  Some were saucier while others were drier.  I modified this Loubia recipe because of its basic pantry ingredients and reminded me of the typical salad I ate. In fact, Loubia could be considered my Moroccan version of baked beans.

Here we are in Meknes: three of the typical Moroccan platters we ate: Loubia, an eggplant salad and always a plate of olives.

I keep all these ingredients in my pantry:  a can of white navy beans, canned tomatoes, onion, garlic, ginger, turmeric power, ground   cumin and tomato paste.  Today I happened to have fresh parsley and cilantro available too. And, of course, olive oil for frying.  I was excited to find Moroccan olive oil at a local middle eastern supermarket too (however, your regular olive oil will do just fine).

Heat up the oil in a fry pan and add the onions and cook for a couple minutes.  Add the tomato, spices, tomato paste, garlic, parsley and cilantro and cook for a little bit until aromatic.

Now add one cup of water to the pan and mix thoroughly.  A beautiful golden hue with specks of green from the cilantro and parsley.

Finally add the beans and mix together.  Put a lid on the pan allowing a little opening for steam to escape and cook for about 15-20 minutes.  I wanted the beans drier but watch it simmer and remove from the heat when you are happy with the consistency.

Garnish with additional cilantro or parsley.  Serve warm or at room temperature.  A nice mild flavoured side salad for any meal.  Serve with bread or pita, if desired.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Moroccan Beans (Loubia)

1 tbsp. olive oil
1 can of white navy beans (19 oz./540 ml), drained and rinsed
1 chopped onion
1 whole tomato from a can (already peeled), diced
1 cup of water
2 cloves crushed garlic
1 tsp. of grated ginger
1/4 tsp. turmeric powder
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tbsp. tomato paste
salt & pepper to taste
1 tbsp. chopped parsley and 1 tbsp. chopped cilantro

1. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat and add the onions.  Stir and cook for 2 minutes and then add tomato.
2. Add the spices, tomato paste, garlic, parsley and cilantro.  Cook for a few minutes and then add water to the pan.  Add the beans and mix together.
3. Cover but allow some steam to escape and cook for 15 to 20 minutes until most of the liquid is absorbed, your choice how much.
4. Serve warm or at room temperature garnished with additional parsley or cilantro.

Tags: legumes, Morocco, salad