Greek style baked beans, often known as Gigantes or gigandes plaki, uses a “giant” form of lima bean that’s baked with an olive oil-heavy tomato base and topped with garnishes such as feta cheese and parsley.
Since I wanted to keep this recipe in the category of simple dinner ideas, I opted to use a jarred pasta sauce for my tomato base. I used La Regina di San Marzano marinara sauce. I *love* this sauce. The ingredients for the basic marinara are simple, just peeled tomato purée, olive oil, onions, sea salt, sliced garlic, basil, black pepper, and oregano.
Notice how olive oil is the second ingredient on the list. If you didn’t already know, ingredient lists on product labels include the items in order from largest to smallest quantity in the finished product. Also, notice that the calorie count is a bit higher for a 1/2 cup serving than many jarred sauces – this is also due to the heavy-handed olive oil, which makes this sauce simply delicious and -perfect- for recipes when that olive oil flavor should be front and center.
And that includes any Greek recipes! And if you can’t find true giant lima beans at your regular grocery store, don’t worry. Go ahead and use butter beans or whatever kind of lima beans you can find and it’ll be fine.
While prepping this meal is quick and easy, it does need some time to cook properly. You’ll need to soak your beans for at least 6 hours (or overnight), boil for about 35 minutes, and then bake for an hour. So it may not be ideal when you’re strapped for time and getting home late for the evening, but it’s still totally easy.
| Greek Style Baked Lima Beans | | Print |
- 1 lb gigantes or large lima beans, soaked 6+ hours, rinsed, and drained
- 1 large jar (28 - 30oz) marinara sauce * SEE NOTES!
- ½ cup vegetable or chicken broth
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Crumbled feta cheese and/or parsley for garnish
- Place the soaked, rinsed, and drained beans in a large pot and cover with water that reaches about 2 inches above the beans. Bring to a boil and allow to boil for about 35 minutes (the beans will not be totally tender at this point) About halfway through the cooking process, Preheat oven to 350F.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and add the jar of sauce, olive oil (if using, see notes), and broth. Add salt and pepper and taste, adjust as needed. Since all jarred sauce will be different, you can add other seasonings as well such as oregano, thyme, onion/garlic powder etc.
- Pour into a large casserole dish (9x13 works fine) and bake uncovered for about an hour or until beans are nice and tender.
- Serve with crumbled feta and/or parsley.
GIVEAWAY TIME!!
If you want to try out the La Regina di San Marzano sauces for yourself to use in both your Italian AND your Greek recipes, this is a giveaway you’ll love! One randomly-chosen winner will receive:
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Exclusive San Marzano Cooking Apron
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One of each of the following Italian pasta sauces:
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Marinara
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Arrabbiata [spicy]
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Four Cheese
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Use the widget below to enter! Contest ends one week from today!
Save this recipe to your dinner boards! Share on Pinterest using the pretty graphic below. Just hover your mouse over the image and click the button that pops up.
Disclosure: I was provided a sampling of sauces to review and share with you. Giveaway prize pack will be provided by La Regina Di San Marzano. All opinions are my own.
We usually make homemade sauce when we have the time, and are not very happy with the prepared marinara sauce brands that are available in our local market…would love to give this brand a try !
I want to try this sauce because I always love to cook with new things.
I want to try this sauce because it looks so tasty
I want to try this sauce because it looks very tasty!
Oh I love sauce on so many different dishes. I watch my weight so I would like to try to make a cauliflower pizza with this sauce
I want to try this sauce to see how it tastes compared to what i use.
The sauce looks delicious, and I always like trying new (to me) products.
I want to try this sauce because I want to spice up my life ..and my food!
I want to try this because I like making spaghetti.
I want to win this because we love pasta and like trying new sauces.
I would love to try this sauce. The flavors would make my family happy!
I want to try this sauce because I’m always looking for new pasta toppings,
We love trying new international dishes and would love to try some new recipes with this sauce! It looks really gourmet and delicious!
The sauce sounds so delicious!
I would like to try this sauce because my family loves pasta and I am always looking for different ways to cook it. My family and I like new flavors.
Sounds like an upgrade from the stuff we use, so I’d love to try it.
I love Italian food & would love to try these sauces & make a great pasta dish.
trying new sauces with different recipes
I would love to try this because it looks delicious
I want to try because it looks delicious.
I’d love to try this because im a big pasta fan and these look delicious!
It looks delicious, and we eat a lot of pasta.
It sounds amazing and I love me some pasta and sauce!
Why? Because they sound delish and I’d love to add them to my pasta dishes! Thanks and God bless!
I would like to try the different sauces because I have tried making homemade pasta and this would be a quality sauce for the pasta.
I love Italian sauces so this would be great with my next meal.
I would like to try this sauce because I enjoy new flavors and experiences.
