A hearty vegan traybake with butter beans, potatoes and a glossy tomato olive oil sauce inspired by the Middle Eastern classic, fasolia bi zeit.
Estimated reading time: 12 minutes
What is Vegan Fasolia Traybake?
This vegan fasolia traybake is my oven-friendly take on the flavours of fasolia bi zeit, the much-loved Middle Eastern beans in olive oil dish.
Instead of cooking everything gently on the hob, we’re giving it traybake treatment. Potatoes, onions and garlic go into a roasting tray with passata, sundried tomato paste, olive oil, allspice and smoked paprika. The potatoes bake until tender, then butter beans and cherry tomatoes join the party for the final stretch.
The result is a generous, tomatoey, scoopable vegan traybake with creamy butter beans, soft potatoes and a sauce that clings instead of sloshing about.
It’s not a strict traditional fasolia bi zeit recipe. It’s a traybake built from that same lovely family of tomato, beans, garlic and olive oil. And it works beautifully as a full dinner, especially with bread nearby.
What does Fasolia bi Zeit mean?
Fasolia, fasoulia, lubia, lubya and loubieh are all words you’ll come across in different parts of the Middle East and North Africa, usually linked to beans. The exact dish changes depending on region, household, language and the type of bean being used.
You’ll see fasolia bi zeit, fasoulia bi zeit, lubia bi zeit and loubieh bi zeit used for bean dishes cooked with olive oil, often with tomatoes, onion and garlic. “Bi zeit” means “in oil”, and in this context, that oil is usually olive oil.
And no, the olive oil is not just there for the pan. It’s part of the dish.
It gives body to the sauce. It softens the acidity of the tomato. It carries the garlic and spices. It gives the finished dish that glossy, almost silky look you want from a good tomato olive oil sauce.
My own loubieh bi zeit recipe uses green beans in a tomato-based sauce with onion, garlic, olive oil, allspice, hot smoked paprika, lemon, parsley and Aleppo pepper. This fasolia traybake borrows from that same flavour base, but swaps in butter beans and potatoes to make it more of a one-tray main meal.
Serve it as a main dish or as I also love to do: in little dishes as part of a mezze table.
The Recipe
This fasolia traybake uses a two-stage method.
First, the potatoes, onion, garlic and tomato sauce bake covered with foil. This gives the potatoes enough moisture to soften and soak up all that passata, olive oil and spice.
Then the foil comes off, the butter beans and tomatoes go in, and the tray returns to the oven uncovered. This is where the sauce thickens, the edges darken a little, and everything becomes glossy, tomatoey and very spoon-friendly.
The finish is important: lemon juice, parsley, Aleppo pepper and a final drizzle of olive oil.
Don’t skip it. The lemon lifts the sauce, the parsley brings freshness, and the Aleppo pepper gives a warm little nudge without shouting over everything.
Ingredients
Butter Beans (aka Lima Beans)
Butter beans, also known as lima beans, are perfect for this fasolia traybake because they’re large, creamy and gentle. They hold their shape well in the oven but still soften enough to become part of the sauce.
How much butter beans you use will depend on what you have access to. A standard tin of butter beans will weigh 400 g (14 oz), with the drained weight being about 240 g. I’m using a jar that starts at 570 g, with the drained weight being 400 g.
It doesn’t matter too much if you are using more or less. Use 2 cans if you like, giving you a drained weight of 540 g.
Drain the butter beans and rinse very lightly. A little of that starchy liquid clinging to the beans helps the sauce hold on.
You can also use cannellini beans instead, but butter beans give a softer, more generous texture.
Potatoes
I’ve added potatoes to the dish to give it body and turn it into a one-pot meal. Use baby potatoes, salad potatoes or any waxy potatoes that hold their shape. Cut them into small chunks, around 2-3cm, so they cook evenly.
The potatoes absorb moisture as they bake, so the sauce needs enough liquid at the start to cook. This is why the recipe starts covered, then finishes uncovered. Steam first, roast later.
Tomatoes
Passata gives the sauce a smooth base and coats the potatoes well. Cherry tomatoes are optional, but lovely. They soften, wrinkle and release little pockets of sweetness into the tray.
Sundried tomato paste is one of my go-to secret ingredients, as you’ll know. Adds incredible depth and complexity to any tomato based dish. Very helpful. And rather excellent.
Olive Oil
Olive oil is central to fasolia bi zeit and other “bi zeit” dishes. Here, it enriches the tomato sauce, helps the potatoes cook, and gives the finished traybake that glossy look.
