"Bob Chorba"- traditional bean soup - Bulgarian recipe

Ingredients

200 g to 455 g (1 lb) white beans (Great Northern beans are a suitable variety in the U.S.)
2-3 carrots
1/2 celery
1-2 onion
1-2 tomatoes
1-2 bell peppers
1-2 chilies
Optional — parsley, mint (or oregano, 1 tsp), sunflower oil (or olive oil, 2 tbsp), salt to taste
2 qt. water

Preparation

Soak the beans in cold water overnight. Next morning drain off the water, add the same amount of fresh water and bring to boil. Boil in an earthenware pot (or regular pot) together with the oil, finely chopped carrots, onion and celery.

Simmer gently for 1-2 hours or until the beans soften.

The sliced peppers are added later; the grated tomatoes and mint, when the beans have turned tender. Salt and boil for another 15-20 minutes.

Serve sprinkled with finely chopped parsley.

Here is my modified recipe for "Bob Chorba" (it takes 1 hour from start to finish):

Ingredients

- 200 g to 455 g (1 lb) of Anasazi beans (it depends on the desired amount)
- 1-2 onion
- 1-2 tomatoes
- 1-2 peppers
- red pepper (ground)
- parsley, olive oil (2 tbsp), salt to taste
- 2 qt. water

Preparation

Bring the beans to a boil. Replace the water after the first boil, and bring the beans to boil again. Simmer gently for 1 hour total, or until the beans soften.

Bean soup cooking takes only one hour - here is what I do 

I use Anasazi beans because the soup ("bob chorba") with them is ready in just 60 minutes. Here is the breakdown in 3 easy steps. I bring the beans to a boil which takes about 3-5 minutes, and then replace the water after the first boil. I bring the beans to boil again. During that time, I cut the onion, tomatoes, pepper and parsley.

See how to add the ingredients below in 3 steps. Each step takes 20 minutes and you can use a timer set at 20 minutes to simplify the process:

1. Boil at low heat for 20 minutes. After that, add the oil, finely chopped onion, pepper, salt.

2. Simmer for 20 minutes. After that, add the tomatoes and the ground red pepper.

3. Simmer for 20 minutes. After that, add the parsley at very end.





Optional: In a separate plan fry the onions in oil until golden brown, add flour, stir and fry for less then a minute. Add the paprika, stir and add to the beans. Add the tomatoes and oregano as well. Leave the soup to simmer on a low heat for about 20 minutes.

References:

Cuisine of Bulgaria - Wikibooks http://goo.gl/fLpne
Bulgarian Cuisine http://goo.gl/FPYPi
В село Смилян се проведе празник на боба - YouTube http://goo.gl/sK96g
Боб Чoрба - Bean stew - YouTube http://goo.gl/nNhUS