Congolese madesu - beans simmered with tomato and peanut

Ingredients

• 700 g cooked red kidney beans
• 400 g crushed tomatoes
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 pieces yellow onions
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp unsweetened peanut butter
• to taste fresh chili or pili-pili
• 6 tbsp neutral oil
• 250 ml water
• to taste fine salt
• 320 g white rice
• 2 pieces ripe plantains

Method

1. Thinly slice the onion, mince the garlic and cut the plantain into thick rounds; keep each element separate to control the cooking.
2. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven, add the sliced onion and let it melt until it becomes soft, golden around the edges and deeply fragrant.
3. Add the minced garlic and the tomato paste, then stir until the paste darkens slightly and sticks a bit to the bottom without burning.
4. Pour in the crushed tomatoes, season with salt and let reduce until you have a thicker, less acidic sauce with slow, small bubbles on the surface.
5. Add the red kidney beans and a little water, then stir gently so as not to mash them; simmer over low heat until the sauce coats the beans and becomes glossy.
6. Whisk the peanut butter with a ladleful of hot sauce in a bowl, then pour back into the Dutch oven and stir until the sauce is smooth, well-rounded and velvety.
7. Add the chili according to the desired heat level, taste and adjust the salt; continue cooking until the beans are tender but still intact.
8. While the beans simmer, cook the white rice in salted water until the grains are tender and separate, then let it rest covered so it finishes plumping.
9. Pan-fry the plantain rounds in the hot oil until golden, tender in the center and slightly caramelized on the edges.
10. Serve the thick madesu with the white rice and golden plantains, adding a little pili-pili at the table for those who want more fire.

Nutrition

Per serving

Energy

774.1 kcal

Protein

23.33 g

Carbohydrate

111.06 g

Fat

25.92 g

Fibre

15.51 g

Calcium

183.05 mg

Iron

13.23 mg

Magnesium

282.93 mg