Belizean Stew(ed) Beans (the secret ingredient is the Pigtail)

I love stewed beans-called "stew beans" in Belizean Kriol. Everyone eats them in Belize and although the seasonings are a bit different with the traditional Mayan preparation, in any restaurant you will find this version, which uses salted pigtail to add a savory flavour to the already delicious bean gravy. If you want a vegetarian recipe for stew beans which features more Mayan-style flavorings found in some communities in Stann Creek and Toledo Districts check out my earlier post here.

Belizean Stew/ed Beans

Makes 4-5 cups of beans. I usually make double this amount so I have plenty on hand for re-fried beans, bean based soups, bean dip and other fun foods. 

Ingredients:
2 cups of red kidney or black beans (red kidney beans are traditional, coming to Belize first as ballast in ships from New Orleans that arrived to purchase prized Belizean mahogany in the 1800s). 

Water

1 allspice or bay leaf

Whole cumin seed, at least one teaspoon

Oregano, dried or fresh, to taste

Fresh garlic cloves, cut into several pieces, to taste.

One medium or half a large onion, diced.

Coconut oil, at least two tablespoons

Salt-brined Pigtail (fished by hand out of 5 gallon buckets in every grocery store) is the traditional pork flavoring device used in Belizean stew beans. If you don't want any pork product in your beans you can omit it, otherwise, ham hock, a fatty thick cut bacon or some other salty porky item can substitute for the pigtail. This is for flavour and to add something meaty to chew on when chowing down on your hearty plate of stewed beans.

If you do not use a salted pork product in your beans, you will want 1 teaspoon of salt or to taste.

Procedure:

1. Wash the beans to rid them of dust and pick out any debris (in Belize it is not uncommon to find an occasional tiny stone in the beans).

2. Cover the beans with at least twice the amount of water as there is beans. You will most likely have to add more during the cooking process. There are several ways to speed up the cooking process. One is by putting the beans in the water and letting them soak for 8-12 hours. If you work all day, just prep the beans in water before you go to work, then you can cook them in the evening and use them the next day or later that night. You can also soak the beans overnight and cook them the next morning. Otherwise you can put the pot of beans and water on the stove, bring them to a boil, boil hard for ten minutes, then let them soak for several hours. This will also cut down on total cooking time.If you don't want to soak the beans it will take a couple hours to cook them, but this is a great thing to do on a long evening or morning at home while you are working on other things.

3. Cook the beans: add the coconut oil, garlic, cumin seeds, oregano and allspice or bayleaf to the pot with the water and beans. DO NOT add any salt or the salted pork product at this point. It will only cause the skin on the beans to toughen. Then bring to a boil and let cook at a fast simmer/almost boil with the lid on. If the beans threaten to boil over, just crack the lid. The beans will begin to absorb water and some will evaporate so check on them every now and then, add water if needed so they are well covered, and stir to make sure they don't stick to the bottom.

4. After a while pull up a spoon of beans and blow on them. If the skin on the beans peels back when you do so, they are getting soft and its time to season the beans. Add your pork product (or salt) if you are using it and the diced onion. Continue to simmer until the flavors have melded and the beans are completely soft and delicious swimming in their own gravy. Correct the seasonings as needed. Serve over coconut rice with Belizean stew/ed chicken , fried plantain and potato salad or coleslaw for a classic Belizean Sunday meal.