Vegan Hungarian Beans and Potatoes! Packed with protein, fiber, and colorful produce, this Whole Food Plant Based dish not only satisfies hunger but also sustains you for hours, thanks to its satisfying blend of legumes and starch.
This Vegan Hungarian Beans and Potatoes dish is a hearty, wallet-friendly crowd-pleaser that proves plant-based comfort food can be deeply satisfying. Imagine a simmering pot perfumed with warming Hungarian spices—think paprika, caraway, and a kiss of garlic—creating a rich, cozy aroma that fills your kitchen. Whether served with a side of crusty bread or a fluffy scoop of jasmine rice, this recipe is great for weeknight dinners or weekend meal-preps, and it earns bonus points for pantry-friendly ingredients.
Whole Food Plant Based, Vegan, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, no highly processed ingredients and gluten free.
Hi there, Ameera here!
We loved this delicious Hungarian dish—the kind of recipe that feels like a cozy bridge between soup and stew, with a soul-warming charm that keeps you coming back for more. The broth is silky yet hearty, bursting with paprika’s kiss and a chorus of spices that brighten each spoonful. Potatoes absorb all the good flavors, while the beans provide staying power, making every bite feel indulgent without the heaviness.
It’s oh-so-delicious and effortlessly comforting, perfect for chilly evenings or anytime you crave a satisfying plant-based meal. Give this one a try and savor how the flavors bloom with each simmer—your taste buds will thank you.
Tips for Success:
- Flavor Profile: This Vegan Hungarian Beans and Potatoes dish is hearty and delicious. Perfectly seasoned with warming Hungarian spices and herbs, this rich stew-like dish is full of veggies, potatoes, and hearty beans. This Whole Food Plant Based nod will keep you full for hours.
- Consistency: This Hungarian dish has a stew like consistency.
- Meal Prep: This dish is an excellent meal prep recipe that can be made, then divided up into individual portions to be used throughout the week.
- Spices: Feel free to ramp up the spices if you wish to suit your own personal preferences.
- Turnip: We used one medium turnip, approximately ¾ cup cubed. Cube it smaller than the potatoes as turnips tend to be denser than potatoes.
- Turnip Substitutions: The turnip is optional, feel free to replace it with another potato.
- Liquid Smoke: The liquid smoke adds a lovely depth of flavor, mimicking the ham hock or smoked neckbone that is traditional to this recipe.
- Sweet Paprika: We used a traditional sweet paprika; however, this dish is traditionally made with Hungarian paprika which is a much higher quality type of sweet paprika that is typically made in Hungary. It is prized for its rich flavor and bright color. If you have Hungarian paprika, feel free to use it and adjust the amount accordingly. This Hungarian dish is full of bright paprika flavors and typically calls for tablespoons of paprika versus teaspoons as we used. Feel free to experiment with the amount. We felt that 2 teaspoons of regular sweet paprika worked perfectly for us.
- Ground Caraway Seed: We love caraway seed. If you are not a fan, feel free to leave it out. You may need to boost other flavors if you leave it out.
- Dried Crushed Thyme Leaves: If you can’t find dried crushed thyme leaves, you can use ground thyme but use half the amount.
- Navy Beans Substitutions: Feel free to substitute with your favorite beans.
- Carrot/Pure Maple Syrup: Most carrots have an element of sweetness giving the broth a hint of sweetness. During kitchen tests, one kitchen trial needed just a tiny bit of pure maple syrup (1/4 teaspoon) because the carrot used didn’t have much sweetness to it. Feel free to add a hint of maple syrup if needed to suit your personal preferences.
- Baking Soda: Baking soda is often used as a neutralizer for dishes that contain a lot of acidity, typically from tomatoes. We use it in this dish to remove some of the tomato acidity (from the tomato paste and petite diced tomatoes) without losing the tomatoey flavor. When you add it, the mixture may bubble up, then settle down as it neutralizes the acidity. If you prefer that tinny taste that is typically associated with canned tomatoes, feel free to leave it out or only add a pinch. Additionally, the baking soda speeds up the cooking of the potatoes and turnips.
