Butifarra with White Beans (Mongetes)

Some recipes are deeply tied to a place and its traditions. Butifarra with white beans, known in Catalonia as butifarra amb mongetes, is one of those dishes.

Simple ingredients, minimal technique and maximum comfort. A perfectly grilled sausage paired with creamy beans, finished with good olive oil and a touch of garlic.

Ingredients

• 2 fresh pork butifarra sausages
• 400 g cooked white beans (mongetes or cannellini)
• 2 cloves garlic
• Fresh parsley leaves
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Sweet paprika
• Salt, to taste
• Black pepper, to taste

Method

1. Peel the garlic cloves and roughly chop them. Wash the parsley, discard the stems and lightly chop the leaves.
2. Crush the garlic with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Add the parsley leaves and a little more oil, working the mixture gently without turning it into a paste.
3. Make shallow cuts on one side of the butifarra sausages, about 1 cm apart, to help them cook evenly.
4. Heat a pan with just a few drops of olive oil. Add the butifarra and cook over medium heat, turning regularly, until evenly browned and cooked through, about 15 minutes. Do not add salt.
5. Remove the butifarra from the pan and set aside. In the same pan, using the fat released by the sausages, add the white beans and season lightly with salt and pepper.
6. Sauté the beans gently for a couple of minutes, then add the garlic and parsley mixture. Stir carefully without breaking the beans and cook for 5–7 minutes.
7. Add the paprika and mix gently. Make space in the pan and return the butifarra to warm through briefly, then turn off the heat.
8. Serve hot, with the sausages alongside the creamy, aromatic beans.

A personal tip

Avoid high heat when cooking the beans and mixing the picada. The goal is to keep them whole and creamy while letting the flavors develop slowly in the pan.