Let’s talk about baked butter beans! (AKA gigantes plaki in Greek). Oddly, they contain no butter whatsoever! This baked bean dish spans the eastern and western Mediterranean. And I have my own particular way of making it, involving nestling chunks of feta in the beans. They bake into melty pockets of cheese, and it’s just such a treat.
Jump to the recipe or read along for a few handy ingredient notes. Or watch this step-by-step video:
a note on beans for gigantes plaki
If you’re always in a hurry, don’t fret—I use canned butter beans instead of soaking and par-cooking dried ones. They don’t continue to soften once they bake with the tomato sauce, and so I’ve always had good luck using canned. Just make sure you look for a brand that doesn’t overcook them to begin with (you know how some brands are just absolute mush, and perfect for things like hummus? Avoid those here!).
If you can’t find canned butter beans, this recipe is also a wonderful way to cook cannellinis. If you’re starting from dried beans, it’s very important to soak them in lightly salted water overnight, and then cook them all the way through (stopping before they get mushy) before adding them to the tomatoes. Even though they bake for twenty-five more minutes, there is not enough moisture in the dish to cook them the rest of the way if they start out too al dente.
A note on feta (and how to make this recipe vegan)
Feta isn’t a necessary ingredient for delicious gigantes plaki, but it’s one of my favorite things to add. Instead of crumbling and sprinkling the feta, I like to cut it into big chunks and nestle them in with the beans, and then sprinkle a little on top. Just push the feta down, and then nudge the beans back over the tops. In the oven, the feta softens and melts a little with the tomato, turning into delightfully spreadable pockets of cheese.
This dish is wonderful served on thin slices of rye toast, but it’s also lovely served simply with basmati rice. Feel free to adjust the flavorings and seasonings to your preference. It’s easy to veganize it by using vegan feta, or leaving out the feta altogether. If you do leave the feta out, add some extra olive oil.
gigantes plaki with pockets of feta
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: serves 6 as a main, or more as a side
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 onion (150-175g), chopped
- 2–3 cloves garlic (10-15g), crushed through a press
- 2 carrots (140g), medium diced
- Salt
- 1 teaspoon (1g) dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons (2g) dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon (0.5g) crushed red pepper (or more to taste)
- 1/2 teaspoon (1g) black pepper
- Two 14-ounce cans (2 400g cans) diced tomato
- 1 teaspoon (3g) sugar
- Three 14-ounce cans (3 400g cans) of butter beans, strained and rinsed
- 1/4 cup (12g) minced fresh dill fronds *
- 3/4 cup (40g) minced fresh parsley leaves (reserve some for garnish)
- 7 ounces feta (200g), cut into about 10-12 large cubes
Instructions
- Heat a large oven-proof 10 to 12” steep-sided skillet over medium heat for a few minutes, then add the olive oil, followed by the onion, garlic, carrots, and about 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally for 10 to 15 minutes, until the onions and carrots soften quite a bit (reduce to low if they start to caramelize).
- Add the oregano, thyme, crushed red pepper, black pepper, diced tomatoes, and sugar, and bring up to a simmer. Once simmering, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 20-25 minutes, just until it forms a very thick sauce.
- Preheat the oven to 425° F (218° C) convection while the sauce is simmering.
- Taste the sauce once it’s done. Adjust the seasoning, stir in the butter beans, and remove from heat. Add most of the dill and parsley (reserve a couple pinches for garnish). Distribute all but 1 of the feta cubes evenly over the surface of the beans. Gently push down the feta cubes so that they nestle among the beans. Gently nudge some of the beans back over feta cubes to make sure they’re not showing (it’s like planting tulip bulbs). Crumble the remaining feta on top, and bake for about 25 minutes, just until the exposed feta browns, and the whole thing is heated through. Garnish with the reserved parsley, and serve.
Notes
* Feel free to use a much smaller amount of dried dill (but make sure to use fresh parsley).
To make ahead: 1 or 2 days ahead of time, make the sauce, wash and mince the herbs (dry them very well first), and cut the feta into cubes. You can even strain and rinse the beans and leave them in the fridge, if you’d like to. Once you’re ready to bake, heat the sauce back up in the pan you’re going to bake it in (you might need to add 1-2 tablespoons of water). Once it’s warmed through, add the butter beans, dill, and parsley, stir together, and nestle in the feta cubes. Bake and garnish as usual.
Hello Kathryn! I just found your wonderful website s few days ago & have already indexed many of your recipes to try in the coming months. I’ve a particular question of this recipe. What brand of feta do you recommend & would sheep’s milk be the better option? Thank you!
Hi Shelley! Aw thank you so much! And that’s a great question. This recipe is extremely flexible, and I’ve made it with a few different kinds of fetas—the main thing is to look for one that holds its shape when you slice it. Some fetas are extremely creamy and almost spreadable. You’ll want one that’s on the firm-side (or somewhere in the middle). I’ve made it with both sheep’s and cow’s milk feta, and both work great—totally just depends on which flavor you like more. Hope you enjoy this one!
Yum!! Made this last night and it was delicious! Thank you! I started from dried beans and instead of using fresh dill which I can not find where I live, I used cilantro which I love and always have plenty and thought the flavor was fabulous. Served the beans with a good drizzle of nice olive oil and some crusty bread on a cold day. For sure I will make this again and try with dry dill.
Oh I’m so glad you enjoyed it!! 😀
Love love love the idea of using cilantro here! Some chives would also go wonderfully! It’s so nice having dried dill on hand—it’s flavor doesn’t change as much with drying as parsley, cilantro, and mint do, which is really convenient for sure!
This looks so delicious!!!
It’s one of my all-time favorite dinners 😋
Can this be made a day ahead to the point of baking?
Yes just about!
Here’s how I do it:
1 or 2 days ahead: make the sauce, wash and mince the herbs, and cut the feta into cubes (you can even strain and rinse the beans and leave them in the fridge, if you’d like).
Once you’re ready to bake: heat the sauce back up in the pan you’re going to bake it in (you might need to add 1-2 tablespoons of water). Once it’s warmed through, add the butter beans, dill, and parsley, stir together, and nestle in the feta cubes. Bake and garnish as usual.
I like doing it this way instead of combining everything and leaving it in the fridge already totally assembled, because it takes longer for it to bake through when the whole thing starts out cold, and it ends up getting kind of dry and inconsistent. This way only takes about 5 active minutes the day of, and you can prep all the ingredients ahead of time.
Hope this helps! 🙂 And thanks for the suggestion, I’ll add these instructions to the recipe.
Yum! Really, really yum! It took me quite a while to make, though. So the 1h15 is accurate; well worth the effort, in any case.
Aw yay! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! And haha yes, even with the canned bean shortcut, it still takes such a long time on the stove and in the oven. Still ok for a weeknight, but definitely not a 30 minute meal 😅
I decided to make this recipe after I saw Kathryn make it on Instagram. It was relatively easy to make and it was very delicious. The fresh herbs and feta definitely pairs well with the creamy butter beans. This dish is quite versatile. I will be eating it with toast and eggs and maybe as an entree with baked salmon. Definitely a keeper!
Aw I’m so glad you enjoyed! And toast + eggs + butter beans sounds like a dream come true (as does pairing it with baked salmon—yum!!).