Insalata di tonno e fagioli — tuna in olive oil, white beans and red onion

Name: Insalata di tonno e fagioli — tuna in olive oil, white beans and red onion
Prep time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 224 g Tuna in olive oil (160 g tin, 112 g drained) (2 kosher 160 g tins, giving 224 g drained (112 g each); open just before serving); 480 g Tinned cannellini beans (400 g tin) (2 × 400 g tins, weight after rinsing and draining; use the larger beans (cannellini)); 45 g Water (3 tbsp, to warm the beans); 200 g Bread (baguette or country loaf) (4 toasted 50 g slices of kosher pareve country bread); 60 g Extra virgin olive oil (6 tbsp: 5 for the dressing, 1 for the bread); 120 g Lemon (1 well-washed lemon, unwaxed if possible: the zest of one half (1 g) and 30 g juice; discard the peel and pips); 60 g Red onions (½ small onion); 250 g Cherry tomatoes (about 17 cherry tomatoes); 20 g Capers (2 tbsp, rinsed and drained); 20 g Flat-leaf parsley (⅕ bunch: a large handful of leaves (about 4 tbsp chopped)); 3 g Garlic (½ clove, for rubbing the bread); 4 g Fine salt (¾ tsp: 2 g in the lemon juice, 1 g on the tomatoes and 1 g to adjust the seasoning or for the eggs); 0.5 g Ground black pepper (¼ tsp)

pareve fish main dish · Italian · 1/5 · very easy · 25 min, including 20 hands-on

A Tuscan trattoria salad: warm white beans soaking up a lemon and red onion dressing, large flakes of tuna in olive oil, cherry tomatoes and capers, with slices of toasted country bread rubbed with garlic.

Ingredients for two

224 g	Tuna in olive oil (160 g tin, 112 g drained) 2 kosher 160 g tins, giving 224 g drained (112 g each); open just before serving
480 g	Tinned cannellini beans (400 g tin) 2 × 400 g tins, weight after rinsing and draining; use the larger beans (cannellini)
45 g	Water 3 tbsp, to warm the beans
200 g	Bread (baguette or country loaf) 4 toasted 50 g slices of kosher pareve country bread
60 g	Extra virgin olive oil 6 tbsp: 5 for the dressing, 1 for the bread
120 g	Lemon 1 well-washed lemon, unwaxed if possible: the zest of one half (1 g) and 30 g juice; discard the peel and pips
60 g	Red onions ½ small onion
250 g	Cherry tomatoes about 17 cherry tomatoes
20 g	Capers 2 tbsp, rinsed and drained
20 g	Flat-leaf parsley ⅕ bunch: a large handful of leaves (about 4 tbsp chopped)
3 g	Garlic ½ clove, for rubbing the bread
4 g	Fine salt ¾ tsp: 2 g in the lemon juice, 1 g on the tomatoes and 1 g to adjust the seasoning or for the eggs
0.5 g	Ground black pepper ¼ tsp

Method

Finely grate the zest of half a lemon (about 1 g, without the white pith), then squeeze 30 g juice. Slice the red onion into very thin half-rings. In the large salad bowl, mix the onion, lemon juice and 2 g salt: the onion will mellow and turn pink while you prepare the rest.
Rinse the white beans in a colander and drain. Put them in a small saucepan with 3 tbsp water and heat over a medium heat for 2–3 minutes, stirring gently, until warm all the way through but not piping hot, then drain again.
Add the zest, pepper, rinsed capers and 5 tbsp olive oil to the salad bowl and mix with a fork. Transfer 2 tbsp of this dressing to a small bowl for the topping. Tip the warm beans into the salad bowl, mash 2 tbsp of them against the side to bind the dressing, mix and leave for 10 minutes to absorb the flavour right through. Meanwhile, halve the tomatoes, put them in a bowl with 1 g salt and chop the parsley.
Also during this resting time, toast the bread for 2 minutes on each side in a toaster or dry frying pan, until golden and crisp. Immediately rub with the cut half-clove of garlic, then drizzle each slice with olive oil, using 1 tbsp in total.
Add the tomatoes with their juices and the parsley to the salad bowl and gently fold through with two turns of the spoon. Taste a bean: it should be seasoned right through; if not, add a pinch of salt. Divide between two shallow bowls. Open and drain the tuna, flake it into large pieces over each serving (112 g per person), drizzle each with 1 tbsp reserved dressing and add a grind of pepper. Serve with the toast.

Variants and their steps remain below the recipe.

Fish-free

Tuna in olive oil (160 g tin, 112 g drained) → Eggs 330 g (6 eggs for two fish-free plates, 3 per plate)

Before step 1, bring a second small saucepan of water to the boil, lower in the fridge-cold eggs with a spoon and cook at a gentle boil for 9 minutes, using a timer. Leave in cold water for 3 minutes, then peel during the resting time in step 3.
In step 5, serve the fish-free plate first: top with the halved eggs instead of the tuna, a pinch of salt and 1 tbsp reserved dressing. Only then open the tuna for the other plate, using a clean fork.

Hard-boiled eggs and beans are an Italian salad classic. The dressing, beans and toast are unchanged; only the topping is different, added to the plate, never to the salad bowl.

Lighter version

How the taste changes:

The beans stay meltingly tender, but their less oily dressing lets the lemon and capers stand out more. The tuna retains the moistness of its oil-packed tin; there is less toast to soak up the juices.

Bread (baguette or country loaf) : 100 g
Extra virgin olive oil : 35 g

In step 3, use 3 tbsp olive oil instead of 5. In step 4, serve one slice of bread each with a small drizzle of oil.

One slice of toast each and two fewer spoonfuls of oil: the beans remain the starchy part of the meal and the salad keeps its flavour.

On your plate

Recipe

982 kcal · protein 61 g · carbs 87 g · fat 41 g

Quantities per person

112 g Tuna in olive oil (160 g tin, 112 g drained)
240 g Tinned cannellini beans (400 g tin)
22.5 g Water
100 g Bread (baguette or country loaf)
30 g Extra virgin olive oil
60 g Lemon
30 g Red onions
125 g Cherry tomatoes
10 g Capers
10 g Flat-leaf parsley
1.5 g Garlic
2 g Fine salt
0.25 g Ground black pepper

Fish-free version

998 kcal · protein 47 g · carbs 87 g · fat 49 g

Quantities per person

240 g Tinned cannellini beans (400 g tin)
22.5 g Water
100 g Bread (baguette or country loaf)
30 g Extra virgin olive oil
60 g Lemon
30 g Red onions
125 g Cherry tomatoes
10 g Capers
10 g Flat-leaf parsley
1.5 g Garlic
2 g Fine salt
0.25 g Ground black pepper
165 g Eggs

Cooking tips

The key to this dish is to dress the beans while warm and leave them to absorb the dressing for 10 minutes. For a Tuscan variation, replace the lemon with 15 g red wine vinegar. Dressed beans keep in the fridge for 24 hours: take them out 20 minutes before serving, then add the tomatoes, parsley, tuna and toast at the last moment.

Equipment : large 3 litre salad bowl, small saucepan (a second one for the eggs in the variation), colander, toaster or frying pan, fine grater and citrus juicer, knife and chopping board, 2 shallow bowls

Insalata di tonno e fagioli, a Tuscan trattoria salad, served as a complete meal with fettunta: toast with garlic and olive oil.

Insalata di tonno e fagioli — tuna in olive oil, white beans and red onion

Method

Timer

On your plate

Recipe

Fish-free version

Cooking tips

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