This is comfort food built on depth rather than effort. Creamy butter beans baked gently with miso, fish sauce and coconut milk create a rich, savoury base that feels indulgent without being heavy.

It’s the kind of starter that’s quietly impressive. Simple to make, deeply satisfying, and best served with bread for scooping every last spoonful.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

Umami is often described as the fifth taste. It’s savoury, rounded, deeply satisfying.

In this dish, it’s created by layering a few key ingredients rather than relying on long cooking times or complex techniques:

Miso brings fermented depth, fish sauce amplifies savouriness, chicken stock adds body and backbone, giving the beans something to absorb as they bake.

Butter beans are naturally creamy and neutral, making them the perfect canvas for umami-rich flavours.

By baking everything together, the beans slowly soak up these flavours, becoming richer and more cohesive without losing their shape.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 × 400g can butter beans, drained

  • 2 tbsp miso paste

  • 1 tbsp fish sauce

  • 1 chicken stock cube

  • ½ yellow onion, thinly sliced

  • 4 garlic cloves, lightly crushed

  • 1 × 165ml can coconut milk

  • 200ml water

  • 100g baby spinach

  • Salt, to taste (add at the end)

  • Freshly cracked black pepper

  • Olive oil, to serve

  • Juice of ½ lemon (to finish)

METHOD

  • Preheat the oven to 200°C.

  • Add the butter beans, miso paste, fish sauce, stock cube, sliced onion, garlic, coconut milk and water to an oven-safe pot or casserole. Gently stir to combine. Don’t worry if the miso isn’t fully dissolved yet, it will melt into the sauce as it cooks.

  • Cover and bake for 30 minutes, allowing the beans to absorb the stock and for the flavours to deepen and become beautifully umami-rich.

  • Remove from the oven and stir through the baby spinach until just wilted. Taste and adjust seasoning only if needed. The miso and fish sauce do most of the work here. Finish with freshly cracked black pepper.

AT THE TABLE

This dish also has the most delicious sauce for dipping.

Just before serving, squeeze over the juice of ½ a lemon to cut through the richness and a drizzle of olive oil.

Serve warm, straight from the pot, with good bread to mop up that sauce.

It’s the kind of starter that invites passing, dipping, and going back for “just one more bite”. Comforting, simple, and deeply satisfying.
Love,

V

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