Spicy Brazilian chicken, chorizo and bean stew

Tags

beans, Brazilian, Chicken, chorizo, stew

I have taken some liberties with this recipe. It is based on a traditional Brazilian stew as the base but I have tweaked it a bit here and there. The traditional Feijoada has as many versions as there are cooks, but in Brazil it almost always has black beans and always has a mixture of salted, smoked and fresh meats.  Some versions are a little spicy from the sausages, others much milder. Some people’s feijoada are thick “eat-it-with-a-fork” versions, others, more like a traditional stew. Either way it’s traditional to serve this stew with white rice.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil
6 to 8 chicken pieces (I used skinless thighs and drumsticks)
3 spicy sausages or chorizo cut into slices
6 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 large onions, chopped
2 red peppers, seeded and chopped
250 ml / 1 cup water
400 g / 14 oz can of mixed or black beans
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Small bunch of coriander / cilantro, chopped

Preparation:

In a large pot, heat the oil
Brown the chicken pieces on all sides
Remove the chicken and set aside
Sauté the chorizo, garlic, onions and red peppers for about 3 minutes
Do not allow them to brown
Add the tomato paste, paprika and cayenne pepper
Return the chicken to the pot
Add the water, cover and simmer foe about 30 to 40 minutes
Add the beans and with the lid removed, continue to cook until almost all the liquid has evaporated, stirring occasionally
Add the cilantro
Enjoy!

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Chakalaka

Tags

beans, condiments, onions, rainbow nation, relish, Sauces, South Africa, spicy, tomatoes

 

Born in the townships of South Africa, chakalaka is a simple, spicy dish of onions, tomatoes and beans. It has been a staple for generations of black South Africans and is a required condiment at South African braais, or barbecues.

Don’t think for a minute, though, that there is agreement on what goes into the dish, how it should be served, or as what it should be classified.* Suffice to say that the basic ingredients always include onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, garlic, chillies and curry powder (and almost always baked beans and grated carrot).   As for serving, it can be served hot or cold, depending on whether you are using it as a relish or a more integral part of the meal.  Which brings me to the last dilemma – its classification.  It has variously been called a soup, a vegetable side dish, a relish, a salad, a ketchup, or an integral part of the main meal. It can be served on its own, with a meat stew, on bread, on potatoes, on rice, on boiled samp (crushed dried maize), on pap (a stiff polenta-like porridge), or as a relish on boerewors rolls.

It is possible to buy tinned chakalaka in every supermarket in South Africa (All Gold makes both a mild ‘n spicy and a hot version; and Koo makes mild, spicy and extra hot variations as well as extra hot with beans, one with butternut squash and one with sweetcorn), and almost all South African shops around the world.

Make lots  and freeze what you don’t use.   The flavours improve if it is kept in the fridge overnight and reheated, and then you can use it on almost anything. A rainbow of possibilities.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 50g / 2 oz ginger, finely grated
• 2 green birds eye chillies, deseeded and chopped
• 2 tablespoons mild curry powder
• 1 green pepper, finely chopped
• 1 red pepper, finely chopped
• 1 yellow pepper, finely chopped
• 5 large carrots, grated
• 2 tablespoons tomato purée
• 400g / 14 oz can chopped tomatoes
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only
• 400g / 14 oz can baked beans
• Salt and  freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

Heat the oil and fry the onion until soft and translucent
Add the garlic, chillies and half of the ginger; reserve the other half to add right at the end
Add the curry powder and stir to combine
Add the peppers and cook for another 2 minutes
Add the carrots and stir to make sure they are well combined with the other ingredients and coated in the curry powder
Add  the tomato paste and tomatoes and stir
Cook for 5-10 minutes until the mixture is well combined and slightly thickened
Remove from the heat and add the baked beans, fresh thyme and remaining ginger and stir to combine
Serve hot or cold
Enjoy!

* Cooksister

Sousboontjies / Butter bean salad

Tags

beans, rainbow nation, Salads, side dish, sousboontjies, South Africa, sugar beans, vegetables

Today we have a very quick and easy Afrikaans side dish, Sousboontjies, which literally means beans in sauce.

They are actually sweet and sour beans in sauce. Modern South African “sousboontjies” are made from a red speckled bean known as a sugar beans (lima beans). Hettie Claassens describes the interesting history of this traditional South African dish in her book “Die Geskiedenis van Boerekos”. Sousbone (sweet and sour beans in sauce) was a dish first made by the Romans, who used vinegar, spices and honey. The 13th century Arabs made a similar dish with sweetened mustard, vinegar and raisins. In the 17th century, the Dutch used prune juice and syrup or honey to make their version of sweet and sour beans, which they brought to the Cape of Good Hope when they settled there in 1652. By the 1740’s it had evolved into a salad made with black-eyed beans (swartbekboontjies), butter and vinegar. Today we are doing the version that is most commonly found on South African tables served cold with a braai (BBQ) ideally.

Makes about 750 ml / 3 cups

Ingredients:

500 g / 1 lb dried red speckled beans/ butter beans/ lima beans
Water (to soak and cook the beans)
4 tablespoons sugar
100 ml / 3 1/2 oz red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, very finely chopped
2 teaspoons salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

Soak the beans in cold water overnight
Drain the beans and place in a saucepan
Cover with fresh water and bring to the boil
Cook for about 2 hours on a low simmer until most of the water is absorbed and the beans are tender
Remove about 1/4 of the beans to another dish and lightly mash them
Add the rest to the mashed ones
Add the sugar, vinegar, butter, rosemary, salt and pepper to a small saucepan and melt
Add to the beans and mix lightly
Place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours
Serve well chilled
Enjoy!