Hawaiian Bean Vegetable Soup Recipe

Did you know that Opdrah loves soup? In her new book she shares some of her favorites and this is one of them.

Ingredients
For 6 people

• 370 g dried large lima or cranberry beans (or 1100 g cooked beans, drained)
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• ½ red bell pepper, without seeds and finely chopped
• 3 celery stalks, finely chopped
• 2 medium winter carrots, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 tbsp chili flakes
• 1.5 liters of chicken stock
• 1 strip of orange peel, preferably dried, or 2 tsp grated orange peel
• 1 star anise
• 5 cm fresh ginger root, in very thin slices
• 4 tbsp peanut butter without pieces of nuts
• 60 g finely chopped Swiss chard

Garnish

• Bean sprouts
• finely chopped fresh coriander
• splash of lime juice
• strips of serrano pepper
• freshly grated ginger
• grated orange peel
• splash of sherry

Preparation method
Put dried beans under plenty of water and let them soak for at least 8 hours, or overnight. Drain and place in a large saucepan with 1 bay leaf. Add some salt. Bring the beans to a boil over high heat and cook over low heat for 1 hour. Drain and remove the bay leaf. Puree a third of the cooked beans in a blender.

Rinse the pan and dry it. Heat the oil in it over medium to low heat. Saute onion, bell pepper, celery, carrot and 2 teaspoons salt for 10 minutes, until vegetables are soft but not discolored. Fry the garlic and chili flakes for 2 minutes, until fragrant. Add the beans, bean puree, stock, orange zest, star anise, ginger, peanut butter, and remaining bay leaf. Raise the heat to high and bring the soup to a gentle boil. Stir to dissolve the bean puree and peanut butter.

Reduce the heat and cook the soup for another 20 minutes. Cook the Swiss chard for 2 minutes, until it has wilted. Remove the orange peel, bay leaf and star anise. Divide the garnish among bowls and pour the soup over it. Finish the soup with a dash of sherry. Serve with bowls of jasmine rice.

For more recipes, see the May issue of Santé.

Source &Image:Oprah's Favorite Dishes, $22.99 at AKO.