Some Spaniards, like my friend Jose Andres, a chef based in Washington, D.C., who taught me this recipe, can talk until they’re blue in the face about fabada, the famous pork and bean stew they say is “the grandfather of the French cassoulet.” They will remind you to use only real fabes (dried beans you can find only at gourmet stores or specialty Web sites and that cost up to $20 a pound), tell you that you must have fresh morcilla (blood sausage), and on and on until you’re convinced that there’s no way you could ever make fabada at home. But dedication to the dish’s origins, along with a couple of simple substitutions, allows you to retain its spirit without going nuts.
Recipe information
Yield
6 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Rinse the beans and place them in a large pot with a lid; add water to cover by an inch. Bring to a boil over high heat, skimming off any foam that rises to the top.
Step 2
Add the olive oil, saffron, garlic, salt pork, and ham hock and stir. Partially cover, bring back to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about an hour, adding water if the mixture threatens to dry out.
Step 3
Add the chorizo, morcilla, and onion to the pot and let it simmer for another 60 to 90 minutes, until the beans are quite soft (some may have split at this point, which is fine and will help thicken the stew). Again, add water, a little at a time, if necessary.
Step 4
Remove the pot from the heat, discard the onion and garlic, and transfer the meat to a cutting board. Pull the meat from the ham hock off the bone and slice the sausages and salt pork. You can serve the stew at this point or let it rest for hours or even a couple of days. Serve the beans warm in deep soup bowls with a few slices of each of the meats nestled into them.
