Red Red Recipe- A hearty tasty and no fuss vegetarian black-eyed peas stewed beans- African Style
Here, in the United States, black- eyed peas are best known, especially in the south, as a good luck and prosperity meal. In Africa, it is an everyday, year round meal, used in all forms- ground, dried, fresh and a good source of protein. And may I add it is very affordable .
If you are unfamiliar with black-eyed beans, they are delicious little white beans with a mild taste and smooth texture- what I like most, is their meaty flavor and texture-they really do have a bite to it, compared to other beans.
Lately, there has been more interest in them and so many home cooks and chefs are making use of these beans transforming them into exquisite meals.
Here is a variation on this rustic yet flavorful use of these beans- known as Red Red. Red Red is a simple tomato stew that is enjoyed widely through out Ghana.
Don’t quote me on this, rumor has that, it’s name is derived from combining red palm oil and tomato sauce. You see, these beans always make everything better for me- especially after a rough week. I make them eat for breakfast with puff puff(one of my all time comfort breakfast) and serve it with fried plantains for lunch. When am on a health kick, I grill or roast plantains.
I so wasn’t on one this weekend, ANYTHING greasy I just had to have.
While I absolutely love smoked meat or fish in my beans; Yes, truly do- most often is more about the flavor these proteins add to the meal rather than the meat itself. I thought it would to a good idea to make this without any smoked meats, which is customary.
However, if you have crayfish (dried shrimp) do include them to make up for the loss of the smoky flavor. A trick I do all the time is to use smoked paprika to add that smoky flavor to my food, when I can’t get a hold of smoked meat.
Believe me, sometimes getting a hold of smoked meats is like searching for a needle in a haystack or paying with an arm and a leg. Ah! I am not willing to shed out that amount of money all the time ! Just for special occasion .
Can’t find or don’t like Black eyed peas? No worries, you could make these with black, red or any other types of beans. Don’t forget to adjust cooking times and flavors. Enjoy!!!
Watch How to Make It
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Red Red (African Stewed Black-eyed peas)
Ingredients
- 4 -14.5 ounce canned beans or 1 pound dried beans
- 1/2 – ¾ cup palm oil or Canola oil
- 1 medium Onions
- 1 Tablespoon ginger
- ½ tablespoon garlic
- 2 Tomatoes
- 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 Tablespoon paprika
- 1/3 cup crayfish optional
- 2 cups – 3 cups stock/ water
- 1-tablespoon bouillon powder vegetarian, chicken (optional)
- 2-3 green onions chopped
- Salt and pepper as needed
- 1 habanero pepper or sub with hot pepper or sauce optional
Instructions
- Rinse dry black-eyed pea beans and pick through and discard any foreign object. (I did not have to do this because I used the package beans,). Add beans to a large pot covering with 3-4 inches of cold water.
- Cover and let sit overnight or 6 to 8 hours
- Drain the soaked beans, rinse, and place the beans in a Dutch oven or pressure cooker. Follow instructions for cooking beans in your pressure cooker. It takes roughly between 8 to 12 minutes to cook. If not using a pressure cook, cook the beans for about 50- 60 mins or until tender
- Drain the cooked beans and set aside
- If using canned beans you should start from here.
- Heat oil (palm and canola) in large saucepan over medium heat until hot. Sauté the onions in the oil for 3-4 minutes, stirring often and scraping any browned bits off the bottom of the pot.
- Add tomatoes, tomatoes paste , ginger, garlic, paprika and bouillon powder/ cubes. Cook while stirring for about 60 seconds,
- Through in the Cray fish and let it simmer, for about 10-15 minutes, add water/ stock if needed to prevent burns. Continue to cook the sauce, stirring occasionally
- Finally add the beans, green onions and the remaining stock/water and bring to a boil and simmer for another 10-15 minutes.
- Adjust for seasonings, and beans consistency with water and serve.
Nutrition Information:
Matt says
I made this today for lunch – it’s delicious and easy to make. Thank you for posting it!
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! Thanks for feedback!
Latoya Foster says
When do I add the tomato paste…making it tom.
ImmaculateBites says
After adding the tomatoes.
Valerie says
This looks so amazing! If you opt to use the crayfish, could you use seafood stock/bouillon instead of veg or chicken? Or do you think it would be too much?
ImmaculateBites says
Thanks! It would be just fine . Go for it . Happy Holidays!!!!
