A Guide to Italian Beans: Cannellini, Romano, Chick Peas and Kidney

A guide to the beans Italian cooking leans on — cannellini, romano, chick peas and kidney beans — and how to use them, canned or dried.

The beans behind Italian cooking

Beans (fagioli) are a backbone of Italian home cooking — in soups like pasta e fagioli, in salads, and stewed with greens. A handful of types covers almost everything, and they come two ways: canned for convenience, or dried for the best texture and value.

The key types

• Cannellini (white kidney): creamy, mild white bean — the classic Tuscan bean for soups and salads
• Romano (borlotti): nutty and slightly sweet with a tender skin — great in soups and stews
• Chick peas (ceci): firm and nutty — for soups, salads, hummus and pasta
• Red kidney: hearty and meaty — for chili, salads and stews
• Navy and lima: small and creamy, or large and buttery — for soups and sides

Canned vs dried

Canned beans are cooked and ready — drain, rinse and they're in the pot in seconds. Dried beans cost less and hold a firmer, creamier texture, but need soaking and simmering. For a fast weeknight soup, reach for canned; for a pot of beans where texture matters, dried is worth the time. For cooking dried beans step by step, see the bean cooking guide.

How to use them

• Soups: cannellini or romano in minestrone and pasta e fagioli
• Salads: chick peas, kidney and mixed beans with oil, vinegar and herbs
• Dips and spreads: chick pea hummus, or a white bean and roasted pepper spread
• Sides: beans stewed with garlic, tomato and greens
• Pasta: chick peas or beans tossed with short pasta

Tips

• Always drain and rinse canned beans to cut sodium and the tinny taste
• Choose no-salt-added when you want to season everything yourself
• Add a splash of olive oil and a rosemary sprig when warming beans
• Soak dried beans overnight, and don't heavily salt the soaking water

Italian beans, made simple

Stock a can of chick peas and kidney beans for speed, plus dried cannellini and romano for a proper pot of beans, and you can build soups, salads and stews all week. The Unico range covers both — canned beans and dried cannellini, romano and navy.