By Melissa Clark
- Total Time
- 2 to 3 hours, plus overnight soaking
- Rating
- 4(195)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Cooking dried beans with seaweed is a traditional method of adding flavor that’s also thought to mitigate some of the gas-inducing enzymes present in the legumes. Here, white beans are simmered with briny dried kombu to add depth, then mixed with slivered kelp for freshness and a slight crunch. It’s a play on white beans with escarole, but with the flavor of the sea.
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Ingredients
Yield:8 servings
- ¼cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
- 1yellow onion, diced
- 3teaspoons fine sea salt, plus more as needed
- 2carrots, sliced into ½-inch-thick rounds
- 1celery stalk, diced
- 1fennel bulb, trimmed and diced, fronds reserved
- 4garlic cloves, minced
- 1pound dried cannellini beans, covered in salted water and soaked overnight
- 2quarts cold water
- 1(4-inch) square dried kombu
- 3thyme sprigs
- 2cups ready-cut (or slaw-cut) kelp seaweed (about 6 ounces)
- Grated Parmesan, as needed
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Toasted country bread, for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)
306 calories; 8 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 46 grams carbohydrates; 11 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 16 grams protein; 929 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat ¼ cup oil over medium until hot but not smoking. Add the onion and 1 teaspoon salt and sauté until softened and lightly golden at the edges, 7 minutes. Add the carrots, celery, diced fennel and garlic and sauté until the garlic is fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Step
2
Drain soaked beans and add to pot along with 2 quarts cold water, kombu, thyme sprigs and remaining 2 teaspoons salt. Bring to a simmer over high heat. Lower heat, partially cover the pot and simmer gently until the beans are done, 1 to 2 hours. If the beans start to dry out before they are cooked, add a little hot water to the pot, or if they seem too soupy, remove the lid during the last half-hour.
Step
3
When beans are cooked, discard kombu and thyme sprigs. If you have an immersion blender, stick it in the pot and give it two or three pulses to create a creamy broth. Most of the beans should still be whole. Or, scoop out 1 cup of beans, purée them in a food processor or blender, and stir them back into the pot.
Step
4
Stir kelp into the pot and simmer until tender, about 10 minutes.
Step
5
If you have fennel fronds, chop enough to make 2 tablespoons and stir into the pot. To serve, ladle soup into bowls and top generously with Parmesan, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Serve with toast.
Tips
- Ready-cut frozen kelp is available from Atlantic Sea Farms (atlanticseafarms.com), or you could substitute 4 cups sliced escarole. If you have access to fresh kelp, blanch it first, then slice into ribbons before using.
- If using an electric pressure cooker, use 6 cups water and cook on high pressure for 25 minutes for soaked beans or 40 minutes for unsoaked beans.
Ratings
4
out of 5
195
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Cooking Notes
Mary
Made this soup tonight with organic navy beans and Atlantic Sea Farms kelp (as in the NYT article) and it was delicious. I’m not certain where the other reviewer found his kelp, but the 6 oz. of kelp for this recipe cost $4.50, not at all unreasonable. This recipe makes for a much more affordable high fiber and protein main course than would a meat-based soup, and served 4 of us, with second helpings for everyone.
Tooty
This soup is pretty incredible. I had to make changes based on what I had in the house - no fennel so I used more celery, no thyme so a bay leaf, added a potato and used dried wakame. Reminded me of a seafood chowder.Thank you, Melissa. Will definitely make this again.
Jeff h
I buy dried wakame from Atlantic hold fast or even from one of the Japanese groceries in nyc. Easier to have dried on hand.
Maggie
This was so satisfying. I used “salted seaweed stem” from the refrigerator at the Korean grocery store. I soaked it for 40 minutes and rinsed, but it still added more salt to the dish than anticipated, so plan ahead if you use the same (some potatoes added at the end helped save it). The end result tasted rich and well rounded.
Kat
Ok, I loved this! Lots of flavor, complex, delicate and balanced. Amazing silky-textured broth. Inspired by Tami's note, instead of adding salt, I stirred in a big dollop (1/4 c.?) of white miso right after shutting off the heat. Don't skip the Parmesan- it adds another interesting layer that makes the whole bowl more interesting. This would probably be really good with a scoop of white rice, too.
edmund mander
I found salted kelp at H Market, and was careful to wash off the salt beforehand. But still the dish was too salty. I shall be interested to try again with non-salted kelp.
edmund mander
For the brine, dissolve 3 tablespoons of table salt in 4 quarts of water. Soak at room temperature.
Bethany
Didn't have kelp at my grocery, so I used shredded kale and it worked great. Will definitely make this again!
Tami Swartz
I made this this evening as directed, with one exception – I used white miso paste in the broth instead of salt. I thought it would be in keeping with the Japanese vibe of the recipe. It turned out beautifully and I ended up adding a little extra nutrition to the soup instead of all of that salt.
Danielle
Next time I would cut the carrots up small in the sofritto instead of having mushy carrots. If using pressure cooker do a quick release.
Robin
I'm wondering if I used the wrong kind of kelp. I used dried shredded "kelp," which in retrospect appears to have been kombu. Trying to digest a big wad of that made me somewhat ill. I wonder if the fresh kelp mentioned in this recipe is a different species of kelp.
Robin
I used dried shredded kelp, and I've learned that I don't like it. Even when fully reconstituted, it's rather tough. I'm going to fish as much of it out as I can, because I did like the bean broth with the kombu. This might be worth revisiting using wakame instead of kelp.
Larry
I didn't have success with this recipe. I put 2 cups (4oz) of Fueru Wakame dried seaweed in the stew (the woman at my local Asian market said it was "ready cut kelp"). Anyway, the stew grew into a giant blob of green; moist but with no free liquid and amazingly difficult to find the scattered beans, carrots etc.So, Did I use the wrong seaweed? Should I have reconstituted the seaweed before measuring it? Not sure where I went wrong but disappointed with the outcome.
CL
The dried kelp expands a LOT. The recipe calls for frozen kelp. I use the dried cut kelp as well - and for 2 cups worth, I'd use a 1/8 - 1/4 C dried. If you're unsure of amount, then yes, you can reconstitute in some warm water for a half hour to see how much you get/need.
Ci-Ci
I love this soup! I made with canned cannellini beans from Eden Foods and dried wakame. I also used 3 half teaspoons of dried thyme. Everything tasted amazing and it only took 30 minutes to make including the chopping of the fresh fennel, onion and garlic.
Kyle
I was a little skeptical about this recipe at first, but so glad I tried it. Since I only had access to dry kelp (wakame), I used a lot less. 6oz is, I think, the hydrated weight, so I needed far, far less dehydrated wakame by weight.
Zachary
Would utilizing the Atlantic Sea Farms frozen kelp cubes suffice for their ready-cut frozen kelp variant? This is available at my local grocer. If anyone thinks it would work out as a substitute, let me know if you think it should be prepared any different.
Skitchen
Brilliant soup, I finished with apple cider vinegar and parmesan to finish. I also added dulse flakes since I didn’t have wakame.
Russell
Everyone but Corinne enjoyed it. The broth was delicious! I did vegetable broth instead of water.
Parker
Followed the recipe and added a few parmesan rinds to the pot--delicious! Creamy and rich. Definitely making this again.
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