The Kitchen
How To Make Croatian Pašta Fažol (Pasta and Bean Soup)
Pašta Fažol (pasta and bean soup) really is a wonderful Croatian recipe that is great for the colder months of the year. You might know it as Pasta e fagioli from Italy.
Ingredients
- 400 g dried white beans or red kidney beans (2 cups)
- 100 g smoked pork bones (3.5 oz)
- 3 Kranski sausages
- 5 L of water (21 1/4 cups)
- 2 carrots, cut into 2cm chunks
- 2 medium potatoes, cut into 2cm cubes
- Olive oil
- 1 large onion diced
- 150 g pancetta, coarsely chopped (2/3 cup)
- 1 tsp. smoked paprika
- 4 cloves of garlic, finely diced
- 1/4 bunch of parsley finely diced
- 1 tsp. tomato paste
- 60 g pasta, I like shells but you can use any short pasta (2/3 cup)
- Salt & pepper to taste
Method
- The night before you plan to cook this dish you need to place the kidney beans in some water to soak overnight. Soaking will rehydrate the beans and soften them
- Place some olive oil into a pot and fry the onion and pancetta on medium heat. As the onions start to change colour, add the strained beans along with the smoked bones and sausage
- Fill with cold water and cook over medium heat for 30 minutes
- Add the potatoes, carrots, garlic, parsley, tomato paste & paprika
- Continue to cook the beans until they are soft. The time is variable based on your choice of beans
- Add the pasta and season and cook until the pasta is ready
It’s quite hearty, tastes delicious, and because it keeps in the fridge for a few days, you can take a few day’s break from cooking. Growing up, my mother would make Pašta Fažol on a regular basis, and it was always a hit in our house.
I was intrigued by the seashell pasta (conchiglie) and loved the munching on the kranski sausage. I hope you enjoy Pašta Fažol as much as I do. Pasta and bean soup - known as pašta fažol in Croatian is a Croatian recipe that my mother taught me a long time ago, and now I share it with you.
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