Recipe
Grah sa kobasicom
Slow-simmered beans with smoked sausage, built on a base of onion and carrot and thickened with a golden paprika roux - the stew that has fed the Balkans through every winter on record. Plan ahead: the beans soak overnight, and the pot is famously even better tomorrow.
Grah sa kobasicom takes about 140 minutes and makes 6 servings. Each serving has 490 kcal.
- Preparation
- 20 minutes
- Cooking
- 120 minutes
- Total time
- 140 minutes
- Servings
- 6
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 490 kcal
- Protein
- 20 g
- Carbohydrates
- 44 g
- Fat
- 21 g
Ingredients
- Dried white beans400 g
- Smoked sausage300 g
- Red onion2 pcs
- Carrot2 pcs
- Garlic3 cloves
- Bay leaf2 pcs
- Sweet paprika1 tbsp
- All-purpose flour2 tbsp
- Sunflower oil3 tbsp
- Salt1 pinch
- Pepper1 pinch
Instructions
- 1
Put the beans in a large bowl, cover with plenty of cold water and leave them to soak overnight.
- 2
Drain the beans, cover them with fresh cold water in a large pot, boil hard for 10 minutes, then drain again and discard that water.
- 3
In the same pot, sauté the chopped onion and carrot in the oil until golden. Add the garlic for the last minute.
- 4
Return the beans to the pot with the bay leaves and the whole sausage. Pour in water to cover everything by two fingers.
- 5
Simmer gently, partly covered, until the beans are completely tender and the liquid turns creamy.
Tip: Salt only in the last 15 minutes - salting early keeps the beans stubbornly firm.
- 6
For the zaprška, heat a little oil in a small pan, stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until golden. Off the heat, stir in the paprika.
- 7
Stir the zaprška into the stew and simmer 15 minutes more, stirring now and then so nothing catches on the bottom.
- 8
Take out the sausage, slice it thickly and return it to the pot. Season, rest briefly and serve with good bread.
Tip: If you can bear to wait, cool the pot and reheat it tomorrow - grah is one of those dishes that genuinely improves overnight.
Cooking methods
On the stove
Beans want steady, gentle heat: keep the pot at a lazy simmer where the surface just trembles. On gas use the smallest burner, and scrape along the bottom occasionally as the stew thickens. If it gets too thick, loosen it with a splash of hot water.
On induction
Boil at level 8, then simmer at 2–3 - induction excels at holding beans at a whisper. The zaprška browns quickly at level 5 in a small pan, so stay with it. After the roux goes in, drop to 2 and stir along the bottom now and then.
Over an open fire
This stew was born over a fire. Hang or set the pot over calm embers, feed the fire small and steady, and count on a somewhat longer simmer. The smoke adds what no kitchen can - just stir the bottom more often once the zaprška goes in.
Recipe questions
- How long does this recipe take?
- Plan for about 140 minutes from start to finish.
- How many servings does this recipe make?
- This recipe makes 6 servings.
- Can I cook this recipe on induction?
- Yes. Boil at level 8, then simmer at 2–3 - induction excels at holding beans at a whisper. The zaprška browns quickly at level 5 in a small pan, so stay with it. After the roux goes in, drop to 2 and stir along the bottom now and then.
- Can I cook this recipe over an open fire?
- Yes. This stew was born over a fire. Hang or set the pot over calm embers, feed the fire small and steady, and count on a somewhat longer simmer. The smoke adds what no kitchen can - just stir the bottom more often once the zaprška goes in.
In the app
Cooking the way it should feel
One step on screen, a timer that keeps going, and clear progress until the dish is done.
