Once I tasted this stew, I was amazed that I'd been clever enough to cook it! Seriously, it's such a surprise when you taste the finished result, you'll feel amazingly clever and maybe a little bit smug. I'm going to get Ryoma to buy me a badge that says 'genius'. The aromas are so mouthwatering, the only real problem with this dish is that you really have to resist eating it while it's still cooking. We served it with some naan bread and it was absolutely scrummy. It will serve two, assuming that you're willing to share... I almost didn't.
Ingredients for the Bean Stew:
14 oz (400 g) tin red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion
1 clove garlic, crushed
14 oz (400 g) tin chopped tomatoes
½ tbsp fresh oregano, chopped
½ tbsp fresh basil, chopped
½ tsp shoyu (Japanese soy sauce)
1 lb (450 g) potatoes, peeled and diced
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Ingredients for the Chilli Sauce:
1 oz (25 g) butter
1 small clove garlic, crushed
1 small onion, grated
¾ tsp chilli powder
1 tbsp cider vinegar
3 fl oz (75 ml) hot vegetable stock (from Marigold Swiss bouillon powder)
pinch of salt
1 tsp tomato purée
1 tbsp fresh coriander, finely chopped
1 tbsp soured cream
Cooking Instructions:
To make the bean stew, put the oil into a medium-sized pan and fry the onion and garlic for about 5 minutes, until soft. Add the tomatoes, oregano, basil, shoyu, potatoes, salt and pepper (see photo below). Cover and simmer on a low heat for 20-30 minutes, by which time the potatoes should have softened. If the stew starts to dry out too quickly, add a little hot water or stock to loosen things up a bit. Next, add the kidney beans to the onion and tomato mixture, then cook on a gentle heat for 5-10 minutes.
Below, photos showing the cooking stages for the sauce (from top left): The onions once softened; after the chilli powder has been added; after the vinegar, stock, salt, tomato purée and coriander have been added; after the sauce has reduced and the soured cream has been stirred in.
To make the chilli sauce, melt the butter in small pan and sauté the garlic and onion for about 5 minutes, until soft. Add the chilli powder and then cook for a further 2 minutes. Throw in the vinegar, stock, salt, tomato purée and coriander and simmer for 5 minutes before stirring in the soured cream.
Serve the bean stew with the sauce handed round separately.
Bon appétit!
Comments