Ahh, beautiful choice 🤍 El Bulli–style simple bean soup is all about purity: few ingredients, perfect technique, and letting the bean shine. This is very much in the spirit of Ferran Adrià ’s minimalist cuisine, not flashy—almost monastic.
This version is inspired by dishes served at El Bulli staff meals and their philosophy of “maximum flavor, minimum intervention.”
Simple Bean Soup (El Bulli–Inspired)
Ingredients
- 1 cup dried white beans (cannellini or great northern)
- Cold water (for soaking + cooking)
- 1 small onion, peeled and left whole
- 1 clove garlic, lightly crushed
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil (very good quality)
- Salt, to taste (added at the end)
That’s it. No herbs, no stock, no tricks.
Method
- Soak the beans
Soak beans in plenty of cold water 12 hours. Drain. - Cook gently
Place beans in a pot and cover with fresh cold water by 2–3 inches.
Add whole onion and garlic. - Barely simmer
Bring just to a gentle simmer—never a rolling boil.
Skim foam if needed.
Cook 60–90 minutes, until beans are completely tender and creamy inside. - Season properly
Remove onion and garlic.
Add salt only now, tasting carefully. - Finish with olive oil
Stir in olive oil right before serving.
How It’s Served (Very El Bulli)
- Served hot but delicate
- Beans intact, broth lightly cloudy
- Olive oil floats on top
- Sometimes finished with one drop of arbequina olive oil at the table
Optional (Still Authentic) Variations
Used sparingly at El Bulli, often for staff meals:
- A thin slice of toasted bread in the bowl
- A few drops of sherry vinegar
- One slow-cooked bean puréed into the broth for silkiness
Philosophy Behind the Dish
At El Bulli, dishes like this were about:
- Respecting the ingredient
- Understanding texture
- Training the palate
- Proving that luxury can be humble
No garnish needed. The bean is the star.
If you want, I can share:
- the staff-meal version
- a modern AdriĂ twist
- or a Spanish grandmother–style evolution of this soup
