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Chapea
Red beans with plantain and sausage
Chapea: Dominican red beans with squash, sweet plantain and sausage, then rice cooked in the same pot
Chapea comes from the countryside of the Cibao and the south of the Dominican Republic, where it is cooked for big Sunday lunches and family gatherings: red beans stewed with auyama squash and ripe plantain, smoky pork longaniza or salami, then rice cooked right in the bean broth until it is soft and creamy, somewhere between a moro and a stew. The sweet plantain melts into the pot and gives the rice a gentle sweetness. Dried red kidney beans must be soaked and then boiled hard for 10 minutes before the gentle simmer, to destroy a natural toxin; tinned beans are already safe. The usual mistake is adding the rice to too little liquid, which leaves it hard; it should be swimming at first. Chef's tip: fry the sofrito until it smells sweet and the oil turns red before the beans go in, as that is where chapea gets its depth.
- Total time
- 115 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
- 10 ½ oz dried red kidney beanssoaked overnight
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 9 oz Dominican pork longaniza or salamisliced
- 1 onionchopped
- 1 green pepperchopped
- 4 cloves garliccrushed
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 14 oz pumpkin or auyama squashpeeled, in 3 cm cubes
- 1 ripe plantainyellow with black spots, sliced
- 7 ½ cups water
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- 10 ½ oz long-grain ricerinsed
- 3 tbsp fresh corianderchopped
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Drain the soaked 10 ½ oz dried red kidney beans and put them in a large pot with 7 ½ cups water. Bring to the boil and boil hard for 10 minutes, skimming the foam.
15 minStep 2: Lower the heat, cover and simmer for 45–50 minutes until the beans are soft enough to squash against the side of the pot.
50 minStep 3: Meanwhile heat 2 tbsp vegetable oil in a frying pan and fry 9 oz Dominican pork longaniza or salami for 5 minutes until browned. Add 1 onion, 1 green pepper and 4 cloves garlic and cook for 5 minutes, then stir in 2 tbsp tomato purée and 1 tsp dried oregano for 2 minutes until the oil turns red.
12 minStep 4: Scrape the sausage mixture into the beans. Add 14 oz pumpkin or auyama squash, 1 ripe plantain and 1 ½ tsp salt and simmer for 10 minutes. You need about 1.2 litres of liquid in the pot; top up with water if needed.
10 minStep 5: Stir in 10 ½ oz long-grain rice, bring back to the boil, then cover and cook on a low heat for 20–25 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the rice is soft and the pot is thick and creamy. Pork sausage should be piping hot, 160°F in the centre.
25 minStep 6: Stir through 3 tbsp fresh coriander and rest for 5 minutes before serving.
5 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 560 kcal
- Protein
- 22 g
- Carbs
- 82 g
- Fat
- 16 g
- Fibre
- 11 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does chapea take?
- About 115 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 95 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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