I like trying new sauces with different recipes
I heart Italian cuisine!
I’ve had this style of beans at restaurants and have always wanted to try them at home. The flavor and texture combination work great together and it is great as a side. Given it’s uniqueness, tastiness factor and super easy recipe this seems like it would make a great dish to take to a potluck, also.
I would love to try this sauce. I’m tired of the same old boring ones and love trying new healthy ones for my family.
I would love to try the sauces because I never had them before and we love eating pasta here.
THe recipe sound easy and delicious.
I cook with sauces all of the time. I would love to try these out.
I would love to try this sauce, it sounds so authentic and I love making pasta for the family!
I want to try them because they sound delicious, especially the arrabiatta sauce
I would like to try it because I am always looking for new flavors and sauces to try in my cooking. And it looks good!
I love pasta and pasta sauce!
This looks amazing and sweet
I love pasta sauce and finding yummy ways to use it.
Finding new things to try is my contribution to the kitchen…My fiance loves to do the cooking.
I love pasta and trying new things
I love marinara sauce and this sounds like it would be very flavorful.
I love pasta and this sauce sounds like it would be delicious!
I want to try this because it sounds delicious!
I want to try because it looks and sounds so good!!
I want to try it because it looks delicious!
I want to try it because it is made of pure and simple ingredients.
I love pasta and those flavors sound delicious!
I want to try this because pasta is my favorite and this looks absolutely wonderful.
I love Italian dishes and love to try new sauces.
I love making Italian dishes and am looking for new sauces to use
I want to try this sauce because I like that olive oil is the second ingredient. That is hard to find in a bottled sauce.
Because my family loves loves pasta and we like to try new foods all of the time.
I would love to use this in some pasta dishes!
I would love to try this sauce because I cook pasta almost every Sunday & I know my family would love it.
I would like to try the sauce because it looks great!
My husband is Sicilian, I think this product would help me.
I would like to try this because it sounds great and I don’t think we have it around here.
I like trying new sauces
I love a great tasting marinara sauce and would like to try the Arrabbiata!
I haven’t really found a jarred sauce that wows me. Hoping this one will.
We have never had these sauces before and we like to try out new products.
These sauces sound like they would be good. I would like the spicy one.
I would like to win so I could prepare quick delicious meals with it.
It sounds good.
I have an obsession with sauces, and everytime I see a new one, I always want to try it out.
I would love to try this sauce because it sounds delicious and my family would enjoy it.
I love Italian food and cooking. I often make my own sauce but I always love to try new foods and would love the convenience when I can’t cook from scratch.
I am crazy for tomato sauces in general, and I have never tried this brand- I am jazzed that they have a spicy variety too.
I’m teaching my daughter in college how to cook and these sauces would be great for her to create some quick meals with.
I like trying new foods.
I would like to try this sauce because I love trying new sauces
I would love to try the La Regina di San Marzano products because the company has decades of experience and craftmanship to bring the very best tomato products to market. I am most excited to try their spicy Arrabbiata Sauce.
I find it a benefit to try other sauces, especially if I have had a sample to try. There are so many ideas to enhance the flavors of food (without being a chef) and ideas from anyone/anywhere is also nice. It provides a good change to the regular taste of foods for our family. Thanks for this chance to win.
Our family likes trying different brands of sauce, trying to find the best one.
We love pasta but have never tried this brand before….would like to give it a go?
Bc the arribata is spicy and i love spicy stuff
I want to try this sauce because I’m always on the lookout for great pasta sauces for my family.
We love Italian food and these sauces sound great.
I would like to try these because it’s a brand I’m not familiar with and therefore I would like to compare it to the brands I usually use.
I love trying new sauces. The spicy one really interests me.
I want to try this because it sounds delicious
I love pasta, always up for new sauces!
My mouth is watering; want to try this.
I have read you blog with the recipe containing La Regina di San Marzano sauces. I have visited the link that you gave for their website, as well. I did not see any information as to where La Regina di San Marzano sauces can be purchased. Where can I buy them??? Thank you for the opportunity to participate in this giveaway.
this sounds like something I want to try!
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I want to try this sauce because I love to cook Italian food.
This looks delish! I’m a pasta lover!
I would like to win the La Regina di San Marzano sauce,because I believe that I would make excellent Italian dishes with the non-GMO ingredients provided in the La Regina di San Marzano sauce.
I like to try different brands of sauce
This sauce looks yummy!
I am always looking for new ideas. This looks delicious!
I want to try it because I like cooking Italian meals
I would love to find a good tasting sauce to make a faster dinner to prepare. I am always rushed at dinnertime when I get home from work.
To make these lima beans for sure!! ?
I would like to try the sauce so I can use them when I make Greek food.
I want to try this sauce because I love (cooking with) Italian pasta sauces.