And most definitelt extra virgin olive oil. It makes all the difference in the flavour.
Garlic and Onion
Red onion works beautifully here, especially cut into chunky wedges. It softens and sweetens in the oven, and the colour looks lovely against the tomato sauce. But you can also use regular brown onions.
You’ll notice there’s quite a bit of garlic in this recipe, and that’s one of the identifying flavours of fasolia bi zeit.
Spices
Allspice brings warmth and that familiar Middle Eastern depth without taking over. Hot smoked paprika adds colour, warmth and a gentle smoky edge. You could use regular no smoked paprika but the smoked variety just adds that something extra.
If you want the dish milder, use sweet smoked paprika. If you want more heat, add extra Aleppo pepper at the end.
The Finish
Lemon juice, parsley, Aleppo pepper and a final drizzle of olive oil bring the whole tray back to life after baking.
This is the part that makes it taste balanced rather than simply rich. Tomato and olive oil love a little sharpness at the end.
How to Serve Vegan Fasolia Traybake
This vegan fasolia traybake is very happy with bread. It already has potatoes, so you don’t really need a whole lot more in terms of starch, but bread is just perfect to mop up all that incredible sauce.
Serve it with warm flatbread, pita, khobz or any bread sturdy enough to scoop up tomato sauce and soft butter beans. It also works beautifully with rice, couscous, bulgur wheat or freekeh.
For freshness, add a chopped cucumber and tomato salad, pickles, olives or a simple herb salad. If you want a fuller table, serve it with hummus, baba ganoush, fattoush or a tahini sauce.
A lemony tahini drizzle is especially good here. Stir tahini with lemon juice, garlic, salt and cold water until smooth and pourable, then spoon it over individual portions.
If you’re not keeping the whole meal vegan, plain yoghurt or labneh would also be lovely on the side.
How to Store Leftovers
Cool leftovers quickly, then store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheat in the microwave or in a covered ovenproof dish at 180°C/160°C fan (350°F) until hot all the way through. The potatoes would have soaked up most of the sauce, so you’ll need a splash of water to loosen everything up.
If you’re adding quite a bit of water, don’t forget to add a little salt to it too.
You can freeze this fasolia traybake, although the potatoes will soften slightly after defrosting. Not a disaster, just a texture note. Freeze in portions for up to 1 month, then defrost overnight in the fridge before reheating.
Leftovers are also very good at room temperature with bread, cucumber, pickles and a little extra olive oil.
Variations
Add Green Beans
For a closer nod to loubieh bi zeit, add green beans.
Add them when you add the butter beans so they cook through but don’t collapse. You want them tender, not army green and apologetic.
Use Cannellini Beans
Cannellini beans work well if you don’t have butter beans. They’re smaller and softer, so stir them in gently and don’t overbake them.
Add Peppers
Red peppers or long sweet peppers add sweetness and colour. Slice them thickly and add them with the potatoes at the start, so they’ll be meltingly soft when done – that’s the perfect texture for this vegan traybake.
Add Aubergine (Eggplant)
Aubergine would be delicious here. Cut it into chunks and add it with the potatoes. It’ll soften into the tomato olive oil sauce and give the traybake a silkier feel.
You may need a little extra water and olive oil because aubergines do like a drink.
Make it Spicier
Add more Aleppo pepper, chilli flakes or a spoonful of chilli paste if you want extra heat. I’d keep the warmth rounded rather than fiery, but you know your kitchen.
Add Tahini
Tahini is best added after baking, not before. Mix it with lemon juice, salt, garlic and cold water until smooth, then drizzle it over the finished traybake.
FAQs: Vegan Fasolia Traybake
No, this is a fasolia traybake inspired by fasolia bi zeit rather than a traditional stovetop version. It uses the same tomato, bean, garlic and olive oil flavour family, but adapts the method for the oven with potatoes and butter beans.
Fasolia generally refers to beans, although spelling and usage vary across regions and languages. You may also see fasoulia, lubia, lubya and loubieh used for different bean dishes across the Middle East and North Africa.
Bi zeit means “in oil”. In dishes such as fasolia bi zeit, loubieh bi zeit or lubia bi zeit, it usually refers to beans cooked with olive oil, often with tomatoes, onion and garlic.
Not exactly. The words can overlap depending on region and language, but loubieh often refers to green beans, while fasolia is more broadly connected to beans. Loubieh bi zeit is commonly made with green beans in olive oil and tomato sauce. This vegan fasolia traybake uses butter beans and potatoes instead.
