Bean and Legume

The most flavorful, hearty, and warming meal you've ever made with (almost) exclusively pantry staples.

You know the soup and salad deal? Well, this is our take on combining the two into one dish.

Choose a chocolate that does not exceed 64% cacao for a mousse with the smoothest texture. If you want the mousse to be fully non-dairy, look for a vegan chocolate bar, though the flavor may differ slightly.

Some of us still have nightmares about bad puréed black bean soups that were once a “thing.” Creamy puréed pinto beans, chiles, and lots of mix-ins set this soup on the right path.

The squid only takes 3 minutes to sear for this simple salad.

The easiest—and most delicious—homemade falafel recipe that ever was.

Crumble some chorizo, set your bean timer, queue up a movie, and win Sunday: Netflix and chili.

Harissa, a spicy North African paste of chiles, garlic, and spices, is available in many large grocery stores and Middle Eastern markets—some brands come in tubes, others are sold in jars. If you can’t find it, though, substitute by mixing together your favorite hot sauce, tomato paste, a pinch or two of ground cumin, and a drizzle of olive oil. Keep playing with the ratios until you have a medium-spicy paste.

The tonnato sauce here is a mayo miracle you'll want on everything.

If you don’t want to go all out with a big variety of dried fruits and nuts (they can get expensive), you can limit yourself to two of each. Just be sure to include the salted roasted chickpeas; they’re addictive and provide a little hit of protein in this mix as well.

Lapsang, a black tea from China, may taste too strong and smoky when you sip it on its own, but it will mellow out as it marinates with the fish.

Shaoxing wine, a Chinese fermented rice wine, is the secret sauce that makes this recipe sing.

Creamy avocado hummus, where have you been all our lives?

This bright pink and super creamy hummus is a party showstopper.

A little bit of coconut oil make this curried hummus a complete dream.

Harissa + hummus = heaven.

If you don’t want or didn’t have time to soak the black-eyed peas overnight, just power-soak them.

Any cooked rice or grain will work in this stir-fry, but for best results make sure they are completely cooled—overnight is ideal.

Lightly browning the beans and aromatics for a few minutes before you add the tomatoes gives a lot of depth of flavor to the sauce.

This soup is inspired by Ash Reshteh, a thick Iranian soup made with chickpeas, a boatload of herbs, and noodles, with one big exception: We omitted the noodles.