Recipe
🍽️ DINNER
Jani me Fasule
The Albanian white-bean stew: creamy beans slow-simmered with onion, paprika, tomato and olive oil, brightened with mint.
Albanian · easy · serves 6
prep 15 min · cook 150 min
~304 cal · 20g protein · 52g carbs · 2g fat · 13g fiber · 4g sugars · 0g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Fasule, or jani me fasule in the south, is the everyday white-bean stew that signals cold weather in Albanian kitchens. White beans are simmered slowly with a base of onion, garlic, sweet paprika and tomato until the beans turn creamy and the liquid thickens to something between a soup and a stew.
The southern jani version, from Korçë, Berat and Gjirokastër, is often meatless by default, leaning on plenty of olive oil, a little mint and sometimes a squeeze of lemon, which makes it a mainstay of the Orthodox, Catholic and Bektashi fasting calendars. It is eaten with cornbread and a wedge of white cheese, the broth meant to be sopped up.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian, vegan and gluten-, dairy-, egg-, nut- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 6
1 lb dried white beans (great northern or cannellini), soaked overnight
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 carrot, diced
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 ripe tomato, diced
1 tbsp sweet paprika
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried mint
2 bay leaves
7 cups water or vegetable
1 tbsp lemon juice
to taste salt and pepper
Instructions
1
Drain the soaked beans, cover with fresh water, boil 10 minutes, then simmer until nearly tender, about 45 minutes. Reserve the cooking liquid.
2
In a heavy pot, soften the onion and carrot in the olive oil, then add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
3
Stir in the tomato paste, paprika and oregano and cook 90 seconds until the paste darkens and the spices bloom, then add the diced tomato.
✎ Chef’s note
Blooming the paprika and tomato paste in the oil builds the deep red-orange colour of the broth.
4
Add the beans with enough of their liquid to cover by an inch, the mint and bay, and simmer gently 1 to 1 1/2 hours until the beans are creamy and the broth has thickened. Salt only near the end so the skins stay tender.
5
Stir in the lemon juice, adjust the seasoning, and serve with cornbread or crusty bread.
Southern Albanian tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Tirana. Byrek is the everyday item, filo built up in a round tin with spinach and cheese, or leek, or minced meat, cut into wedges and eaten at any hour of the day. Albania grows olives, peppers and dairy in quantity, and the cooking sits between Ottoman habits and Mediterranean ingredients without settling on either.
🗺️
Albania. Byrek is the everyday food, thin hand-stretched sheets layered with cheese, spinach, meat or pumpkin and baked in a round tray to be cut in wedges. Along the coast the cooking turns Mediterranean, olive oil, tomatoes, grilled fish and lemon, while the mountainous interior leans on lamb, dairy and preserved meat.
🌍
Europe. A surprising amount of European cooking is under five hundred years old. Tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, maize, beans and chocolate all crossed from the Americas after 1492, and none of them was trusted quickly: the potato took most of the eighteenth century to be accepted as food rather than animal fodder across much of the north.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Albania
Tavë KosiLamb and rice baked under a tangy, set yogurt-and-egg custard, Albania’s national comfort dish.
PetullaSoft Albanian fried dough eaten warm with honey, jam, feta, or a dusting of sugar.
FërgesëPeppers and tomato baked with soft white cheese into a rich, bubbling dish, the pride of Tirana's kitchen.
Browse all Albania recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Pot or saucepan.
Storing it: Stews and braises keep 3 to 4 days refrigerated and often taste better the next day. Reheat gently, adding a splash of water if it has thickened.
Make it a Albania meal
TrileçeDessert
FërgesëLunch
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Frequently asked questions
What is Jani me Fasule?
The Albanian white-bean stew: creamy beans slow-simmered with onion, paprika, tomato and olive oil, brightened with mint.
Where does Jani me Fasule come from?
Jani me Fasule is a Albanian dish from Tirana, Albania.
Can Jani me Fasule be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Jani me Fasule recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Jani me Fasule safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Jani me Fasule take to make?
About 165 minutes total (15 minutes prep, 150 minutes cooking), serving 6.
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