Serves 4
I really fell in love with this bean, also known as the turtle bean, when my husband (then boyfriend) and I were in Costa Rica for some time. (Long story short, we came back home married, much to everyone’s surprise:) Their ubiquitous “gallo pinto” is served as a side with everything and it is highly addicting! The versatility of black beans gives them high marks in my kitchen. They hold up well in veggie burgers and yet can be velvety smooth as soup.
Why eat black beans? Well, there’s protein and fiber in a magical combination that supports digestive health, blood sugar regulation and cardiovascular health. Then there are all those antioxidant and anti-inflammatory phytonutrients…just eat them! And if you can, do so regularly!
This particular recipe was in Bon Appetit not too long ago. I deviated from it as usual, but rest assured that whatever variations you bring to the dish will surely be successful. The stars of this show are the beans and the contrast of the apple salsa, so as long as those are full of love and flavor, this one will be a hit with almost everyone! Even kiddies! (Vegetarians – seriously, omitting the chicken will not affect how delish this dish is!)
Pura Vida!
You’ll need: for the rice and beans: 1 C brown rice, soaked in 2C water + 1T lemon juice overnight 1 C dried black beans, soaked overnight (alternatively, you could use 2 cans of organic black beans) 1 1″piece of kombu 1 bay leaf 4-6 C vegetable stock or water 1 large red onion, diced 1 garlic clove, minced 2 t cumin seeds, toasted (optional on the toasting) 1/2 t ground coriander
for the chicken: 1 lb chicken (I like to use thighs and legs)
some fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
sprinkling of ground cumin
for the salsa: 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled and diced 2 T cilantro, chopped (or more if you love it!) 2 scallions, finely chopped juice of 1 lime (or lemon if you don’t have limes) sea salt to taste
To make:
Preheat oven to 350.
1. Cook the rice- Add a pinch of salt and set on high heat until it reaches a boil. Then reduce to simmer and cover. It should take about 40 minutes. (Yes, you are cooking the rice in the same water it soaked in.) 2. Cook the beans- Discard soaking water and rinse beans. Put beans in a pot with water (or stock), kombu and bay leaf over high heat until it reaches a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook until beans are tender. 3. Get the chicken in the oven- Once rinsed and dried, sprinkle with salt (be generous), pepper and some cumin and add lemon juice. (Sometimes I add a touch of olive oil for good measure.) Let roast in the oven until done, about 40 minutes depending on cuts used. 4. In a large saute pan, heat olive oil and add onions. After about 5 minutes, add the garlic, cumin seeds and coriander. Caramelize until tender and slightly browned. 5. When beans are done, add beans to onion mixture with just enough liquid as you would like. Over low heat, let cook to allow the onions to soak the beans with flavor. In the meantime, shred the chicken. 6. To serve- Place rice and beans on plate and top with shredded chicken. Top that with the apple salsa and serve with extra lime wedges. 7. YUM!
P.S. There are ways to make this seemingly involved dinner easier such as using canned beans and buying a rotisserie chicken. But to be honest, it takes me about 20-25 minutes to get everything prepped and cooking. Once it’s on the stove/in the oven, dinner’s pretty much done;)