Bean Casserole

This is tomatoey and smokey and great on a winters night. I use either mild csabai or a smoked paprika which again has no heat in it. This serves 4-6 & is very yummy with mashed potato or a thicker noodle (like a gnocchi for example). You can also add a couple of potatoes and have a thicker one-pot stew. ;)

Bean Casserole

• 1 onion finely chopped
• 2-3 cloves garlic finely chopped
• 2 carrots finely sliced
• 1 stick celery finely sliced
• 1 can beans (I used borlotti but you can use whatever you have)
• 1 440g can chopped tomatoes
• water - fill the can from the tomatoes
• 1 small tub of tomato puree
• 1 stick csabai OR 1/2 tbsp smoked paprika and 200g tofu (for a vegetarian version) chopped into large chunks
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 1/2 tbsp vinegar
• salt and pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in a casserole dish, stir till combined. Bake in a preheated 190 degree C oven for 1.5 - 2 hours or until the veggies and the meat is tender.

For the veggie version: do not put the tofu in at the beginning as it tends to fall apart if stewed for a long time. So cook until the veggies are almost tender, then stir the tofu through and cook for another 20 mins.