Jamaican Stewed Peas

Hi! Foodhedonist's  10 Popular Jamaican Recipes is available for purchase on Amazon.com! It will feature this amazing recipe, along with other popular & delectable delights! 

This is a very tasty Jamaican dish that is relatively easy to make. It is traditionally made with salted pig tails, which can be substituted with fresh beef or oxtail (if you can afford it!). This dish can be converted into a vegetarian meal by bypassing the addition of meat altogether.

[ ]  1 lb kidney beans (red peas)

[ ]  2 cups of coconut milk (one can's worth)

[ ]  1-2 lb of meat, cubed (salted pig tails, fresh beef or ox tail. Ignore if you wish to go vegetarian)

[ ]  1 onion

[ ]  1 green bell pepper

[ ]  2 Scotch Bonnet or habanero peppers, whole

[ ]  1 lb carrots

[ ]   2 stalks of scallions

[ ]  3 medium potatoes, diced

[ ]  6 cloves garlic, diced

[ ]  2-3 teaspoons of cracked allspice grains (approx. 25-30 grains)

[ ]  4 sprigs of thyme

[ ]  black pepper to taste

[ ]  Salt to taste
[ ] Approximately 6-10 cups of water

Directions: 

Rinse beans then bring them to a boil (3 minutes) and let them sit for 1 hour for a quick soak. Otherwise, soak them overnight. 

After soaking the beans, bring to a boil in 2-3 cups of water over a low flame. Boil the beans together with the  with the meat, potatoes, Scotch bonnet peppers, allspice and scallions.

NOTE: If using salted pork tails or salted beef, soak the pork tails or beef overnight in cold water, or boil them in 4 quarts of water for at least 45 minutes to remove the excessive salt content. 

Add the onions and coconut milk when beans have softened (the beans are relatively soft, but still uncooked). This is at the point where the beans are approximately half-cooked.

Make "spinners" (rolled flour and water dumplings) and add to the stew. This can be made by combining 1/2 cup of flour and enough water to bind the flour. The "spinners" should not be too wet nor too dry. They should have the consistency of play dough.

Cut up all other vegetables and set aside. Add vegetables when beans are fully cooked. 

Add flour or corn starch to thicken the stew.

Serve with white rice.

This is when I just added the "spinners." :)

 Finished pot of stew peas