Tuscan White Bean Skillet

Tuscan white beans and rice skillet is so easy to make, ready in just 15 minutes and packed with flavor! This recipe uses leftover rice (from meal prep) which helps make it quick and simple, great for busy weeknights or for lunches throughout the week! This meatless meal is vegan, gluten free, dairy free and plant based!

Course dinner

Cuisine Italian, Mediterranean

Keyword italian white bean skillet, sundried tomato rice and beans, tuscan white bean skillet, tuscan white beans and rice

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 9

Total Time 14

Servings

Calories 414kcal

Author Samantha Rowland

Cost $5.78 Recipe/$1.45 Serving

Ingredients

1 medium onion, chopped $0.33
2 medium garlic cloves, chopped $0.08
1 head tuscan kale, chopped (lacinato or dinosaur kale) $1.50
1/2 cup vegetable broth $0.11
1 tsp italian seasoning $0.10
1 tsp sea salt $0.05
1/2 tsp garlic powder $0.05
1/4 cup sundried tomatoes in olive oil $1.17
2 cans white beans, rinsed and drained (15 oz. cans) $1.99
2.5 cups cooked jasmine rice $0.40

Instructions

Start by prepping all the ingredients. Chop the onions and garlic. Destem and chop the kale, rinse and drain the white beans.
While chopping the veggies, preheat a large skillet over medium heat.
When the skillet is hot, spray with extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil spray. Add onions and cook 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
When onions are starting to become translucent, add the garlic and cook 1-2 more minutes. Stir regularly so the garlic doesn't burn.
When the onions are starting to brown and garlic is cooked, add the kale, vegetable broth, salt, italian seasoning and garlic powder. Stir well and cook 1-3 minutes to start to wilt the kale.
Once kale is wilted (liquid doesn't have to be gone from the pan), add the sundried tomatoes, white beans and cooked rice. Stir well and cook 2-4 minutes until beans and rice are hot. Serve immediately.

Notes

Top tips

Be sure to prep everything ahead - chop the onions, garlic, kale and drain the beans before you start. This recipe comes together so quickly, that you don't want anything to burn as you are trying to prep ingredients.
Take time to cook the onion and garlic before adding the rest of the ingredients, it really helps create the best flavor and only takes a few minutes of time.
If you don't have premade rice, you can also use quick cooking rice or frozen rice, just be sure to defrost it ahead of time.
Want to turn this into soup? Add 3-4 cups of vegetable broth when you add the rice and beans and simmer 5-10 minutes to make a healthy, flavorful soup!
Want to make this lower in carbs? Substitute the rice for spaghetti squash, zucchini noodles, hearts of palm pasta, cauliflower rice or hearts of palm rice.

Other additions

Veggies: Artichoke hearts, chopped tomatoes (or diced tomatoes, drained), olives, roasted red peppers, spinach, olives. You can also add asparagus, zucchini or mushrooms that you cook with the onions and garlic adding 2-3 minutes to the total cook time.
Cheese: Regular or vegan feta or parmesan cheese would be a great addition for flavor and creaminess.
Spice: Red pepper flakes added at the end can bring a level of spice and heat to this recipe.

What if you don’t have rice prepped in advance?

If you don’t have rice prepped in advance you can also use quick cooking rice or frozen rice which you can find in most grocery stores. Trader Joe’s and Sprouts both have frozen jasmine rice.

You can also make rice fresh before putting the rest of the recipe together. This takes about 15-20 minutes using the instant pot.

Can you make this with dry rice?

I have not tested making this with dry rice in one skillet.

If you decide to do that, wait to add the kale and beans until after the rice is done cooking. To cook the rice in the skillet add 1 cup of rinsed dry rice and 3 cups of water to the skillet with the onions and garlic, bring to a boil over medium high heat then turn to low. Cover and simmer about 15 minutes until rice is tender. Once rice is cooked, add kale and cook 1-3 minutes. Once kale is wilted, add the beans and sundried tomatoes and cook until beans are warmed through.

Instead of rice, what else can I use?

You could also make this Italian white bean skillet meal with quinoa, cooked farro, cooked bulgur, frozen cauliflower rice (this will need to be cooked 7-8 minutes before adding the kale as it needs to defrost and let go of extra water), cooked spaghetti squash, cooked pasta, zucchini noodles, hearts of palm noodles or hearts of palm rice.

How to destem kale

Hold the kale in one hand by the stem, so the leaf is facing the ground. Rip away the leaf from the stem about 1-2 inches down on each side of the stem.
Wrap your forefinger around the stem and pull down, this will quickly and efficiently remove the stem from the leaf. You may notice the very thin end of the stem doesn't easily remove, that is ok, it will break down quickly when cooking.

Storing leftovers

Fridge: Store in the fridge for up to 5 days. Note: rice should only be stored for 5 days total in the fridge, so the storage of this recipe will depend on how long the fridge has already been in the fridge for.
Reheating leftovers: Reheat in a skillet over medium low heat (add 2-3 tablespoons of water to ensure it doesn't stick and can steam while cooking) or microwave 1-2 minutes.
Freezer: Freeze in a freezer safe bag or container for up to 3 months. I like to freeze leftovers in individual 1 or 2 cup portions using Soupercubes. Once frozen, you pop them from the silicone mold and transfer them to a freezer safe bag. Be sure to label the container with the name, date and use by date.

Nutrition