Borlotti Beans

Bold Bean Co's Queen Borlotti Beans are a deeply satisfying, beautifully creamy bean with a melt-in-the-mouth texture and a savoury, full-bodied depth of flavour that makes them extraordinarily difficult to resist straight from the jar. Grown in the Piedmont region of northern Italy, where the soil, sun, and conditions are specifically suited to drawing out the natural sweetness and earthy richness of the borlotti variety, they are harvested in late August when their flavour peaks, then slowly cooked in fresh water with just a pinch of salt to preserve everything the growing season has developed. Slightly larger than a cannellini bean and with a creamier interior than a firm butter bean, their tender skins and velvety texture place them in a category of their own.

The brand was founded in 2021 by Amelia Christie-Miller after a formative experience eating heirloom jarred beans in Spain revealed just how far conventional British tinned beans had fallen behind. Where most commercial producers cook quickly at high temperatures, Bold Bean Co cooks low and slow, soaks beans and discards the liquid, and adds nothing artificial whatsoever: just beans, water, and salt. The result is a jar that reflects the true quality of the variety and the growing conditions behind it.

Long beloved across Italian kitchens, borlotti beans are the natural choice for pasta e fagioli, absorbing the starchy, brothy cooking liquid into their creamy interior for a dish that needs nothing else. They braise beautifully with courgettes, fennel, and white wine, soak up a porcini mushroom broth with extraordinary ease, and work as a summer sharing plate alongside braised courgettes and torn mozzarella with a drizzle of great olive oil. Naturally high in plant protein, gut-loving fibre, folate, and potassium, and free from any additives or preservatives, these are the borlotti beans that remind you why Italy has been eating them for centuries.