# Butter Bean Soup



## Zhizara (Oct 6, 2014)

One thing I _hate _ about butter beans is the skin that is tough and sometimes comes loose in cooking.

  They are inedible IMO!

  It's funny, but I've never seen a recipe that addresses this, so I finally Googled removing bean skins.

  Aha!  There are lots of sites that tell you how.  I went with the WikiHow instructions.

  I only cook about a cup or a cup and a half of beans at a time, so learning how to skin them didn't seem like such a big deal.

  First you have to soak the beans overnight or more.  This loosens the skins.  Then, you can pretty easily remove them.

  After soaking, it took me about an hour to skin them while watching TV.

  Well!  I wanted to make butter bean soup, and I was thrilled that after cooking them they mashed up perfectly so that I had butter bean broth.

  Also, I don't add any salt during cooking.  At the end, I add a salty meat, ham chunks or sliced smoked sausage.  I continue cooking for about 20 minutes; then, if it's not salty enough, I add enough granulated boullion to taste.

  Here's the simple recipe:*

BUTTER BEAN SOUP*

1 cup large lima beans, skinned
  6 or 7 large garlic cloves
  Enough water to cover plus an inch or two

  Cook until soft and mash until smooth.

  Add a half a stick of butter or oleo 4 oz.
  Add salt or salty meat and adjust for taste.


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## Aunt Bea (Oct 6, 2014)

Thanks, I'm a big fan of butter beans!

I'll pick up a bag and give this a try!

I usually just heat up a can of them on a cold winter night, add a pat of butter along with several grinds of black pepper and call it dinner.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Oct 7, 2014)

Love butter beans!  Thanks Z!


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## Roll_Bones (Oct 8, 2014)

I make butter beans all the time and never had any issue with skin.
I buy frozen butter beans.  Speckled and green.  There is a brown type to.  I make all of them.

I saute small pieces of country ham in a bit of olive oil.
I add some chopped onion and red bell and saute a bit longer.
I add the frozen beans and cover with chicken stock.
Salt and pepper.
30 minutes later they are soft and I add some thickening agent (corn starch mixed with a tiny bit of water) to create a sauce if you will.

I serve this as a side dish.


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## Zhizara (Oct 8, 2014)

Roll_Bones said:


> I make butter beans all the time and never had any issue with skin.
> I buy frozen butter beans.  Speckled and green.  There is a brown type to.  I make all of them.
> 
> I saute small pieces of country ham in a bit of olive oil.
> ...



I haven't tried frozen since I've always made butter beans from dried large limas.  I'll have to check if my store has frozen ones in stock. Thanks for the idea.


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## Kayelle (Oct 8, 2014)

Z, my Mama loved butter beans when I was a kid, and it was one of the few things I refused to eat. The skins were disgusting to me and I haven't eaten them since. I think I'll get some and try your method just in honor of Mama. Thanks for the tip.


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