Celebrate Black History Month with this fabulous Fried Plantain and Beans Stew. Here's how you can make it.

Friend Plantain and Beans Stew

Prep time 20 min Cook time 2 hours 30 minutes Serves 3 to 4

Things you need:

6 medium sized plantain

1 onion

1 can (8-oz) of plum or chopped tomatoes

1 cup of sunflower oil
2 fresh Scotch bonnet pepper

2 canned sardines in sunflower oil

2 cups black-eyed beans

Here's how: Cooking the beans

  1. Put two cups of black-eyed beans into a pot with 3 cups of hot water.
  2. Cook the beans on medium heat for 20 minutes. If the water reduces, add more.
  3. Put the beans on low heat and add a teaspoon of bicarbonate soda, stirring until the bubbles have gone down.
  4. Put the beans on medium-low heat for approximately 35 minutes until the beans are tender. Do not add too much water at this stage.
  5. Once the beans are tender, turn off the stove.

Here's how: Beans Stew

  1. Pour 1/2 cup of sunflower oil into a pot and put on medium heat for 1-2 minutes for the oil to heat up.
  2. Dice half an onion and add to the pot once the oil is hot enough.
  3. Blend the canned tomato, 2 Scotch bonnet peppers and the other onion half. Pour into the pot once the onions have browned a bit.
  4. Wait 15-20 minutes for the stew to simmer.
  5. Add two canned sardines (you can also use canned mackerel or tuna) and wait 5 minutes.
  6. Add the pre-cooked beans with the stove on low heat to prevent them from burning.
  7. Add salt and/or powdered chilli according to taste.
  8. Leave the stew to simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Here's how: Plantain (Fried)

  1. Remove the skin of the plantain by cutting both ends of the plantain and creating a slit in the skin and peeling it.
  2. Cut the plantain diagonally into small oval pieces with a thickness of 1/4 inches.
  3. Repeat with the other 5 plantains.
  4. Sprinkle the cut-up plantain with a teaspoon of salt.
  5. Add half a cup of oil to a medium sized frying pan and put it on medium-high heat.
  6. Once the pain is hot enough, fry the plantain, turning after 3 minutes, until both sides are brown.
  7. Place the friend plantain into a colander for the oil to drain.
  8. Serve with the beans stew.

Helpful Tips

Approximately two medium sized plantains serve 1.

You can eat the stew with rice instead of the plantains.

Last updated 2 years ago Read time 1 min