Cannellini Beans cooked in the modern version of the traditional Tuscan Fiasco
Beans in a Flask

In Tuscany for sure we eat a lot of beans cooked in many different ways, that’s why Tuscan people are  known as “bean eaters” . One of the most peculiar and traditional way is Fagioli al Fiasco-Beans Cooked in a Flask .

Traditional Tuscan Green wine Bottle Fiasco

The fiasco is the Tuscan green wine bottle  used to keep the wine cool in summer .The peasant  removed the straw  from around the fiasco bottle and placed it in fireplace on hot ashy embers before going to bed and had freshly cooked beans in the morning.

  • 300g dried “cannellini beans    
  • 5 leaves of sage   
  • 3 cloves of garlic
Ingredients for Fagioli al Fiasco
  • A sprig of Rosemary   
  • 1/4 onion 
  • 3 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 tbsp. coarse salt
White Cannellini Beans

Soak the beans overnight in water with a pinch of salt .

Place the beans in a glass ’fiasco’ and add the Extra Virgin olive oil, sage ,onion, rosemary , cloves of garlic,and salt .Cover with water until the bottle is 3/4 full.

The bottle should be closed with a topper that  allows some of the steam to filter out.  Place the bottle on your gas stove top, using a metal grate under the bottle to prevent the direct flame from coming into contact with the bottle and thus breaking it.

 The water should simmer, do not bring to a rolling boil.

Cannellini Beans cooking in a Flask

Let cook ca.1 hour and a half. Serve the beans, adding some freshly-ground pepper and oil.

Fagioli al Fiasco

The bottle to be used:before people used  the traditional Chianti wine bottles but nowadays in some shops you can find the glass beans  flask, otherwise  look for the Florentine Flask ( borosilicate glass) for 3000 ml.Together with the flask , get the proper topper(glass or cork) to allow some of the hot steam to escape to prevent the bottle from exploding.

The beans to be used :cannellini beans are the most traditional ones but you can use this bottle  for every kind of beans you like.

Beans cooked in the fiasco are delicious  and so much fun  to see them simmering  away on the stove .

Fagioli al Fiasco w.Sage

Italian language:in Italy fiasco is  a typical Tuscan bottle  but it may mean also a complete failure ,like in  other languages.It seems that this use of the  word derives from the fact that years ago the public  pull bottles against low-level comedians to express their disapproval.

Don’t worry the beans cooked in this way are not going to be a fiasco !!!