Bean Soup

Sorry for the delay. My day job this week was far harsher then usual for this season.

I love beans in almost every kind of way, but I love bean soup best of all. So here's my recipe:

300 grs. of beans (I used a local purple variety called "Flor de Mayo," 250 gr. worth, and 50 gr. of white beans)
1/2 liter of chicken broth
440 gr. tomato puree
1/3 onion chopped
2 cloves of garlic chopped
Worcestershire sauce
Tabasco sauce
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon oregano
1/3 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon fine herbs
3 turkey sausages sliced
1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil

First you cook the beans. You can use a pressure cooker. I considered it, but quite frankly I'm afraid of all tools that require high pressure (yes, this includes the espresso machine, but there's no other way to brew espresso) So first I soaked the beans for about 18 hours (at room temperature, covering the container with a paper towel), I poured about 1.5 liters of water in a pot, added a half teaspoon of olive oil, let the water boil, then added the beans and cooked them for about 2 hours on low fire. The beans aren't quite done, but they'll cook further when making the soup.

Next, cook the onions and garlic in a skillet along with 1 teaspoon olive oil. When they're done, add the sliced sausages and let them brown a bit. 

In the bean pot, add the chicken broth, tomato pure and spices, stir well and add the onions, garlic and sausage. Add a hefty dash of Worcestershire and Tabasco to taste. Bring to a slow boil, then let it simmer for about 40 minutes covered (be sure to use a pot lid with a hole or a valve on it).

You can skip the sausages if you want, or substitute some other kind of mean, such as bacon (any kind) or chicken. When serving, you can add more Worcestershire or Tabasco, or a little lime if you like.

Curry Rice

As promised yesterday, here's the recipe for curry rice.

This entirely my own recipe. I wanted boiled, low-fat rice with some flavor. I found curry powder in the pantry. The rest was easy.

2.5 cups of water
2 chicken bullion cubes (low fat, low sodium)
1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
1.5 tablespoons curry powder
Half a teaspoon ginger
Half a teaspoon turmeric
1/4 onion chopped in large pieces (optional).
1 cup rice

Wash and drain the rice. Boil the water, add the chicken bullion cubes and stir (you may want to crumble them first so they will dissolve faster). When the cubes are dissolved, add the spices and the onion. Stir a bit then add the rice. Stir some more, reduce the flame to the lowest setting and cover the pot. Stir occasionally.Turn off the flame when the liquid is consumed, then fluff with a fork and serve. The rice ought to turn out yellow.