Taze fasulye yahni (green bean and tomato stew)

Taze fasulye yahni is a wholesome Turkish stew, with green beans, potatoes and carrots in a rich tomato and onion sauce. Pronounced 'tah-zeh fah-sool-yeh yah-nee', it is similar to bezelye yahni (Turkish pea and tomato stew) as the sauce is made slightly tangy from the addition of lemon juice. However, it's less sweet as the beans provide a gentle, earthy flavour. Olive oil is a key ingredient as it adds depth to the stew and gives the sauce a silky texture.

Taze fasulye yahni goes great with yoghurt and bread on the side as a light dish in the summer when the beans are in season. It can also be served hot with rice on the side during colder months when you want something more filling, with the ground black pepper offering a hint of warmth.

We use dwarf green beans in this recipe as they are thicker and are more robust when simmering in a stew. You can make the dish with other green bean varieties, as well as runner beans, but you will need to adjust cooking times depending on how thick the beans are. You can also make this stew with lamb shoulder or lamb neck fillet cut into chunks for a richer flavour, but it works perfectly without.

Serves 4 to 5 | Preparation time: 15 minutes | Cooking time: 1 hour and 20 minutes

Ingredients

900g dwarf green beans	​​½ tsp salt, or as desired
2 medium-sized (300g) Cyprus potatoes (or other waxy potato variety), peeled and washed	1 chicken or vegetable stock cube, dissolved in 750ml hot water (or enough to cover the vegetables)
Sunflower oil, for frying	200g carrots, peeled and washed
​2 medium onions, chopped	​¼ tsp ground black pepper
​400g tinned chopped tomatoes	5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
​1 tbsp tomato paste	2 tbsp lemon juice, or as desired

Hob heat settings

Method

1. Trim off the tips of the beans and then cut them in half. You can easily do this by breaking the beans with your hands, but you can use a knife.

   
   

   

   
   

2. Cut the potatoes into 4 to 6 pieces that are approximately 4cm in size.

   
   

   

   
   

3. Cut the carrots into 1cm-thick rounds.

   
   

   

   
   

4. Lightly oil a large saucepan and place on a medium-high heat. Once hot, add the chopped onions and fry for 5-10 minutes, or until slightly softened.

5. Add the beans and potatoes, and fry together with the onions for a further 5-10 minutes, or until the beans go lighter in colour.

6. Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, salt and cook for 5 minutes more, ensuring the tomatoes are broken up with the back of a spoon. You will need to stir gently so as not to split the beans.

7. Add the hot stock, carrots, ground black pepper, olive oil and lemon juice, and gently simmer while loosely covered for 1 hour, or until the beans and potatoes are cooked through (both should be slightly firm when you pierce them with a fork, but tender in the centre). Stir occasionally and make sure the vegetables are always submerged in the sauce while cooking. You can add a little more hot water if it runs low, but not too much as the aim is to get a thick sauce.

8. Serve hot with yoghurt and fresh bread on the side.