Delicious splashes of autumn colours
here and there…
spiced adzuki bean stew with vibrant green chard
Serves 4
Grounding, warming and hearty. If short on time, replace the ground spices and chilli with a tablespoon of sambar powder. Serve with avocado raytha/greek yoghurt, crunchy green cucumber salad and a bowl of quinoa.
ingredients
2 cups adzuki beans
8 cups water
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
¼ tsp hot chilli flakes (or half a fresh chilli)
1 Tbsp ghee/oil
1 tsp turmeric powder
¼ tsp asafoetida powder
2 cup tomatoes, finely chopped
2 Tbsp tomato paste
2 medium carrots, finely chopped
3 sticks celery, finely chopped
1 cup chard leaves, roughly chopped
½ cup coriander leaves, chopped
1 tsp fine rock salt
freshly ground pepper to taste
1 tsp jaggery
pre-soak
1. Soak aduki beans overnight, or for 24 hours with one change of water. This is for better digestibility.
preparation
2. In a medium saucepan, place the drained beans and 8 cups water, bring to a rapid boil, then reduce to maintain a rapid simmer – simmer until beans are soft – approximately 1 hour.
3. In a small pan, dry roast the cumin, coriander and chilli flakes until there is a lovely aroma (be careful not to burn) – remove from heat and grind in a mortar and pestle.
4. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the ghee, add the asafoetida, turmeric and the ground spices – saute for a few seconds, then add the chopped tomatoes and tomato paste – cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
5. Add the carrots and celery- simmer for 10 minutes.
6. When the beans are soft, drain, add to the tomato mixture with the addition of 1 cup water. (I found if the stew sits for half an hour the beans soak up some of the liquid and the consistency becomes thicker.)
7. Add chard and coriander – stir through for 2 – 5 minutes and season with salt, freshly ground pepper and add jaggery. Remove from heat and serve.
Goodness shared by Stacey
