You’ll love these classic Italian beans (fagioli all’uccelletto): creamy cannellini beans stewed in a rich, jammy tomato sauce with sweet onions, garlic, and sage.
These stewed beans take me straight back to my 20s, when I lived in Florence and worked a harvest at a Tuscan winery. In the countryside especially, food was so simple but so satisfying. Just a few good ingredients and patience.
It was cooking reduced to its purest purpose: to feed and comfort, not to impress. (And for someone like me, who now obsesses over recipes all day every day, that still feels like such a relief). Sometimes a bowl of beans is all I actually need to cook.
It's so easy to lose that simplicity (and our joy). We fall in the trap of cooking to impress people with rare ingredients, elaborate techniques, fancy plating.
In Italy, though, the food was honest and unfussy, and that’s what stayed with me the most. Not the Sauternes-braised sweetbreads I had years later at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris— but the simplest beans.
Because they remind me what good food is really about.
Creamy cannellini beans simmered with sweet onions, garlic, and earthy herbs, all cooked down in a smooth, ripe tomato passata until jammy and rich. One pot, a few pantry ingredients, and a handful of herbs are all you need.
If you can, cook your own dried cannellini beans for the best flavor and texture. I usually make a whole pound and save half for my favorite tuna white bean salad or these spicy marinated white beans. So good!
Here’s how to make these simple beans in tomato sauce:
Italian Beans Braised in Tomato Sauce
Classic Italian beans (fagioli all’uccelletto): creamy cannellini beans stewed in a rich, jammy tomato sauce with sweet onions, garlic, and sage.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4
- Category: Beans
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 10 fresh sage leaves
- 1 small onion, finely diced
- kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tbsp minced fresh rosemary
- Pinch of red chili flakes
- 1 cup tomato passata (or tomato sauce)
- 3 cups cooked cannellini beans (or 2 15-oz cans), rinsed
- ¼ cup chicken stock, plus more if needed
- crusty bread, for serving
Instructions
- Heat olive oil and butter in a large, deep skillet over medium-low heat until butter is melted. Add sage leaves in a single layer and cook until crisp, about 20 seconds. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate and set aside.
- Add onion, season with salt and pepper, and cook until soft and translucent, 8- 10 minutes. Add the garlic, rosemary, and chili flakes and cook for about 30 seconds, until fragrant.
- Add the passata, season again with salt and pepper, and gently simmer until thick and jammy, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, about 20 minutes.
- Stir in the beans and stock, and continue to gently simmer for another 10 minutes, or until the beans are tender and very flavorful. Add a splash of stock if needed, to prevent sticking.
- Taste and adjust seasoning, then divide into bowls. Top with crispy fried sage leaves and serve with crusty bread.
Notes
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 321
- Sugar: 2.5g
- Sodium: 191mg
- Fat: 13g
- Saturated Fat: 4.7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 7.9g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 38g
- Fiber: 9.3g
- Protein: 14g
- Cholesterol: 16mg
Nano Banana AI says
I love how this dish takes you back to the heart of Italian cooking – so simple but incredibly satisfying. It’s a reminder that good food doesn’t have to be complicated. Your mention of cooking dried beans instead of using canned really caught my attention, I can imagine the difference in texture!