Some warming and comforting food to greet the new year sounds good to me. Thanks for being here and happy 2021! I have this huge bag of sun dried tomatoes in my pantry that I ordered back in March. I keep looking for new ways to use them. So I came up with these jammy sun dried tomato white beans with crispy caper breadcrumbs when I wanted a tomato-y bean stew but was out of canned tomatoes. The sun dried ones work like a charm! They also add a little extra depth of flavour.
The base of this jammy stew-y number is a whole lot of shallots, thyme, tomato paste and red wine. Once everything simmers together and thickens up, we top bowlfuls with crunchy and buttery caper breadcrumbs. Every bite is soft, jammy, crunchy, salty, and just so satisfying!
I have been down the road of beans + tomatoes many times before here! If you also love that combination, take a look at this spicy white bean stew with potatoes, this braised harissa eggplant with chickpeas, or this smoky chickpea, cabbage and lentil soup with kale.
I know that lots of people start thinking about eating more plant-based foods when the new year turns over. This is great! I always recommend starting slow and trying to recreate flavours/meals that you already love first. These jammy sun dried tomato white beans are mega comforting and have such a familiar flavour profile, just a bit remixed with the breadcrumbs.
I call out for some vegan butter in this recipe. If you’re in Canada, my favourite lately has been the Nuts For Butter cultured vegan butter. So tasty on its own! Also of note: I cooked up Flourist’s navy beans for the photos here. I love all of their products so much, but you already knew that ;)
Jammy Sun Dried Tomato White Beans with Crispy Caper Breadcrumbs
Ingredients
Crispy Caper Breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon vegan butter
- 1 tablespoon capers, drained and finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons thyme leaves, finely chopped
- 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs
- sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
Jammy Sun Dried Tomato White Beans
- ⅔ cup sun dried tomatoes
- 3 cups vegetable stock
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 shallots, small dice (about 1 cup diced shallot)
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons thyme leaves, finely minced
- sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- ½ cup red wine
- 3½ cups cooked white beans, drained and rinsed
Equipment
Notes
- I used dry sun dried tomatoes, but the ones packed in oil will also work. Just drain them really well first. Also, I’d recommend using that oil that they’re packed in instead of the olive oil in both parts of the recipe! Mega flavour!
- White wine would work great in place of the red. If you’d prefer to not use wine, I’d substitute about 1/4 cup more of vegetable stock and a splash of any vinegar that you like (balsamic, apple cider, sherry etc.)
- If you have extra oregano around, using that in place of the thyme is delicious!
- I recommend serving this with some nice crusty bread and a simple green salad.
Instructions
- Make the crispy caper breadcrumbs. Set a medium skillet over medium heat. Once the skillet is hot, add the olive oil and vegan butter. Let the vegan butter melt and froth a bit before adding the capers and thyme leaves. Stir until the thyme is really fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the breadcrumbs to the skillet and some salt and pepper. Stir the breadcrumbs frequently until quite browned and crisp, about 3-4 minutes. Set aside to cool.
- In an upright blender, combine the sun dried tomatoes and vegetable stock. Blend this mixture until it is completely smooth and smoothie-like in texture. Set aside.
- Set a braiser-style pot or a large, deep skillet over medium heat. Once the pot is hot, add the olive oil and swirl it around. Add the shallots to the pot and stir. Cook the shallots, stirring often, until they are very translucent and soft, about 5 minutes. Lower the heat if they start to brown too quick.
- Add the garlic and thyme to the pot, season with salt and pepper, and stir until garlic is very fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the tomato paste to the pot and stir it around and cook for a full minute (just to get the tin-y/raw flavour out).
- Pour the red wine into the pot and stir. Let the wine bubble up and reduce by half, stirring often.
- Once the red wine is reduced, add the white beans and the blended sun dried tomato mixture to the pot. Season liberally with salt and pepper and stir. Bring the mixture to a boil, and then simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the sun dried tomato mixture has reduced a bit, appears jammy, and is clinging to the white beans.
- Serve the jammy sun dried tomato white beans hot with sprinkles of crispy caper breadcrumbs on top and drizzles of olive oil.
This was very good. I loved the depth of flavour with the sundried tomatoes and red wine.
If I was to use balsamic vinegar instead of wine. When should I add the vinegar ?
Hi Joe,
Apologies for me delayed response. You could add it at the same point as the wine.
-L
Hello. The pan you used in this recipe — is it a Staub braiser?
Hi Sandra! Yes, it is a Staub braiser pot. I believe mine is a 4 quart capacity. We love it and use it all the time.
-L
This so good I had to make it. Forget the looks. Go make this now. I am going to like the bowl clean. This was incredible! It will be on my regular rotation now.
Do you think chickpeas would work as the white beans here or better with cannellini or navy?
Hi Amy,
Honestly any of those options would be great! It’s not an overly fussy recipe and I know that all of those would taste great.
-L
How should the leftover breadcrumbs be stored? Will they absorb moisture in the fridge or should they be left on the counter? Thanks in advance. I ate three bowls and am stuffed! I also emailed this recipe to my mom and brother who are not vegan telling them they HAVE to try it anyway!
Hi Cassie!
So glad you enjoyed it and passed the recipe along. Thank you! I would store the breadcrumbs at room temperature.
-L
This recipe calls my name with the jammy tomato base, which is the ultimate comfort food in my book! Definitely lives up to its name and description. It’s “to die for!” Thank you for creating and posting it.
When you list ‘cooked white beans’ what exactly does that mean? Plant based newbie right here! Thanks, I love all your recipes.
Hi Chelsea!
Some people prefer to buy dried beans and cook them from scratch, while others prefer canned beans, which are fully cooked and ready to go. I tend to cook beans from their dried state in big batches and then freeze them and I know that others do this. Whenever you see a designation of cooked beans on my site, I am referring to beans that are ready to go into a recipe, whether they are canned or have been pre-cooked from dried beans at home. Hope this clarifies!
-L
Yes that clarifies. Thanks so much!
This is incredible! Easy, flavorful, and so comforting. Will be making this over and over again!
Prepping everything in advance made this easy peasy to make. Had with a green salad as suggested and *chef’s kiss* beautiful Sunday night dinner.
Delicious! I added carrots and celery while sauteeing the shallots for a little extra veg, and I added lemon zest and garlic to the breadcrumbs. My spouse and I loved it!
I used white wine since that’s what I had on hand. Delicious! And easy. I would never have thought to blend sun dried tomatoes with broth to make a flavorful base. So smart. Thank you!
Cozy, easy weeknight meal! Will definitely be making it again.