About Food – Lobio (Georgian Bean Dish)
Lobio (Georgian: ლობიო), is a popular dish made with kidney beans and usually eaten with Mchadi and marinaded vegetables . The Georgian word ‘lobio’ means ‘beans’. There are a number of varieties of this dish and we will show how to make one of the most popular.
Ingredients (4 servings):
400 grams of dried red kidney beans.
100 grams of onions. 50 grams of fresh green coriander (optional), 2 cloves of garlic, salt, a pinch of dried coriander, half spoon of dried Blue Fenugreek, 3 bay leaves, 1 tsp black pepper and 70 grams of oil.
Preparation:
Soak beans in cold water for two hours prior to cooking. Drain water and add beans, bay leaves and salt to a deep pot containing 1.5 liters of water. Cook on a medium heat until the beans are tender.
Chop the fresh coriander and onions.
Add fresh and dried coriander, Blue Fenugreek, garlic, black pepper and a pinch of salt to a mortar.
Grind the ingredients with a pestle.
Fry the chopped onions in a pan of hot oil.
Drain the water from the cooked kidney beans but keep 200 milliliters in a separate jug to use later. Use the back of a wooden spoon to mash the beans on the side of the pot. Add the ingredients that were crushed in a mortar, together with fried onions and the oil they were fried in.
Mash all ingredients until completely mixed, add the 200 milliliters of bean water (saved when draining the beans). Transfer the ingredients to a pot and cook on a medium heat for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally. We baked ours in individual clay pots in the oven.
Serving:
Serve hot. We served ours in individual clay pots with the traditional accompaniment, Mchadi (Georgian Cornbread). For a step-by-step guide to making Mchadi see this article.
Enjoy your lobio!
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[…] The Georgian bean dish, lobio, sort of reminds me of refried beans, in a non-Mexican way, flavored with onion, garlic, bay leaf (they know what’s good), cilantro, coriander and blue fenugreek. I couldn’t find blue fenugreek but substituted crushed fenugreek grains and instead of using dried kidney beans, I used fresh borlotti beans. For the authentic recipe, go here https://georgiaabout.wordpress.com/2012/07/17/about-food-lobio-georgian-bean-dish/. […]
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[…] Click here to see Georgia About’s step-by-step photo recipe for one of the most popular types of lobio. […]
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[…] in marinades and in cooking some vegetable dishes. Georgian recipes that use bay leaves include: Lobio (Georgian: ლობიო) – a popular dish made with kidney beans; and Lobio with […]
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[…] Lobio | Kidney bean salad | Recipe […]
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[…] in marinades and in cooking some vegetable dishes. Georgian recipes that use bay leaves include: Lobio (Georgian: ლობიო) – a popular dish made with kidney beans; and Lobio with […]
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[…] kept it veg friendly with warm Georgian bread, hearty “bean in a pot,” Chvishtary (cornbread with cheese), and crispy cheese blins. Always eager to make up for […]
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[…] Marinated hot peppers are delicious with lobio and also with meat, especially pork, beef and […]
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[…] Marinated hot peppers are delicious with lobio and also with meat, especially pork, beef and […]
Georgia About 
Could I make this with fresh beans? Like borlotti beans http://cookinginsens.wordpress.com/2012/06/02/duck-breast-with-fresh-borlotti-beans/
I looked at the link you provided. Great recipe and great photos! Yes, you could use borlotti beans but darker beans would be better. Try it and let me know 🙂
I will. Thank you Georgia. I really like your site!
Thank you very much!
What a great blob. Love the recipes. The breads look yummy. Wish I had time to try them. Hopefully I will keep current in the future. 🙂
We are really pleased that you like it!
What a refreshing new recipe! Thanks for sharing
Thank you Amy Elizabeth!
I hope you are planning to publish a book with all of these great recipes and pictures!
That is a great idea!
Hmm that looks good and I am not a kidney bean fan but I would certainly give that a try!
Do try it, it is really delicious!
I have never eaten kidney beans other than in chili but this sounds good. I may just have to give it a try. Hugs
You can make it spicy Mumsy – a bit like a chili!
This dish looks very healthy to your body! Love red kidney beans! That clay pot is very useful!
The clay pots are from a village called Shrosha in Imerti region Kevin.
oh my… now I am starving! mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
Hahahahaha! 🙂
Is it possible to order clay pots online? i am living in Canada.
Hi Valery. I did a quick search on the internet and I couldn’t find any. I shall make some inquiries and try to find out if there are any exports of this wonderful earthenware.