Whether you call it beans curry or curried beans; Caribbean curried beans is creamy, fragrant and spicy; and it is absolutely delicious. This delicious vegetarian Caribbean curry is the ultimate comfort food and a crowd-pleaser. The richness of coconut milk works well with the spiciness of scotch bonnet and fragrant spices to give some bold flavours.
For this recipe, I used brown beans, which is one of the more commonly foods eaten in in the Nigerian community. If you’re tired of cooking it the same way or just want to try it with different flavours, then you must try this Caribbean curried beans.
I couldn’t find Jamaican curry powder locally and so I used Indian mild curry powder. This is why my beans curry is not as brightly coloured as you would expect. Jamaican curry is heavier in turmeric than the Indian curry powder which gives a brighter yellow colour. Despite the differences, I use both curries interchangeably. I believe the combination of the curry with other added spices determine the final flavour of the dish. In the case of this curried bean – thyme, scotch bonnet and allspice worked very well with the curry to give a distinctive Caribbean flavour.
This beans curry is suitable for vegetarians and vegans; and goes very well with rice, bread or even garri. It is also great on its own.
How to Make Caribbean Curried Beans
I used dried brown beans for this curried beans recipe. I cooked it for 20 mins in the pressure cooker before transferring onto the hob. I tend to cook more beans than I need at a time; and just keep the left over in the freezer for another day. This makes it easy to make beans dishes quickly.
Here are the ingredients you need...
- Nigerian brown beans
- Oil
- Onion
- Garlic
- Mild curry powder
- Allspice
- Scotch bonnet
- Fresh thyme
- Coconut milk
- Salt
Whether you cook your beans in the pot from scratch or use a pressure cooker; once the beans is soft, you don’t need a lot of additional liquid to prepare this recipe. You can also use canned beans for this curried beans recipe. Just drain and rinse the beans; add ½ a cup of water in addition to the coconut milk to allow the beans to soften.
I didn’t add additional vegetables to this dish because I wanted my family to eat it like they would native Nigerian beans porridge. Feel free to add spinach and other greens as well other vegetables for added nutrients.
If you are using fresh thyme sprigs, you'll need to strip the leaves off the stalk before use. Epicurious shows an easy way to do it.
Caribbean Curried Beans Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1½ cup Brown beans raw
- 2 tablespoons Oil
- 1 medium Onion chopped
- 2 cloves Garlic chopped
- 1 tablespoon Curry powder
- 1 teaspoon Allspice
- 2 Scotch bonnet chopped
- 5 sprigs Fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 can Coconut milk
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Cook the beans in your preferred way or according to pack instruction until soft. I cooked in the pressure cooker for 20 mins.
- Heat the oil in a saucepan under medium heat.
- Cook the onion until translucent. Add the garlic and stir for around 30 secs.
- Pour in the curry powder, allspice and scotch bonnet. Stir for another 30 secs.
- Pour in the cooked beans, coconut milk and thyme. Add some salt to taste.
- Cover the pan and allow to simmer under low heat for around 20 mins.
- Remove from heat and serve.
Nutrition
If you liked this recipe, then you must try these tasty recipes with Caribbean flavours.
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