(If you’re new to cooking with dry beans, read up on everything you need to know about dry beans here.)
This vegetarian succotash stir-fry is delicious, easy to make, and packed full of nutrients. It’s cheaper to use dry lima beans but you can use canned or frozen lima beans. Traditional succotash starts with lima beans, corn and squash, but you can use any vegetables you want. Use with this recipe as your starting point and then get creative by adding your favorite vegetables!
Ingredients:
1 cup dried lima beans
2 cups brown rice
3 cups vegetable stock
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 1/2 cups kale chopped (about 3-4 stalks)
2 cups corn
broccoli, chopped, about 2 cups
1 small red onion, chopped
1 small squash, peeled and cut into half-inch cubes
1 medium red bell pepper, seeded, chopped into 1/2” pieces, about 2 cups
4 green onions, sliced thin
1 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped or 2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp dried sage
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 tsp paprika
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Put lima beans into a pressure cooker with 4 cups water. Cook at pressure for 20-25 minutes.
Prepare rice according to package directions or in a rice cooker.
While rice and beans are cooking, prepare the rest of the ingredients.
Chop all the vegetables and set aside.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add two tablespoons of olive oil. Add the red onion and garlic and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add the kale and sauté another 3-4 minutes, until kale is a bright green..
Add the squash and corn kernels, herbs, turmeric, salt and freshly ground pepper and stir. Place a tight-fitting lid on the skillet and adjust the heat to low.
Allow the veggie mixture to cook until the sweet potatoes are almost done. Add the red bell peppers and chopped broccoli. Drain the cooked lima beans and add them as well. Put the lid back on the skillet and cook for another 5 minutes. Adjust seasonings to your taste.
Spoon over rice. Top with green onion.
Notes:
You can used just about any squash that is available. Sweet potato is a nice substitute for squash.
The rice and bean combination gives you a complete protein. You can mix the rice in with the dish if you want to simplify serving, but you’ll want to taste it just before serving to make sure the seasoning is adequate.
If you don’t have a pressure cooker, soak the lima beans overnight in 4 cups water. Drain water. Cook beans in 4 cups water for 30-40 minutes, until tender. Or use canned beans.
If you don’t care about the dish being vegetarian, you may find that chicken broth adds a better flavor instead of the vegetable broth.
