The Speedy Bean Stew You’ll Make on Repeat

It will more than warm your soul.

By
Julia Turshen
Julia Turshen
Julia Turshen
Julia Turshen is a New York Times bestselling cookbook author who has published five cookbooks. Her last book "Simply Julia" is an IACP award-winning national bestseller. Julia has written for multiple publications, including the New York Times, the Washington Post, and Vogue.
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Published November 03, 2024
Julia Turshen
A bowl of tomato, white bean, and fennel stew on a kitchen counter

Simply Recipes / Photo by Andrew Bui / Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne

A simple combination of fresh fennel, canned beans, and canned tomatoes, this stew can be turned into a complete meal by serving it with pasta, rice, polenta, or garlic bread. It can also be the base for a simple fish or shellfish meal. Just put a few white fish fillets or a pound of shrimp, clams, or mussels on top of the stew when it has just about finished cooking, cover, and simmer until cooked through. Lovely!

Two bowls of tomato, white bean, and fennel stew on a kitchen counter with side bowls of salt and pepper and fennel fronds

Simply Recipes / Photo by Andrew Bui / Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne

Tomato, White Bean, and Fennel Stew

Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 21 mins
Total Time 31 mins
Servings 4 servings

Copyright © 2024 by Julia Turshen. Excerpted from What Goes With What. Reprinted with permission of Flatiron Books. All rights reserved.

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Ingredients

  • 1 large head fennel, any browned outer layers removed

  • 1/4 cup olive oil

  • 6 garlic cloves, minced

  • 1 teaspoon fennel seeds

  • One (15-ounce) can white beans, drained and rinsed

  • One (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes

  • 1/2 cup vegetable broth (or boiling water mixed with Better Than Bouillon)

  • Kosher salt

  • Cooked pasta, rice, or polenta or garlic bread, for serving

Method

  1. Prepare the fennel:

    If your fennel has the fronds and long stalks attached, cut them off, roughly chop the fronds, and reserve them for garnish. Thinly slice the long stalks (as if each were a celery stalk) and thinly slice the fennel bulb. Reserve.

  2. Cook the vegetables:

    Place the oil in a large heavy pot (such as a Dutch oven) over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and fennel seeds and cook, stirring, just until super fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the sliced fennel stems and bulb and stir to coat with the garlicky oil.

  3. Add the beans and tomatoes:

    Add the beans, tomatoes, vegetable broth, and a large pinch of salt. Turn the heat to high and bring the mixture to a boil. Immediately turn the heat to low, cover with the lid slightly ajar, to let some steam escape, and cook, stirring now and then, until the fennel has softened and all the flavors have melded, about 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt.

  4. Serve:

    Serve hot over pasta, rice, polenta, or garlic bread, with the reserved chopped fennel fronds sprinkled on top.

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    Dutch oven filled with tomato, white bean, and fennel stew on a kitchen counter, a bowl of the soup and garlic bread alongside

    Simply Recipes / Photo by Andrew Bui / Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
315 Calories
15g Fat
37g Carbs
13g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 315
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 15g 19%
Saturated Fat 2g 10%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 724mg 31%
Total Carbohydrate 37g 13%
Dietary Fiber 11g 41%
Total Sugars 6g
Protein 13g
Vitamin C 29mg 146%
Calcium 186mg 14%
Iron 5mg 30%
Potassium 1093mg 23%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.