Black Bean Sauce Stew (Sos Pwa Nwa)

Servings 3

1 ¾ - 2 cups 1 can cooked black beans. Or, 1 cup dry beans soaked overnight. Then discard the water, then place in a pot. Add fresh water (about 1 inch above the beans), and cook until tender – makes 2 cups. (Do not discard the remaining liquid from the cooked beans. It will help to thicken the stew.)
½ cup onions finely chopped
½ cup green Bell pepper chopped
4 garlic cloves chopped (1½ tbsp minced)
5 sprigs of thyme 1 tbsp dry thyme
1 heaping tbsp oregano leaves chopped (½ tbsp dry oregano)
1 heaping tbsp parsley chopped (½ tbsp dry parsley)
2 scallions chopped (optional)
½ cup coconut milk
1 tbsp Soy sauce Tamari sauce or Liquid Aminos
½ tsp lime juice
1 tsp vegetable oil
½ tsp salt or to taste
1 tsp black pepper or to taste

Heat a large skillet or pot over medium heat.
Add oil. This recipe uses less oil to sauté the seasoning. Therefore, to prevent the seasoning from burning during the sautéing process, keep ½ cup of water on hand and add 1 tbsp of water, at a time, to areas where you see the seasoning may stick.
Add onions, ¼ tsp of salt, and stir gently for two minutes, until onions are translucent.
Add Bell pepper and stir for 2 minutes.
Add garlic and stir for 1 minute.
Add the remainder of seasoning - oregano, parsley, thyme, and continue to gently stir
Add ¼ cup of water, stir, cover pot and let simmer for 10 minutes. You may need to add a bit of water after 5 minutes to prevent sticking.
While the seasoning is simmering, add half of the cooked black beans with the liquid from the beans to a blender and blend until smooth. You can also use an Immersion blender.
After the seasoning has simmered for 10 minutes, add the bean sauce, coconut milk, whole beans. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 10 – 15 minutes.
Taste and, if needed, add salt.

Pairing:

Serve with rice, polenta, cou-cou, or ground provision, and vegetables.

Serve with plantains and/or green fig.