Shelli says
Loved this recipe! It was the first time I have ever made black eyed peas. It was delicious, even my picky 2 year old gobbled down 2 bowls! I did not use any meat. Thank you for posting!!!
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! Glad to hear it worked out well you. Thanks for taking the time to share this with us.
Chantelle says
Soooo simple and yet so much flavour in this dish. Made it twice already and planning my third time already! Thank you for sharing!
ImmaculateBites says
YES! So glad to hear this Chantelle ! Thanks for taking the time to share this with us.
Cyd says
I stumbled upon this website and just tried the Red Red recipe tonight—it was fantastic!! I’m vegetarian, so your recipes open up a whole new culture of meals for me. I skipped the dried shrimps and used smoked paprika, used only a few tablespoons of oil (I had olive oil so used that) and chopped up a zucchini that needed to be used and threw that in with the onions. Delicious!!! I’ll be making this frequently—thank you!
ImmaculateBites says
YESS! Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with me.
Betty says
I am on a weight loss diet. How would the stew taste change if I used less palm oil?
ImmaculateBites says
It does change but not a whole lot- it’s still quite flavorful. Just like you when am on a diet I cut out oil significantly , I start with 3-4 tablespoons . Add more if necessary just enough to get the onions and garlic going.
Mo says
I prepared this dish and it was delicious. I’m still smacking my lips. It was difficult to find palm oil in my community so I used vegetable oil. I had my son get it for me in Baltimore and made it again and it makes a big difference in the flavor. Thank you soooooo much for providing a taste of the Motherland.
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! Yes, Palm oil gives it that distinct flavor that can’t be beat. So glad to hear it worked out well for you. Thanks for taking the time to let me know.
Nilima says
Hi,
Stumbled here searching for something.
But this is very interesting & informative about African food.
This red red is very similar to Indian Lobia curry.
Black eyed peas are called Lobia in India.
I liked Puf-Puf recipe also.
Thanks for introducing me to new food ides.
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! Thanks for sharing Niiima – I just learned something new today.
Sebastian Wahl says
ayo, this is what im talking about, a wonderful african dish i can share with my parents. im assuming the crayfish is dried? eager to serve this with fried sweet (or did u eat it with green) plantains. this is absolutely wonderful. nothing beats that african mix of onion tomato and palm oil
ImmaculateBites says
You’ve got that right . It always takes me back home ! Yes the crayfish is dried and Yes to fried sweet plantains. Green plantains works as well.
nana says
Hi
I am Ghanaian, and we eat red-red all the time. I grew up watching my mother cook this , and its delicious with kele wele or regular fried plantain. Thank you for sharing our wonderful home dish.
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with us.
Eve Tatum says
Today I’m preparing this Red, Red stew for the second time!
This has got to be the best way to serve a very plain legume in the most aromatic way! Definately becoming one of our favorite comfort foods!
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome!! So glad to hear this. Thanks for letting me know.
Joyce says
Want to be sure of two ingredients before making this dish. Is the ginger fresh or powdered? When do you use the habanero pepper?
ImmaculateBites says
It’s fresh ginger . The habanero pepper is added with the onions , garlic and tomatoes or towards last 5 -10 minutes of cooking- If you prefer less heat.
ChiChi says
Red red is a fav of mine. Especially with soft plaintain. Now I have to make some today.:-)
Urban @ Urbanskitchen.com says
I like that and luv Black Eye Peas. There isn’t a single thing on that list that I don’t already have on hand in my kitchen. So I’ll be making it this week. But I might not be able to resist that throwing some fairly large shrimps in before the beans finish cooking.
Your awesome cooking and elegant dishes are a constant variable in my impromptu weekly menu. That’s a good thing as you keep me inspired. You’ll know how it turned out I’m sure.
Urban @ Urbanskitchen.com says
Made the Stewed Back-Eyed Peas and do like it. It was actually much easier than I thought making it with the hard beans, soaking then cooking it etc. I had some Palm oil around a while and was first time ended up using it. I can definitely taste the flavor in the Stew. Used Smoky Paprika also. I’ll definitely make it again using it as a dish by itself, side or take for office lunch. One can definitely keep it vegan if need. But I may add some smoky meat and some Thyme to kick up the flavor to it a bit more. Big thumbs up on this one.
ImmaculateBites says
AWESOME! Thanks for the feedback urban. Happy New Year