Saffron Infused Cannellini Beans, Andouille Sausage
Craving one of those saffron infused bean dishes sometimes served Tapa style in Spain required finishing off the last of my .020 ounce (70g) of Spanish Saffron from Trader Joe’s.
This small amount typically yields anywhere up to three dishes in my home. Paella, Bouillabaisse, or Risotto Milanese anyone?
Actually, I’m happy to have noted this Saffron find at Trader Joe’s since one of my all-time favorite stores The Spice Shop at the Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia was a while back conveniently discarded, an inconvenience and unhappiness to me that still I’ve not gotten over.
So why does this uniquely perfumed, orange yellow infusion that highlights spectacular flavor and bright golden color to select dishes from throughout the world cost so much?
For one reason, the saffron crocus. The specifically cultivated host of over three thousand years merely produces three dried stigma per flower, that is correct, three.
This small yield per flower then is most commonly compared in the big picture as requiring enough flowers to cover the size of over two sports fields just to produce the mere equivalent of somewhere over a pound.
The expansive harvest seasoned within a single time window of one month per year whose processes remain unchanged even in modern times also necessitates the intricate labor intensive process of picking each stigma by hand before drying, in all, these factors may exhibit a small perspective on the cost ratio scale of producing saffron.
Among the top producing countries of saffron are Spain, whose product is included in our recipe today, Iran, Italy, Greece, India and Kashmir but saffron is grown in some other countries throughout the world.
Although the more commonly known dishes using saffron include the French Fish Soup, Bouillabaisse, a Spanish Favorite, Paella, and the Italian Risotto Milanese, it is however worthwhile to note that many Western, and Southern Asia cuisines use saffron in a variety of culinary dishes, including their own rice based versions.
Author, Laura Kelley provides a few interesting recipes with the use of saffron in her cookbook once featured on Spiced Peach Blog called: The Silk Road Gourmet, Volume One: Western and Southern Asia, A Journey through the Cuisines of Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka. Including an array of unique recipes, youou can check out Laura’s Blog here.
Given the warm dry climates of the top producing saffron regions would you believe that in the United States one of the places that saffron is grown is in the state of Pennsylvania?
Yes, apparently these saffron flowers have been growing in essential side gardens of some in the Lancaster, Pennsylvania Amish areas for years while using their homegrown saffron stigmas toward preparing their Pennsylvania Dutch style of cuisine in chicken, soup, rice, or dessert dishes.
Since it is now garden planting season in the Pennsylvania area, you may want to consider setting some space aside to grow your own share of this expensive as gold crop. I have identified one particularly interesting Post on where to obtain the Saffron Crocus and the gardening tips involved in planting in Pennsylvania so before beginning you can check it out here. If you decide to try it I would love to hear your results and perhaps we can even share some tips.
Since Saffron is a spice requiring diligence on not using too much a very small amount goes a long way. Today’s dish saffron cost would be around one-dollar.
So although the upfront costs of bulk Saffron match the equivalent of gold you can still enjoy preparing from the most highly prized of spices in creating the simplest of dishes like this delicious dish of Saffron Infused Cannellini Beans, Andouille Sausage, which at its finish turns out to be a pretty good deal.
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Saffron Infused Cannellini Beans, Andouille Sausage
Ingredients
- For the Beans:
- 1 pound dried cannellini beans, washed, drained, picked free of any small stones or debris then soaked overnight in enough cold water to cover beans by a few inches
- 1 large carrot, cut into three pieces
- 1 onion, quartered
- 3 large bay leaves
- For Saffron Infused Cannellini Beans, Andouille Sausage Dish:
- saffron threads, approximately 5-6, a couple more if desired
- 1/2 cup white wine
- cooked cannellini beans
- 1/4 cup Spanish olive oil
- 1 medium shallot, diced
- 1 red pepper, seeded and chopped
- 1 yellow pepper, seeded and chopped
- 3-4 cups chicken stock
- 5-6 Andouille sausages,grilled, sliced on the diagonal
- 1/2 cup chopped parsley, 3 tablespoons reserved for garnish
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt, more or less according to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Preparing the Cannellini Beans: Drain soaked beans, rinse in colander, clean out the soup pot then tumble beans back into the soup pot. Cover with cold water by around three inches. Add in the carrot, onion, and bay leaves. Cook until boiling, then reduce heat to medium and continue to cook until beans are just done, around one hour. When beans are tender, remove carrots, onions, bay leaves, discard. Drain cooked beans into a colander.
- Preparing the Andouille Sausage: Preheat a well greased grill. Arrange andouille sausages on the heat and grill around 4-5 minutes each side until cooked through and golden browned. Transfer to a cutting board let sit for ten minutes then slice on the diagonal into one-half or one-inch sized pieces
- Preparing the Dish: Saffron Infused Cannellini Beans, Andouille Sausage: Soak saffron threads for about fifteen minutes in white wine to dissolve. In a large cast iron enameled pot on low temperature add in the Spanish olive oil, stir in the shallots and red and yellow peppers, cook around five minutes. Spoon the cooked cannellini beans into the soup pot and stir throughout. Pour in the saffron in white wine, stir through, cook five minutes. Pour in the chicken stock maintaining the heat at very low temperature. When most of the liquid in the pot has been absorbed by the cannellini beans, about thirty to thirty five minutes add in more stock to thin if needed, cook another two minutes then season the pot ingredients with salt and pepper, check seasoning, adjust to taste. Add the grilled Andouille to the pot along with any collected juices. Sprinkle in fresh chopped parsley, stir. Simmer for another five minutes until the sausage is warmed through. Transfer the Bean with Sausage Dish to a bowl and drizzle a little extra Spanish olive oil on top. Garnish with reserved chopped parsley.
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