Ribbons of fresh kale are a perfect addition to this satisfying, one-pot white bean stew. For a hearty meal, we add tempeh or spicy plant-based sausage. When we serve this vegetarian bean stew as a side dish, we skip the added protein. For a little extra zing, try adding a pinch of red pepper flakes!
How To Make This Recipe
For this vegetarian bean stew, we bring white beans together with kale, diced tomatoes, onion, and garlic. We round out the dish by adding our favorite plant-based sausage or tempeh. Then, we garnish the stew with freshly chopped parsley. When we want to add an extra layer of spice, we like to add a pinch of red pepper flakes or harissa paste.
WFPB (Oil-Free) Variation
To make this white bean stew oil-free, swap the oil for vegetable broth and use a non-stick pot. If you can’t find a WFPB-compliant veggie sausage in the store, choose tempeh instead. When we make this without oil, we sauté our tempeh and aromatics in a thin layer of vegetable broth. We add more as needed to prevent sticking.
Cook Vegetable Base
We begin by warming our extra virgin olive oil (or broth for oil-free) over medium heat in our medium pot. Next, we brown our tempeh or veggie sausage in the olive oil. We stir often to prevent sticking. Then, we add our remaining tablespoon of olive oil. We stir in our onions and continue to cook until softened.
Once the onions soften, we add both the garlic and kale. We stir continuously until the kale has wilted. Then, we mix in our tomatoes, salt, and pepper. We reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes or until the kale is tender.
Add Beans For Serving
After the kale is tender, we add our white beans. We continue to cook the stew for another few minutes until warm throughout. To thicken the stew, we like to mash a few of the beans with a fork.
As soon as the beans warm, the stew is ready to be served. Garnish with a sprinkle of fresh parsley.
Enjoy your white bean stew.
More savory stews:
Recipe Card for Spicy White Bean Stew
Here’s the recipe card for Spicy White Bean Stew. Print, share or save!
Sweet & Spicy White Bean Stew
Equipment
- Medium pot
Ingredients
- 8 ounces tempeh or veggie sausage
- 16 ounces kale shredded with stems removed
- 2 cans white beans drained and rinsed
- 2 cans diced tomatoes with juice
- 1 each onion large, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil extra virgin (see notes for oil-free)
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
- parsley fresh, optional garnish
Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add tempeh or veggie sausage and cook, stirring often, until browned.
- Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Stir in the onions, and cook until the onions soften.
- Add the garlic and kale. Stir until the kale has wilted.
- Mix in the tomatoes, salt, and pepper. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the kale is tender. This should take roughly 15 minutes.
- Add the white beans and cook the stew for another few minutes to ensure the stew is warm throughout. To thicken the stew, you can mash a few of the beans with a fork and stir them in before serving.
- Serve with fresh parsley or another garnish of your choice. Enjoy!
