Healthy Lima Beans Recipe

This healthy lima beans recipe uses dry beans. It is served in soul-food styles, cooked with ham, salt pork, or turkey.

You can always serve this delicious dish with cornbread, collard greens, or any of your favorite sides.

Lima beans are actually also commonly referred to as butter beans. In the grocery store and on the packaging, they are labeled as lima beans.

Butter beans are white beans or legumes with a creamy and buttery texture.

Lima Beans

Lima beans might be small, but they are filled with a great nutritional punch.

They are packed with fiber, which means they will keep your digestive system happy and enhance satiety.

Lima beans aid muscle growth and repair thanks to the fact that they are a great source of plant-based protein.

Also, keep in mind that they have plenty of essential minerals such as magnesium and iron, which aid in overall well-being.

You are definitely nourishing your body with essential nutrients by just adding lima beans to your diet.

Recipe for Healthy Southern Lima Beans

Dry beans are used for this recipe for healthy southern lima beans, and it is served soul-food style, cooked in salt pork, ham, or turkey.

As previously mentioned, you can serve this dish with cornbread, collard greens, or any of your favorite sides.

• Cuisine: American, Southern
• Course: Side Dish
• Prep Time: 1 hour
• Cook Time: 2 hours
• Total Time: 3 hours
• Servings: 10 servings

Ingredients

• 1 pound bag of dry lima beans (rinsed)
• 1 smoked turkey leg or wing (around 1 pound to 1 ½ pounds fully cooked)
• 1 teaspoon of olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves (minced)
• 1 cup of chopped white onions
• 5–6 cups of chicken broth (use enough to completely cover the beans)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon of creole seasoning

Laid-Out Instructions

• First, get a large soup pot and fill it with water. Make sure the water is enough to cover the lima beans.
• After that, place the pot on the stove to boil. Remove it from the heat and add the lima beans immediately after the water has boiled.
• Now, let the beans soak for an hour, and then drain them. Afterward, place the large soup pot on medium-high heat and add the olive oil.
• Also, add the garlic and onions when it becomes hot. When that is done, sauté it until it becomes fragrant and translucent.
• After that, add in the lima beans, smoked turkey, chicken broth, bay leaf, and creole seasoning. Then, stir.
• That being done, place the lid on the pot and reduce the heat to medium-low. Then, cook for 1 ½ – 3 hours until the beans become soft.
• And, if you want to test whether the beans are done, just grab one bean out of the pot and mash it using a fork or spoon.
• That being done, open up the pot and bring out the bay leaf and smoked turkey. Get two forks and use them to shred the turkey and return it to the pot.
• Make sure you taste again and again, and add salt and pepper to taste if required. Now, cool it before you proceed to serve it, then enjoy.

What to Serve with Southern-Style Lima Beans

Succulent, tasty butter beans are a first-rate side dish that you can pair with comfort foods.

You can enjoy these delicious, healthy lima beans alongside baked ham with honey mustard and apples, a platter of slow cooker smoked pulled pork, coca-coca baked ham, or grilled pork chops with Carolina Southern sauce.

They are also mouth-watering as a side with other southern favorites such as Nashville hot chicken, burnt ends brisket, or steak fingers with country gravy.

How To Store Cooked Lima Beans

Well, there’s no need to worry if you happen to have leftovers since you’ve probably made too big of a batch.

This simple recipe makes great leftovers. In my opinion, I think they will taste even better the next day.

They also freeze extremely well. It’s pretty normal to double this recipe in order to freeze the rest.

It even makes life so much easier that way on a weekday when you are extremely tired and do not feel like cooking.

All you’d need to do is take one of them out in the morning, and it would be defrosted by the time you got home.

After that, just reheat it and probably add more seasoning or salt to it, and you are good to go.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can This Recipe Be Made Ahead?

I think the answer to this has pretty much been given above. Well, of course, you can make ahead with this recipe for healthy lima beans.

As previously mentioned, they are likely to taste even more delicious the next day.

However, allow the beans to cool completely after cooking, then place them in an airtight container and store them in the fridge until you are ready to reheat and serve.

How Long Do Butter Beans Last?

If you store your butter beans in a sealed container and place it in the refrigerator. It will last for up to four days.

They also freeze well. Immediately after they have cooled, transfer the butter beans to a tightly sealed freezer-sage zipper bag or container and place them in the freezer.

This way, they will last for up to six months. So, before reheating them in the microwave or on the stovetop, allow them to thaw overnight.

In addition, to get them back to the right fresh consistency, all that might be required is for you to add a splash of water or stock.

How Can I Make This A Vegetarian and Vegan-Friendly Southern Butter Beans Recipe?

This is an extremely simple dish to adapt to strictly plant-based ingredients.

All that is needed is for you to just skip out the turkey leg or wing, add in a couple of tablespoons of plant-based butter, and use a vegetable base instead of chicken.

Are Cooked Lima Beans Gluten-Free?

Yes, they are. Simply ensure that you check your base to make sure that there’s no sneaky hidden gluten in there.

Final Thoughts on Healthy Lima Beans Recipe

Keep in mind that you will only add hours to the cooking time if you do not soak the beans ahead of time.

And, to get rid of any surface dirt, you are to rinse the beans first. Soft beans will take about 2 hours to cook.

Whereas, extremely tender or mushy beans will need a longer cook time.

You can also substitute the turkey for a leftover ham bone, ham hocks, country ham, bacon, or salt pork.

Lastly, frozen lima beans are normally pre-cooked, so they don’t need any soaking or initial preparation.

But before using them, make sure you thaw them. That being said, this concludes this guide on healthy lima beans recipe.