Fave e cicoria – fava bean purée with wild chicory
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This fave e cicoria recipe, or fava bean purée, is a great example of 'La cucina povera' – Italian peasant cooking. More than the sum of its parts, this Puglian dish is perfect served with bread or potatoes, or eaten alone as a starter.
First published in 2018
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Ingredients
Metric
Imperial
Fave e cicorie
- 200g of split fava beans
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 garlic clove, bashed
- vegetable stock, as needed
- 100g of wild chicory, or other bitter greens such as dandelion or puntarelle
- extra virgin olive oil, good-quality
- salt
- pepper
SAVE RECIPE
Method
1
To begin, place the beans in a pan with the bay leaf, garlic clove and pinch of salt. Cover with stock
2
Simmer for 45–60 minutes, until the beans have broken down into a mushy purée – top up with more stock if the pan is getting a little dry
3
Once the purée is ready, remove the garlic clove and bay leaf and season with salt and pepper. Stir in a splash of quality extra virgin olive oil
4
Steam or wilt the greens in a pan with a pinch of salt and splash of water
5
Serve in a bowl with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and some freshly ground black pepper
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