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stewed cannellini beans with chorizo and confit rock shrimp

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Stewed Cannellini Beans with Chorizo and Confit Rock Shrimp

This dish brings together three of my favorite ingredients: chorizo, confit rock shrimp, and stewed beans. The flavors are deeply savory and warm. This dish is perfect for the cold weather.

Ingredients

  • For the cannellini beans:
  • 400 grams dried cannellini beans
  • 1 pound fresh chorizo sausage
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 large leek, white and light green parts only, cleaned and sliced into thin half-moons
  • salt
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 1 handful thinly cut chives, to garnish
  • For the confit rock shrimp:
  • 1 pound cleaned rock shrimp
  • salt
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 strips of lemon zest, taken with a vegetable peeler
  • 1 clove garlic, lightly crushed
  • 1 pinch dried chili flakes
  • a few sprigs fresh thyme
  • 1 bay leaf
  • olive oil

Directions

  • To make the stewed beans, begin by soaking the beans in water overnight. Use at least three times as much water as the volume of the beans.
  • Remove the chorizo meat from its casing. Set a large pot over high heat, and add the olive oil. When the oil begins to lightly smoke, add the chorizo. Let it cook undisturbed for 1 minute. The longer you wait to stir the chorizo, the more color and flavor will develop. When the chorizo is nicely browned on one side, use a wooden spoon to stir the chorizo, breaking it into small pieces. When the chorizo is fully cooked through and broken into small pieces, add the leeks. Season with a pinch of salt and reduce the heat to low. Stir every few minutes until the leeks have softened significantly.
  • When the leeks appear soft, use a colander to strain the beans. Add the beans to the pot on the stove, and add enough fresh water to cover the beans by approximately 1 inch. Bring the liquid in the pot to a boil, then reduce the heat so that the beans are just barely simmering. Cook, uncovered, for 1 hour. After one hour, stir the beans and season with a few pinches of salt. Continue cooking for approximately 1 additional hour. When the beans are very tender, remove them from the heat. If the beans are not tender but the liquid is nearly evaporated from the pot, add more water as necessary. When the beans are finished, there should be a little liquid left in the pot, reminiscent of a stew. Add the juice of one lemon. Taste the beans and adjust with more salt and/or more lemon juice as necessary.
  • While the beans are cooking, prepare the confit rock shrimp. Add the shrimp to a medium-sized pot and season them with salt and freshly ground pepper. Add the lemon zest, garlic, dried chili flakes, fresh thyme, and bay leaf. Add enough olive oil so that the rock shrimp are just barely submerged. Set the pot over the lowest heat possible. You want to cook the shrimp slowly. The slower you cook the shrimp, the more tender they will become. Stir the shrimp every few minutes, and start checking for doneness after about 20 minutes. When the shrimp are fully cooked through, remove them from the heat. If you choose to make the confit rock shrimp ahead of time and store it in your refrigerator, remember to reheat the shrimp slowly and gently.
  • To serve, ladle some of the beans into a bowl. Garnish with a few spoonfuls of rock shrimp confit and a sprinkle of chives. Add an extra drizzle of the oil used to cook the rock shrimp. Enjoy.

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