Porotos Granados

Method

1. Shell the beans if they are fresh (frozen beans go in straight from the freezer). Husk the corn and grate the kernels on the large holes of a box grater into a bowl, keeping all the milky juice; this is the mazamorra that will thicken the stew. Peel the squash and cut half into 1 cm dice and the rest into 3 cm chunks. Finely chop the onion and mince the garlic.

2. Heat the oil in a 20 cm pot over medium heat. Cook the onion for 6 min, stirring now and then, until soft and translucent. Add the garlic, paprika and oregano and stir for just 1 minute, until fragrant and the oil turns red. Paprika burns quickly and turns bitter, so move on before it darkens.

   Add in this stepVegetable oil 1½ tbspOnion 1Garlic cloves 2Sweet paprika 1 tspDried oregano ½ tsp

   medium heat

3. Add the beans, all the squash and the water and stir. Bring to a boil over high heat, then lower to medium-low heat, partly cover and simmer for 28 min, stirring occasionally, until the beans are creamy inside. Add a splash of hot water if it gets too thick.

   Add in this stepFresh shelled cranberry beans (or frozen) 200 gButternut squash or kabocha 200 gWater 700 ml

   high heat→medium-low heat

4. Check a bean: it should squash easily between your fingers. Press a few of the large squash pieces against the side of the pot with a spoon so they melt into the broth, then season with the salt and pepper.

   Add in this stepSalt 1 tspBlack pepper to taste

5. Stir in the grated corn with all its juice and cook over low heat for 9 min, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom, until the stew is thick and creamy and the corn no longer tastes raw. Corn starch sticks and scorches easily, so don't walk away.

   Add in this stepFresh corn on the cob (ears) 2

   low heat

6. Turn off the heat, tear in the basil leaves and let the stew stand for 3 min so the basil can perfume it. Serve in deep bowls, ideally with a simple tomato and onion salad on the side.

   Add in this stepFresh basil leaves 8