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Overhead view of smoky paprika butter bean stew in a cream ceramic bowl, ready to serve
Sofia Merraki

Smoky Paprika Butter Bean Stew

Creamy butter beans and red peppers simmer in a smoky paprika tomato sauce for a hearty vegan one-pot stew finished with lemon.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Main Course, Soup
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Calories: 263
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 27 g extra-virgin olive oil about 2 tbsp
  • 150 g yellow onion, diced about 1 medium
  • 12 g garlic, minced about 4 cloves
  • 900 g cooked large lima/butter beans, drained, unsalted about 4 3/4 US cups
  • 800 g no-salt-added canned tomatoes with juice about two 14.5-oz cans
  • 300 g red bell peppers, seeded about 2 medium
  • 4 g smoked paprika about 1 3/4 tsp
  • 1 g dried oregano about 1 tsp
  • 30 g fresh lemon juice about 2 tbsp
  • 6 g fine salt about 1 tsp
  • 500 ml water about 2 US cups

Equipment

  • 5- to 6-quart pot

Method
 

  1. Dice the red bell peppers into 1/2-inch pieces and drain the cooked large lima beans, often sold as butter beans.
  2. Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook 6–8 minutes, stirring, until softened but not deeply browned. Add diced red bell pepper and cook 3 minutes more.
  3. Add the minced garlic, smoked paprika and dried oregano and stir for 30 seconds, just until fragrant.
  4. Add the drained cooked butter beans, the canned tomatoes with their juice, 500 ml water and the 6 g salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer with the lid partly covering the pot. Cook about 25 minutes, stirring occasionally and checking tenderness. Keep enough liquid around the solids; add a little hot water if the pot becomes dry.
  5. Fold the beans gently to keep their skins intact and finish with lemon juice.
  6. Check the finished texture: Large beans remain whole in a thick smoky tomato sauce with tender peppers. Taste a spoonful after it cools slightly; extra salt, oil or toppings are optional and change the nutrition estimate. Stir the whole pot before dividing into six equal portions.

Notes

Cannellini beans work at the same cooked weight but make a smaller-bean stew with a different estimate. Estimated per one-sixth of the completed batch, using edible input weights and USDA SR Legacy records. Soup liquid is retained; evaporation changes portion weight rather than batch nutrient totals. Generic paprika models smoked paprika. Beans are modeled as cooked without salt; canned brands change sodium. No laboratory measurement or vitamin-retention calculation is claimed. Optional additions are excluded.