Name: Beans and Broccoli
Cook time: 10 min
Ingredients: 1 Tbs olive oil; 1-lb frozen broccoli, chopped into bite-sized pieces (or fresh, if you prefer); 1/2 tsp red chili flakes, or to taste; 3 Tbs low-sodium soy sauce (see note); 1 cup bean broth (see note); 2 cups cooked pinto beans, or other bean or your liking; 3-4 Tbs apple cider vinegar; 1/4 cup nutritional yeast; Brown rice, other grain, or crusty bread, to serve (optional)

Beans and greens are a match made in healthy food heaven. Plus, they are so tasty together! One of our go-to weekly meals is Beans and Broccoli, served in a delicious, savory, and well-balanced sauce. We often use pinto beans in this dish because the smooth, meaty texture of pinto beans and their earthy flavor pairs perfectly with the broccoli and sauce. However, you are more than welcome to use a different bean of your choosing!

Using frozen broccoli florets (of course you can use fresh if you prefer) means this is a dish that comes together very quickly, but the deep flavors from the bean broth and sauce certainly don’t taste like you threw this dish together in only about 10 minutes.

Beans and Broccoli

Recipe by A Legume a DayCourse: Dinner, LunchDifficulty: Easy

Servings

servings

Cooking time

minutes

A fast weeknight meal, beans and broccoli is served in a delicious, savory, and well-balanced sauce. The rich, satisfying flavor doesn’t taste like it only took 10 minutes!

Ingredients

1 Tbs olive oil
1-lb frozen broccoli, chopped into bite-sized pieces (or fresh, if you prefer)
1/2 tsp red chili flakes, or to taste
3 Tbs low-sodium soy sauce (see note)
1 cup bean broth (see note)
2 cups cooked pinto beans, or other bean or your liking
3-4 Tbs apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
Brown rice, other grain, or crusty bread, to serve (optional)

Directions

Place a medium-large skillet on a burner over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil, broccoli, and chili flakes. Stir and cook for about a minute to get more of the chili flake flavor.
Add the soy sauce and bean broth and stir. Cover with the lid and simmer until broccoli is warmed through.
Add beans and apple cider vinegar and stir. Heat through.
Add the nutritional yeast and stir to dissolve into the sauce. Taste for seasoning and adjust as needed.
Serve warm, with the grain of your choosing. Leftovers store well in the refrigerator for up to 3-5 days.

Recipe Video

Notes

Of course you can use fresh broccoli if you prefer. I just always have frozen broccoli on hand for quick and healthy meals. If using fresh, just sauté until cooked almost to you liking before adding the beans. Why almost? Because you’ll cook for a couple minutes to warm the beans through, so keep that in mind.
Yes, you can use regular soy sauce instead! But, Costco here sells low-sodium soy sauce, so that is what I had on hand. It’s hard to recommend an exact amount of soy sauce because the sodium level of you beans and your soy sauce may be different than mine. So, start with a smaller amount and add more until seasoned to suit your palette.
Bean broth is a fantastic ingredient! Save the cooking liquid from your beans and use it in dishes in place of veggie broth.
Apple cider vinegar combined with soy sauce and nutritional yeast makes for a delightful sauce. Start with a smaller amount, taste, and add more to your liking. I love acidity in dishes, so I tend to use more vinegar.
I know I’m recommending two cups of beans, and if you are using canned beans, there are ~1.5 cups. You can simply cook the recipe with only 1.5 cups, or use 2 cans and add a bit more broccoli and sauce. However, if you can cook dry beans and have bean broth, it’s worth it!! Check out this post for how to cook dry beans.

I hope you enjoy this Beans and Broccoli recipe and would love to hear what you think!

On Instagram and Facebook, I asked people to vote for their favorite photo, and I got some great feedback – thank you! The two most popular photos were the one that is the main photo in the recipe above, and the photo below:

Beans and Broccoli - with pinto beans and rice

Thank you again for chiming in – your feedback and support means a lot to me!

The Star of the Show in Beans and Broccoli

Okay, one last photo. Just for fun/to remind us that BEANS are the star of the show in this Beans and Broccoli recipe. 🙂 (I knew I made the right decision when I bought this star-shaped dish.)