Basque Purple Beans, 400g

Tolosana black beans are originally from the Basque country. The name comes from the market town of Tolosa where local folk have bought and sold these medium, round and dark little pearls for centuries. Its cultivations it is now more extended as its appreciation grows.

Planted in May and harvested in October

Cooking your beans

Soak the beans until they are plump and smooth. Usually, 12 hours is enough. Sometimes you may need a few hours more, particularly if the beans are a bit older. In warm weather refrigerate the soaking beans.

When the beans are soaked, rinse and put in a heavy cook pot and cover well with fresh water. Bring the beans to a boil, reduce heat to very low and cover. Simmer gently until tender - usually for 50-55 minutes. NB Should you find the beans are simmering too hard, you can “shock” them (slow things down) with the addition of a little cold water.

Cooking times vary due to the age of the beans, water hardness and how gently the beans are simmered. Once you’ve cooked them a couple of times you'll get to know them.

Please note: Heirloom beans can reach optimum tenderness relatively quickly so keep an eye on them!