There are recipes you plan for, shop for, and approach with some degree of culinary ambition. Then there are the dinners that begin with opening the pantry and staring at its contents until something presents itself.

This was the latter.

I had a can of Great Northern beans. I had a can of kidney beans. There was an onion, some garlic, chicken broth, and the usual collection of spices that makes me feel reasonably confident that something edible can be assembled without leaving the house.

So I started cooking.

“Some of my favorite things lately have started without much of a plan, dinner included.”

What emerged was one of those wonderfully disproportionate food experiences where the effort is very small and the reward is considerably larger. The beans became creamy as they simmered in the broth. Smoked paprika gave everything warmth and depth. Lemon brightened the whole thing at the end, and Parmesan did what Parmesan tends to do, which is make you wonder why you hadn’t added it sooner.

It was easy, inexpensive, filling, and good enough that I immediately knew I’d make it again.

The Two-Can Bean Side Dish

Ingredients:

1 can Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 medium onion, chopped
2–3 cloves garlic, minced
Olive oil
Smoked paprika, to taste (1 tsp is good)
Dried oregano, to taste (1 tsp is good, too)
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Chicken broth, enough to partially cover the beans (about 1/2 cup)
Fresh lemon
Grated Parmesan cheese (1/3 cup – make it gooey)

I don’t think this recipe requires particularly rigid measurements. It’s the sort of dinner that benefits from tasting as you go. If you love smoked paprika, use a little more. If you’re a garlic person, act accordingly. Parmesan quantities are between you and your conscience.

How I Made It

Heat a little olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté until it’s softened and beginning to turn translucent.

Add the garlic and cook briefly, just until fragrant. Garlic can go from perfect to regrettable rather quickly, so don’t wander away.

Drain and rinse both cans of beans, then add them directly to the pan. Stir them through the onions and garlic.

Season with smoked paprika, oregano, salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Give everything a good stir so the beans are coated with the seasonings, then pour in enough chicken broth to give everything some liquid to simmer in without turning it into soup.

Let it simmer gently until the broth has reduced and everything starts to come together. The beans will soften, the liquid will become a little creamier, and what started as two cans from the pantry will begin looking suspiciously like you had a plan all along.

Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Then comes the part that changed the dish for me: squeeze fresh lemon over the beans and add a generous amount of grated Parmesan. Stir everything together and taste again.

That’s it.

An Experiment Worth Repeating

I’ve been experimenting with a lot of things lately, and food has quietly become one of them.

There’s something satisfying about starting without knowing exactly where you’re going. I’ve been doing more of that outside the kitchen, too. I’m exploring places close to home, meeting people I wouldn’t otherwise have met, learning their stories, picking up a camera, and finding interesting corners of the county I’ve lived in for years. At the same time, I’m building a healthcare media business that reaches far beyond my own backyard.

It’s an interesting way to approach life after medicine. I’m following more curiosities simply because I want to know where they lead.

Cooking fits surprisingly well into that.

Sometimes I start with an actual recipe. Other times I look at what I have and wonder what I can make from it. There is considerably less at stake in a pan of beans than in some of the other experiments I’ve taken on, which may be precisely why it’s so much fun.

And because a humble bean dinner apparently deserved a proper ending, I poured myself a single glass of Cabernet.

The bottle was Iron + Sand Cabernet Sauvignon, a California red which isn’t available on Amazon (love Prime), but I’ve linked it to Wine.com. I held it up for the camera because when someone gives me a good recommendation, I feel some responsibility to keep it moving.

The whole combination amused me a little. Two cans of beans that had been sitting in my pantry, lemon, Parmesan, and a glass of Cabernet suddenly made an ordinary evening feel rather put together.

The beans were smoky and creamy, bright from the lemon and salty from the Parmesan. The Cabernet was beside them.

Dinner had started with two cans and an experiment.

I’d say it worked.