Layered Beans, Yam & Plantain

Just to reiterate, beans are really good for you! They are an excellent source of protein, many minerals and vitamins and most importantly, dietary fibre.

In my opinion you ought to eat 3-4 bean dishes per week. Having a variety of ways to cook and serve them will make them less monotonous and boring, hence I came up with this exciting recipe.

Though this is a really simple recipe, it could be a little tedious to prepare. To make cooking beans faster, please invest in a good pressure cooker, it halves the time it takes to get them all cooked to perfection.

You will also be happy to note that this dish is suitable for freezing so I will encourage you to make a large batch at a time.

Traditionally, beans can be served with boiled yam or fried plantains, so I imagined and rightly concluded that the trio should surely taste great together! You will have to cook the beans, yam and plantain separately  and then layer before serving.

I assure you that if these separate dishes are cooked well, you will be amazed by the flavours and textures you get from this recipe...

Ingredients for the Beans: 3 cups of Nigerian Brown Beans (Oloyin type)  1 large onion (finely chop) 1 jar of Jollof cooking sauce (alternatively use some left over tomato and red pepper sauce or chilli powder. You can also use freshly blended tomatoes, peppers and onions) Salt and sugar to taste 100ml or 2 serving spoons of red palm oil You also need two ripe plantains.

Ingredients for the Yam: 1 small tuber of Puna yam  1 medium onion (finely chop) 1 jar of Jollof cooking sauce (alternatively use some left over tomato and red pepper sauce or chilli powder. You can also use freshly blended tomatoes, peppers and onions) Salt to taste 100ml or 2 serving spoons of red palm oil

What to do:

1. Ensure that the beans have been picked to remove all traces of chaff, stones and other debris. Rinse in fresh water about twice. Pour the beans into a large pressure cooker and add enough water to cook them, about 1 litre (or more as you prefer). Also add the chopped onions and some salt. Cover the pressure cooker and cook beans for about 25 minutes (or until beans become just soft to the touch). Then turn off the heat and carefully open the pressure cooker. Add the Jollof cooking sauce to the beans and return the pressure cooker (un-covered) to the stove and cook under low heat for about 5 minutes. Stir well. Finally add the oil and stir in. taste for salt. Simmer until ready to serve.
2. Simultaneously, peel the yam and rinse well to rid it of any soil from the skin. Cut yam into small chunks and place in another large pot. Add the chopped onions some salt and the Jollof cooking sauce. Cover the yam and allow to cook for about 20 minutes under high heat until yam becomes soft. Then turn the heat down and add the oil. Cook under low hit for another 5 minutes and mash up the yam with a wooden spoon. Mash up the yam and ensure there are no large yam lumps. Continue to simmer until you are ready to serve.
3. Thinly slice the plantain across its width and shallow fry for about 5 minutes. Drain excess oil and set aside until served.

Serving:

In a large dish, spoon some of the cooked beans and spread evenly, then follow with the mashed yam.

Finally layer the fried plantain in a circular manner.

You're done!!!

Serve with a crisp side salad. And may I remind you to watch your portion.

Enjoy!!!