I would have loved having uploaded this recipe a long time ago, but I had to wait for my travel to Chile to make it and taste it with the authentic flavors of this dish, that is so typical Chilean. This recipe uses a seasonal corn, available during the Chilean summer, besides of the cranberry beans it requires. Here in the United States I can find a similar kind of bean, but I must confess that they don’t really taste exactly the same, but they’re still quite tasty.
I should mention that I was able to make this recipe in Chile thanks to my friend Claudia, Ki as I call her, as she got for me the corn, cranberry beans, squash, and basil. And I also thank Mrs. Teresa, my sister’s maid, since she gave me a hand in the realization of this recipe.

Porotos Granados (cranberry beans stew – Chilean recipe)
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 40 mins
- Total Time: 55 mins
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
- 1 small onion, chopped into squares
- 1 clove of minced garlic
- Salt, paprika, pepper, and cumin to taste
- 1 1/2 kg (3.3 lb) of cranberry beans
- 2 corns
- 1/4 kg (about 1/2 lb) of pumpkin (or squash)
- 8 basil leaves
Instructions
- Thrash the beans (i.e. remove them from their husks), chop the corns, wash and chop the pumpkin into medium-sized cubes.
- In a large pot, cook with enough hot water to cover the beans and chopped pumpkin, add a little salt and about 4 basil leaves. Cook over medium heat for about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile make a stir-fry sauce in a pan with oil, onion chopped in squares, garlic, chopped basil, and the remaining spices. It takes about 7 minutes, more or less.
- Meanwhile add the corn to the mixture of beans, and cook for about 5 more minutes.
- Then add the stir-fry sauce that was prepared, stir well and cook for about 3 more minutes.
- Let it stand and serve with basil on top or with “color”, which is basically red pepper powder with some lard or melted butter.
Muy lindas recetas. Son fáciles de preparar.
★★★★★
Hi,
I am excited to try this recipe. Thank you for posting it. Can you tell me what type of pepper? Green or black?
My mom used to make this with frozen corn. She said the fresh corn was too sweet.
El poroto granado para ser pilco le faltó poroto verde