Black bean stew is a popular dish in Hispanic cultures, made with black turtle beans, vegetables, spices, and sometimes pork. It can be chunky with a thick broth and is often served with rice and hard-boiled eggs. Variations include adding mango or spiciness, and vegetarians can enjoy it without meat.
Black beans, also known as black turtle beans, are widely popular in Hispanic cultures for use in a variety of dishes, from the stir-fry type that lines burritos to whole ones used to make rice and beans or black bean stew . The latter dish differs from simple black bean soup in the thickness of the broth, as well as the diversity and size of the final ingredients, which usually contain various accompanying vegetables, Latin-centric spice blends, and perhaps even some pork. When black bean soup is chunky, with a thick broth and numerous ingredients, it’s more than likely black bean stew.
As the name suggests, particularly tender black beans from the Phaseolus vulgaris family are a necessary component of black bean stew. Also called frijol negro, poroto negro, or habicheula negra, depending on the dialect, black turtle beans are the heart of a generations-old traditional stew recipe from Cuba. Although it is often considered a vegetarian soup due to a slightly thin broth , this hearty dish is more of a whole-meal stew when you consider the bowls of hard-boiled egg and white rice that are usually served alongside the main bowl.
Many of the ingredients of the Cuban variety are found in black bean stews from other Latino or Creole cultures. In addition to hearty black beans and broth – of vegetables and bean broth, when made vegetarian – this type of stew regularly features various chopped vegetables such as carrots, celery, onion and pepper, and other flavor enhancers such as vinegar lime juice, garlic, cumin, chili powder, bay leaf and coriander. Pork strips or crispy bacon are also regular contributors to many black bean stew recipes, greatly boosting the much lower flavor profile of the beans.
Regional variations include a Brazilian black bean stew with mango slices for added sweetness. As far away as Louisiana and a few other Creole-influenced areas, the stew has taken on a slightly different feel with the ever-present kick of spiciness and rice that is often placed in the bowl with the soup before serving. Common toppings for these and many other versions of this stew are fresh herbs and sour cream.
Although many variations of this dish use meats such as bacon, ham, chorizo, and/or pork to add substance to the stew, vegetarians enjoy the protein kick that comes from black beans alone. According to a vegetarian recipe from The Ethnic Vegetarian, reposted on the Green Chi Cafe website, Creole black bean soup can be made by adding jalapeno, sweet potatoes, coconut milk, chili powder, and thyme, plus all of the above. vegetables and spices.
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