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Red Bean (Red Peas) Soup

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Ingredients
  

  • 1 ¾ - 2 cups 1 can cooked kidney beans. But you can just use water as well. Or, use 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 chopped onions
  • ½ cup chopped sweet peppers (Bell, pimento, mini peppers)
  • 4 - 5 large garlic cloves (2 tbsp minced)
  • 5 sprigs of thyme (1 tbsp dry thyme)
  • 1 heaping tbsp freshy chopped oregano leaves (½ tbsp dry oregano)
  • 1 heaping tbsp freshly chopped parsley (½ tbsp dry parsley)
  • 2 scallions chopped
  • 3 culantro (chadon beni) leaves chopped
  • 1 medium tomato
  • 1 diced potato, taro or yam
  • 1 tbsp Soy sauce, Tamari sauce, or Liquid Aminos
  • 1 tsp lime juice
  • 1 tsp vegetable oil
  • 1 tsp salt, or to taste
  • hot pepper or chili flakes to taste
  • 4 pimento berries (optional)
  • Dumpling ingredients below (optional)
  • ½ cup flour
  • 1 tbsp warm water
  • ⅛ tsp salt
  • 1 pinch of baking powder
  • ⅛ tsp brown sugar (optional)

Instructions
 

  • Heat a large skillet or pot over medium heat.
  • Add the 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.
  • And add onions and ¼ tsp of salt, and gently stir for 2 minutes.
  • Add the peppers and stir for 2 minutes.
  • Add garlic and stir for 1 minute.
  • Add tomato paste, soy sauce and tomato, and stir into mixture then add the remainder of seasoning - oregano, parsley, scallions, culantro, thyme and pimento berries.
  • 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.
  • Add cooked beans and 2 cups water mixture that includes the liquid from the cooked beans, or water only. Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes. Check for water level in 20 minutes and stir the pot.
  • Making the dumplings: Mix all the dry ingredients, then add the water a little at a time. Knead for 5 minutes into a soft dough, then let rest for 10 minutes, or until you are almost ready to add to the beans.
  • Add the rest of the pumpkin, carrots and dumplings 5 minutes.
  • Separate the dumpling dough into small balls, or small long pieces. Add the dumplings to the soup and cook for 10 minutes.