Butter beans are creamy, filling and hold their shape well. They make this traybake feel like a proper main meal rather than a side dish. They also work beautifully with tomato, garlic, olive oil and warm spices.
Yes, but cook them first. Soak dried butter beans overnight, then simmer until tender before using them in the traybake. Don’t add dried or partially cooked beans straight to the tray, as they won’t cook properly in the tomato sauce.
Yes. Cannellini beans are a good substitute, though they’re smaller and softer than butter beans. Add them gently so they don’t break up too much.
The tray is covered first so the potatoes can steam and soften in the tomato sauce. Potatoes absorb moisture as they cook, so if you bake everything uncovered from the start, the sauce may reduce before the potatoes are tender.
Add a splash of hot water or vegetable stock, cover the tray again, and return it to the oven until the potatoes are tender. Different potatoes absorb different amounts of liquid, so use the recipe as a guide.
Bake it uncovered for another 5-10 minutes. The sauce should thicken and cling to the potatoes and butter beans.
Yes, the traybake itself is vegan. Keep any sauces or sides vegan too if needed, such as tahini sauce instead of yoghurt or labneh.
Yes. Bake it fully, cool, then refrigerate. Reheat covered until hot all the way through, then finish with fresh lemon juice, parsley, Aleppo pepper and olive oil before serving.
Final Word
And there you go – a vegan fasolia traybake that takes the tomato, garlic, beans and olive oil comfort of fasolia bi zeit and turns it into a full oven dinner.
It’s hearty without being heavy, rich without needing dairy, and deeply scoopable in the way all good tomato-and-olive-oil dishes should be.
The butter beans bring creaminess, the potatoes soak up the sauce, and the final lemon, parsley and Aleppo pepper pull everything back into balance.
Bring bread. Bring a spoon. Ideally both.
You know the drill. If you make it, let me know what you think and tag me on Instagram @azlinbloor.
Lin xx
Vegan Fasolia Traybake Recipe
Ingredients
- 500 g baby potatoes or waxy potatoes
- 1 large onion
- 5 garlic cloves
- 400 g canned butter beans (drained weight – give or take)
- 200 g cherry tomatoes
- 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 250 ml passata
- 2 Tbsp sundried tomato paste
Spices and Seasoning
- 125 ml water
- ¼ tsp allspice
- ½ tsp hot smoked paprika or sweet smoked paprika
- ¼ tsp sugar
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
To Finish
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 small handful parsley chopped
- ¼ tsp Aleppo pepper or chilli flakes
- extra black pepper
Instructions
Prep Work
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/400°F.
- Halve the potatoes. If they're really small, leave them whole.500 g baby potatoes or waxy potatoes
- Slice the onion into large slices.1 large onion
- Finely chop the garlic.5 garlic cloves
- Drain the butter beans. You don’t need to rinse them thoroughly; a little of the starchy liquid clinging to them will help the sauce.400 g canned butter beans
- Halve the cherry tomatoes.200 g cherry tomatoes
- Chop the parsley and set it aside for finishing.1 small handful parsley
- Have the lemon juice, Aleppo pepper and extra olive oil ready for the end.2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 1 Tbsp lemon juice, ¼ tsp Aleppo pepper
Let's get Cooking
- Place the potatoes, onion and garlic in a large roasting tray.
- Add the olive oil, passata, sundried tomato paste, water, allspice, smoked paprika, sugar, salt and black pepper.3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 250 ml passata, 2 Tbsp sundried tomato paste, 125 ml water, ¼ tsp allspice, ½ tsp hot smoked paprika, ¼ tsp sugar, 1 tsp fine sea salt, freshly ground black pepper
- Toss everything well so the potatoes are coated in the sauce. Spread into an even layer.
- Cover the tray tightly with foil and bake for 40 minutes.
Halfway through
- Remove the tray from the oven and carefully lift off the foil. Stir everything gently and check that the potatoes are almost tender. If the tray looks dry and the potatoes still need time, add a splash more hot water.
- Add the drained butter beans and cherry tomatoes. Stir gently so the beans are coated without being crushed.
- Return the tray to the oven, uncovered, and bake for another 20 – 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are fully tender and the sauce has thickened and is bubbling around the edges.
Finish and Serve
- Remove from the oven. Finish with extra olive oil, lemon juice, parsley, Aleppo pepper and more black pepper.Serve as suggesyed in the article above: with bread, couscous, rice, or as part of a mezze spread.extra black pepper
