Ask people in Turkey for their national dish and many will skip the kebabs entirely and name kuru fasulye: dried white beans stewed with onion, tomato paste and red pepper paste until soft and creamy, often with a little beef or lamb for richness. It turns up on home tables all over the country, cooked a little differently in every kitchen, and it is the definition of affordable comfort. The partner it is rarely seen without is pilav, butter rich rice cooked with a handful of toasted vermicelli.

The two are eaten together on one plate, with pickles and a raw onion on the side and a glass of ayran, and the combination is so settled that serving the beans with bread alone draws gentle looks of concern. There is no trick to it beyond time: good beans, a proper soak and a slow simmer so the sauce turns velvety. It is a modest, deeply satisfying pot, which is exactly what a long race weekend calls for.

The beans

Ingredients

• 2 cups (400 g) dried white beans, such as cannellini, great northern or navy beans
• 3 tablespoons (45 ml) olive oil
• 1 lb (450 g) beef chuck or lamb shoulder
• 1 large yellow onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 long green pepper or cubanelle
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon sweet Turkish red pepper paste
• 1 ripe tomato
• 5 cups (1.2 liters) hot water
• 2 teaspoons fine salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon pul biber or Aleppo pepper
• 1 tablespoon (15 g) butter

Method

1. Drain and rinse the soaked beans, put them in the second pot, cover with cold water by 2 inches (5 cm) and bring to a boil. Skim off the foam, lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes, then drain.
2. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in the large pot over medium high heat. Add the meat in one layer and leave it for 3 minutes, then stir and cook for 5 to 7 minutes more. At first the meat will release liquid; keep cooking until that liquid has bubbled away and the meat starts to sizzle and brown.
3. Lower the heat to medium. Add the onion, garlic and green pepper and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and pepper paste and stir for 2 minutes so they fry in the oil, then add the grated tomato and cook for 2 minutes more.
4. Add the drained beans, the hot water, salt, black pepper and pul biber. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat so it bubbles gently, cover with the lid slightly ajar, and simmer for 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours, stirring gently every 20 minutes. Add a splash of hot water if it gets too thick.
5. Taste and adjust the salt. Turn off the heat, drop in the butter and stir gently once it melts. Rest for 10 minutes with the lid on.

The vermicelli pilav

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups (300 g) long grain white rice or Turkish baldo rice
• 2 tablespoons (30 g) butter
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil or sunflower oil
• 1/3 cup (50 g) şehriye vermicelli
• 2 1/4 cups (540 ml) hot water or chicken stock
• 1 teaspoon fine salt

Method

1. Put the rice in the sieve and rinse it under cold running water, rubbing the grains with your fingers, until the water runs clear. Tip it into a bowl, cover with warm water and a pinch of salt and soak for 20 minutes, then drain well.
2. Melt the butter with the oil in the medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the vermicelli and stir constantly for 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Add the drained rice and stir gently for 2 minutes so every grain is coated in butter.
4. Pour in the hot water or stock, add the salt and stir once. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat to the lowest setting, cover tightly and cook for 15 minutes without lifting the lid.
5. Take the pan off the heat, lift the lid, lay a clean kitchen towel or two layers of paper towel over the pan, put the lid back on and leave for 10 minutes. Fluff gently with a fork.

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