Greek baked lima beans casserole

Baked lima beans in tomato sauce garnished with chopped parsley and dill.

Greek baked lima beans casserole

Baked lima beans, also called Gigantes plaki, is a Greek lima bean casserole. It is made by baking Greek giant beans or large lima beans (butter beans), with a rich tomato sauce and feta cheese. This vegetarian Mediterranean casserole can be enjoyed as a main dish as well as a side dish.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Greek, Mediterranean

Diet Gluten Free, Vegetarian

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 1 30

Bean soaking time 8

Total Time 1 40

Servings

Calories 386kcal

Author Vandana Chauhan

Equipment

1 Large cooking pot to cook beans
1 Pan or cooking pot to make the sauce
1 Strainer to strain the pasta
1 Knife
1 Chopping board
1 Baking dish
Oven

Ingredients

2 cups dried large lima beans around 360 grams of dried beans
½ a medium carrot, finely chopped around ½ a cup chopped carrot
1 large red onion finely chopped
3 large garlic cloves minced
¼ cup chopped parsley
¼ cup chopped dill
1 can crushed tomatoes 425 grams, 15 oz
1.5 tablespoons tomato paste
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon chili flakes
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 vegetable bouillon cube
Salt to taste
1 block feta cheese 200 grams
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup water to adjust the consistency of sauce
Around 1.5 liters of water to cook beans

Instructions

Wash dried lima beans and soak in water for 7-8 hours. After 8 hours, strain the soaked beans and rinse with water.
Put the soaked beans and around 1.5 liters of water in a cooking pot. Add bay leaves and cook on a medium flame for around 45 minutes to an hour or until the beans are cooked. Keep checking and stirring in between to ensure they are not sticking to the bottom. If required, add more water.
Once the beans are cooked, strain them and keep in a bowl. Discard the bay leaves and water.
Heat olive oil in a cooking pot. Add chopped onion, carrot, and minced garlic. Saute until the onion turns translucent.
Add chili flakes, oregano, thyme, black pepper, and crumbled veg bouillon cube. Saute for a few seconds.
Add crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, and salt. Mix everything. Rinse the crushed tomato can with around 1 cup of water and add to the sauce. Cook for around 4-5 minutes or until the sauce starts bubbling.
Add cooked beans, mix, and cook for 2-3 minutes. Turn off the stove.
Add chopped herbs and mix.
Transfer the beans mix to a baking dish.
Cut the feta cheese block into small pieces and place them in different places in the dish. Slightly cover the feta pieces with some beans and sauce.
Bake in a preheated oven at 200℃ (around 400℉) for around 30 minutes.
Take out the dish and garnish with some more chopped herbs. Enjoy!

Video

Notes

Don't overcook the beans otherwise, they will turn mushy.

Don't soak the beans for more than 8 hours otherwise, they may go bad.

To fasten the process of soaking the beans, soak them in hot water,

While soaking the beans, make sure that there is enough water in the bowl. The water level should be at least 2 inches above the beans as the beans will slowly start expanding in size when you soak them. To get them soaked evenly, they should remain inside the water throughout the soaking step.

If in a hurry, you can use canned beans too.

You can also saute some chopped celery stalks with carrots.

Add salt to the sauce carefully as feta also has salt in it.

Check and adjust the seasoning of the dish before baking.

You may also make these baked lima beans without feta, it still tastes delicious.
More recipe tips and tricks are shared in the post above, please follow them to make this recipe.

Nutrition