Chakalaka and pap (South African beans and cornmeal)
A spicy, saucy South African relish of peppers, carrots and beans spooned beside soft, creamy cornmeal pap, a hearty braai-night favorite that costs very little to make.
- 40 min total
- 30 min hands-on
- A little more hands-on
- Serves 4
- About $2.16 a serving
- 510 calories
- Good the next day
- Vegan
- Gluten-free
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 1¼ cups cornmeal
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
- 1 tbsp curry powder
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 2 carrots, grated
- 1 can diced tomatoes, not drained
- 1 can vegetarian baked beans
- 1 can butter beans, drained and rinsed
From your pantry
- 4 cups water
- 1½ tsp salt, divided
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
Each serving has about 510 calories, 17 g protein, 93 g carbs and 9 g fat, and costs about $2.16 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No red bell peppers? Yellow bell peppers work.
- No green bell peppers? Yellow bell peppers work.
- No diced tomatoes? Crushed tomatoes work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Bring the water and 1 teaspoon salt in a medium over high heat.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
High heat
Pour in the cornmeal slowly, the whole time, then turn the heat to low and cover.
Whisk. Whisking means beating quickly with a whisk or a fork to blend things together. It smooths out lumps and mixes eggs, oil or sauces evenly.
How you’ll know: It all looks one even color and texture, with no streaks or lumps.
Low heat
Dolly’s tip: A thin stream and a busy whisk is how you avoid lumps.Cook 20 to 25 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes and scraping the bottom, until thick and smooth like soft mashed potatoes.
Low heatTimer: 22 min
Dolly’s tip: Pap bubbles and spits as it thickens. Stir with a long spoon and keep the lid on between stirs.Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large over medium heat and cook the onion 5 minutes, until soft.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Medium heatTimer: 5 min
Stir in the garlic, ginger, curry powder and cayenne and cook 1 minute, .
Fragrant. Fragrant means cooking until you can clearly smell it, usually garlic or spices, often in about 30 seconds. That’s the moment the flavor is ready, just before it can burn.
How you’ll know: You can smell it from a step back, and garlic is pale gold, not brown.
Medium heat
Add the peppers and carrots and cook 5 minutes, stirring, until they start to .
Softened. For vegetables it means cooked until they bend and lose their crunch; for butter, left out until it dents easily. Soft onions taste sweet, and soft butter mixes in smoothly.
How you’ll know: Onions squash easily against the pan with your spoon, and butter dents under a finger without looking greasy.
Medium heatTimer: 5 min
Add the tomatoes with their juice, the baked beans, butter beans and ½ teaspoon salt. 10 to 12 minutes, until thick.
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Medium heatTimer: 11 min
Taste the chakalaka for salt and heat, then serve it spooned beside the pap.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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