Marcella Bean
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From heirloom Italian seed, this thin-skinned cannellini is named after Italian cooking hero, Marcella Hazan, who encouraged our growing it. A delicate tribute to a mighty force of nature.
Marcella beans are grown in California from Italian Sorana seedstock. Sorana is a cannellini bean with incredibly thin skin and when cooked properly, an indulgent creamy texture. You can use them in your kitchen as you would any small white, European-style bean, but with an ingredient like this, simple is often better.
The Back Story from Steve:
One day I was checking through our mail orders and I stopped in my tracks. There was an order from someone named Marcella Hazan in Florida. She ordered beans and even my first book, Heirloom Beans. It couldn’t be! My mind raced back to the early 1980s in San Francisco in what was possibly the smallest apartment on Nob Hill. I was young, broke and so happy to be living in the city. Every opportunity, I’d push up my Murphy bed into the wall and have dinner parties. My bibles were Diana Kennedy’s The Cuisines of Mexico, Paula Wolfert’s Couscous and Other Good Food from Morocco and perhaps the book with the most kitchen splatters was Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan. I really think these women taught me to cook more than anyone else.
After the order was sent, Marcella and I became online buddies. In addition to food, I also love music and I’m a huge fan of Italian pop music from the 1960s. Marcella indulged me and I think even got a kick out of my obsessions.
At one point I asked her what beans she missed the most from Italy. I assumed she’d say Lamon, the famous cranberry bean from Veneto, or Zolfino, the delicate, almost gelatinous orbs that come from Tuscany, but she wrote back immediately that she missed Sorana, a cannellini bean I’d never heard of. On a whim, I had the staff go hunting for the seed and through some sleuthing and luck, we found it. I kept Marcella abreast of the growing and she was encouraging. She was really starting to have health issues around this time. I couldn’t wait to send her samples.
Sadly, she died right as we were harvesting them. I was heartbroken and the world lost one of its brightest and most intense lights. How great is it to have affected so many people with your work? I can’t imagine. I was pretty upset about this.
I contacted her husband Victor and told him about the bean and asked what he thought about our marketing it as Marcella, in tribute to her. I knew she was sensitive about lending her name and held my breath. Victor wrote back, “Marcella would get a kick out of your naming the bean after her.” He was encouraging about the project and you can bet the first bag out of the field went straight to him.
So we now are happy to present the Marcella bean. I hope you love it as much as we do.
Cooking Suggestions
From the Rancho Gordo Kitchen
Cooking Instructions
Similar to
Alubia Blanca, Cannellini, Navy, Great Northern
Latin name
Phaseolus vulgaris
Country of origin
USA
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New York Magazine
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Verified Customer Reviews
Delicious!
I used these beans in a White-Bean Parmesan soup from NYT. They had such a delicate, creamy texture and delicious flavor. I cooked them in the instant pot for 40 minutes, de-pressurized and opened the lid. Some were close to done but others had risen to top (not enough liquid?) and needed more time. I stirred and went for another 15 minutes and they all came out great!
Review on 01/01/2019
Delicious & silky!
Amazing white bean. Soft skins and super supple/creamy. To the reviewers who have had trouble with uneven cooking or hard beans after loads of time I'd suggest brining the beans (soak in saltwater) and then when you start cooking add a little baking soda. This raises the pH of the cooking water and helps the skins stay intact throughout long cook times. This is something I learned from a Cooks Illustrated article a few years ago and it completely changed my world for the better.
Review on 21/01/2019
Excellent in Tuscan bean soup
I used a pound of these for a big pot of Tuscan bean soup where the cooking took place in an oven. They cooked beautifully using this method, keeping their shape. They were large, delicate and delicious. I will be ordering more.
Review on 20/02/2019
Tender and Delicous!
Tried the Marcella beans for the first time in a Turkish inspired bean stew dish from 177 Milk Street that specified cannellini beans. Fantastic in this dish, the beans (soaked overnight for bout 12 hours) cooked up perfectly tender with a silky smooth interior and so delicious. Noting some others had trouble with getting these to tender, wanted to share my experience. My husband is Italian, we use a fair amount of cannellini beans and these may be our favs to date. I'm ordering more. Try ...
Review on 06/04/2019
Nice to know the story behind the name
Bought these while visiting your store. They are delicious and easy to cook. Didn’t know, til reading your email, that you named them for Marcella Hazen. A nice legacy, I’d say.
Review on 09/04/2019
