8 top chefs on how to turn your tin of beans into an easy gourmet dinner

Beans are a storecupboard hero, and the benefits of adding more into your diet are plentiful. A nutritional powerhouse, beans are full of fibre, a valuable source of plant-based protein, are low in fat and have a blood-balancing, low glycaemic index (GI). Beans are also associated with helping us stick to a healthy weight, supporting gut health and reducing our risk of several chronic diseases, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes and certain cancers.

Swapping some of your usual proteins for beans can also help cut your food bill (to replace more expensive protein). Beans are not only good for you and your purse strings, but also for the planet. Beans and pulses fix nitrogen in the soil as they grow, improving soil health and reducing fertiliser use. They also help increase microbial diversity in the soil.

But what happens when top chefs are asked how to take a humble tin to new heights? From curry twists to nostalgic comfort food, eight chefs below reveal their favourite ways to elevate a can of baked beans.

Jeremy Pang

"Best served with fish fingers, a runny fried egg & crispy fried salami on top. This was the first successful meal I ever made for myself when I was growing up. I think it was a nostalgic thing when we moved to Singapore, as I clearly missed a good old British fry up, but sausages in Singapore weren't great, so I swapped them out with fish fingers for the ease of a good quick meal!"

Nadiya Hussain

"I would start with a good amount of butter in a pan, as soon as the butter has melted, add some cumin seeds and chilli flakes, warm through, add the beans and then some curry powder, heat through and then fresh coriander at the end. Best curried beans."

A serving of curried bean stew with coconut & coriander drizzle

Becky Excell

"As good as a tin of beans is just 'as is', it's just too much fun to jazz them up while you're warming them up in a saucepan. My go-to would be a dash of gluten-free BBQ sauce, a smidge of tomato purée (if the sauce is particularly watery), a decent amount of smoked paprika and some finely chopped fresh chives. In my mind it's the same... but better! Or… did you mean literally elevate?! In which case, just chuck the tin as high as you can in the air."

Matt Tebbutt

"Stir through sweated onions, a little tamarind to lose the sweetness, cumin seeds, hot smoked paprika and thick-cut braised belly pork."

Si King

"Add fried lardons or streaky smoked bacon and chorizo, splash of tomato ketchup and a dash of soy sauce."

Claire Thomson

"I would make my own baked beans, using tinned or jarred beans. I am chef and food writer though, so in addition, some chilli, and/or various spices, plus grilled cheese to serve."

Barney Desmazery

"Big spoonful of mild curry powder and a large knob of butter stirred through them at the end. Always surprised just how well the curry flavours work with a fry up or a jacket potato topper."

Cassie Best

"Stir in some smoky chipotle paste and cover them in a mound of cheese."

Handy cooking tips for perfect beans

You will need about 100-120g dried beans to make the equivalent of a 400g can of cooked beans.
Quick-soak by bringing to the boil, boil for three minutes, then leave for an hour with the lid on. To speed up your bean cooking time, use the same liquid to cook the beans and you’ll have a better flavoured liquid.
Overnight soaking isn’t necessary. Experimentation by US cooking site Epicurious showed that it doesn’t cut the cooking time by enough to worry about. Food science writer Harold McGee says four hours is enough to complete a soak. This amount of time does help stop beans making as much foam as they cook, and can help with making them more digestible as they’re activated to start germination.
Add bicarb to the soaking water if you want to soften the beans. Just note if you use it, you’ll have to rinse them and throw out the water rather than use it as a stock.
Red and black bean varieties like kidney beans must be boiled for 10 minutes to bring lectin levels down. Lectin can inhibit nutrient absorption.
The minimum cooking time on a hob for beans that have had a quick soak is 10 minutes boiling, plus 35 mins -1½ hours depending on the size of the beans.
Don’t add too much water to soaked beans; it should be 4cm above them in a pressure cooker and 2cm in a casserole. If the lid isn’t tight on the casserole, you can add more liquid while cooking.
Adding salt is fine; it can help with the cooking.
Don’t add very acidic ingredients until your beans are soft; it inhibits the cooking of beans and they will take longer to soften, if at all. This includes tomatoes.

How to pick the right bean for your dish

Creamy: Cannellini, butter beans, borlotti
Nutty: Chickpeas, carlin peas, fava
Meaty: Black beans, pinto, kidney
Firm: Chickpeas, black-eyed beans/peas
Starchy/floury: Haricot, many white beans

Let both flavour and texture guide your choice. Butter beans are silky in soups, cannellini are creamy and mild, and black-eyed beans add meaty depth to curries.

10 of our favourite bean recipes

Beans are endlessly versatile and these ten recipes show just how crowd-pleasing, quick and comforting they can be.

1 Double bean & roasted pepper chilli

One of our most popular recipes on the site, this warming vegetarian chilli is low in fat and high in fibre and protein. Packed with beans and roasted peppers, it's a real crowd-pleaser and ideal for batch cooking or freezing for busy weeknights.

2 Vegetable & bean chimichanga

An oven-baked alternative to the deep-fried classic. These veggie chimichangas are filled with a hearty bean mix, veg, cheese and coriander, then served with soured cream. It's great for using up leftovers and perfect for a relaxed family-friendly dinner.