Humans have been eating beans for thousands of years, but in recent years legumes have had quite the glow up. No longer a boring source of protein and fiber, a pot of beans, often pictured with a Parm rind or a few artfully placed sprigs of thyme, has become emblematic of a chic, cozy-comfy life. These It beans are almost always two things: Dried and brothy.

But beans do not have to start out dried or end up brothy to be good. When prepared correctly, canned beans are just as tasty as the dried ones, and they’re a lot more convenient. And while the starches in beans lend themselves readily to a silky broth, they have another textural gift to offer. When stirred and fried, their smooth skins rupture and toughen, coating the exterior with a starchy slurry that crisps in hot fat.

It’s the reason a bowl of our Fried White Beans with Bacon, Garlic and Spinach from our book Milk Street 365 is so inviting. (Dare I say even more inviting than brothier bowls? ) The exteriors blister, brown and crisp in a combination of fruity olive oil and salty rendered bacon fat, creating a pleasing contrast to the soft, creamy interiors. Garlic, smoked paprika and lemon juice are perfect flavor accents. Watch Milk Street Cooking School Director Rosemary Gill make the dish on Instagram.

How beans are like potatoes

Much like a perfect roasted potato, or batch of cornstarch-coated cauliflower, fried beans owe their texture to starch, namely amylose starch. Amylose is a small, linear molecule that easily settles into orderly, tightly bound clusters, which makes it great for building a hard, crunchy coating. Legume starch granules are 30% (or more) amylose, and you might as well take advantage of it.

After bacon, bloom

But before you can fry any beans you have to fry bacon. You’ll use it as a garnish for the finished dish, but the rendered fat is almost more important than the crispy, meaty bits. Start by adding a little bit of olive oil to the pan. Bacon fries just fine without added fat, but olive oil adds a nice fruity note that complements the richness of the meaty grease. Cook the bacon until crisp and set it aside on paper towels.

Next, you’ll add garlic, smoked paprika, and pepper to the hot fat, which will temper the raw pungency of the garlic and lightly brown it. It will also coax out all of the lovely fat-soluble flavor compounds in your spices, allowing them to bloom to their full potential and infuse the fat.

Dry fully, stir seldom

Now you’re ready for the cannellini beans—two full cans. Rinse them and dry them fully. Leaving them wet will cause the beans to splatter and steam instead of crisp. Once they’re in the pan, leave them alone for a bit. Stir the beans too much or too soon, and they won’t develop the texture you’re looking for—only stir once a minute, and keep them cooking until they're golden-brown and crispy on the outside, at least five minutes.

Finish with spinach (and bacon and lemon)

You could toss any vegetable you like into these savory fried beans, but we use handfuls of baby spinach, which wilt quickly and beautifully. Once the leaves are just wilted, remove the pan from the heat and stir in fresh lemon juice. The acid will brighten and balance the richness of the bacon-fat fried beans and temper any bitterness in the spinach. Season with more salt and pepper if needed, then garnish with the reserved bacon bits.

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Claire Lower

Claire Lower is the Digital Editor for Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street, with over a decade of experience as a food writer and recipe developer. Claire began writing about food (and drinks) during the blogging boom in the late 2000s, eventually leaving her job as a lab technician to pursue writing full-time. After freelancing for publications such as Serious Eats, Yahoo Food, xoJane and Cherry Bombe Magazine, she eventually landed at Lifehacker, where she served as the Senior Food Editor for nearly eight years. Claire lives in Portland, Oregon with a very friendly dog and very mean cat. When not in the kitchen (or at her laptop), you can find her deadlifting at the gym, fly fishing or trying to master figure drawing at her local art studio.