- Amount of Sea Salt: Our family was completely divided over the amount of sea salt needed to properly flavor this soup. For most palates, we felt 2 teaspoons worked well.
- Table Salt: If using table salt, you should use less table salt than the amount listed in the ingredients as sea salt crystals are larger than table salt crystals. Since table salt crystals are very fine, less table salt is required to season a dish. We would suggest starting with about 1/4 to 1/2 the amount of sea salt listed. You can always add more salt but cannot take it away. We recommend using sea salt as it is less refined than table salt.
- Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
Leftovers and Freezing:
Leftovers will generally keep 5 days in the refrigerator. Store in a covered air-tight container.
This dish freezes well.
Pantry Products:
- Vegetable Stock: We use Pacific Organic Low Sodium Vegetable Stock. We love this brand because it is Whole Food Plant Based compliant, as it does not contain MSG, has no oil, and does not contain any highly-processed ingredients. Feel free to use your favorite vegetable broth.
- Liquid Smoke: We used Colgin Natural Hickory Liquid Smoke. Feel free to use your favorite liquid smoke.
- Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
Kitchen Equipment:
- Large stock pot with a lid
If you try comforting dish, we would love to know if you enjoy it as much as we do! Please leave us a review! Post a picture on Facebook or Instagram and tag us! We would love to hear from you.
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Description
This Vegan Hungarian Beans and Potatoes dish is a hearty, wallet-friendly crowd-pleaser that proves plant-based comfort food can be deeply satisfying.
Ingredients
Base Ingredients:
- 1 large yellow onion, fine dice
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 1 medium carrot, diced
- 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
- 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth *
- 2 cups water
- 1 – [ 14.5 oz. can ] petite diced tomatoes
- 2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon hickory flavored liquid smoke *
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda *
Spice/Herb Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons sweet paprika (+/-) *
- ¾ teaspoon dried crushed thyme leaves (+/-) *
- ¼ teaspoon dried ground caraway seed (+/-) *
- ¼ to 2 teaspoons sea salt (+/-)
- Pinch to ¼ teaspoon black pepper (+/-)
- 2 bay leaves
Other Ingredients:
- 3 ½ to 4 cups cubed potatoes, peeled, 1/2-inch cubes
- 1 small turnip, peeled, 1/4-inch cubes (optional) *
- 2 – [ 15.5 oz. cans ] navy beans, drained and rinsed *
Optional Toppings:
- Chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Add all the Spice/Herb Ingredients (except the bay leaves) into a small bowl, mix well, set aside.
- In a large stock pot, sauté the diced onions, red and green bell peppers, and carrots, sauté over medium-high heat for 7 to 9 minutes until they start to become tender. Add a splash of water to prevent sticking/burning if needed.
- Add the minced garlic and tomato paste to the skillet, continue to sauté over medium-high heat, stirring constantly for 1 minute.
- Next add all the remaining Base Ingredients (except the baking soda), the Spice/Herb Mix, stir well, tuck in the bay leaves and bring to a boil. Once boiling add the baking soda, stir well, then add the cubed potatoes and turnips, bring to a rolling boil, then immediately lower to a low-percolating boil.
- Boil with a low-percolating boil for 20 minutes.
- After 20 minutes, stir in the navy beans, simmer for an additional 10 to 20 minutes OR until the potatoes, carrots, and turnips are perfectly tender.
- Once the potatoes, carrots, and turnips are perfectly tender, remove the pot from the heat, cover with a lid, and let sit for 10 minutes undisturbed to allow the flavors to marry. After 10 minutes, then remove and discard the bay leaves.
- Top individual servings with a sprinkle of chopped fresh parsley. Enjoy with crusty bread, flatbread, and/or with a simple side salad.
Notes
Please reference the blog post for Tips for Success, Pantry Items Used, Storage and Freezing, and Kitchen Products Used.
Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
Serving: 6 to 8 (makes 12 cups)
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