Brazilian Black Bean Stew makes lots (about 2 litres), freezes well
© llizard aka ejm 2000, 2002

Ingredients Preparation
  1. The day before you are going to make the stew, sort (to remove stones) and wash the black beans (also called turtle beans) well. Soak them in cold water overnight. The next day, remove any beans that are floating. Drain and rinse the beans. Put in a big pot and cover with fresh cold water. DO NOT ADD SALT. Bring to a boil. Simmer 1 hour partially covered. Check to see if beans are the consistancy (in terms of softness) you like. If not, simmer a little longer.

  2. Add corned beef cubes, bay leaf, oregano, garlic, some salt and one chopped onion. Simmer at least 2 more hours.

  3. Take out 1 c. beans and mash into a paste. Return the mashed beans to the pot.

  4. Saute 2 onions in lots of corn oil. Add those with the spices to the pot. Simmer another 1/2 hour or more. Serve over rice. Garnish with coriander leaves.

n.b. When I haven't had corned beef, I have used cubed ham instead and added ground nutmeg and cloves to the stew.

According to The Brilliant Bean by Sally and Martin Stone, most dried beans double in volume and weight after being soaked and cooked. But they say that soybeans and chickpeas can triple and
As a general rule, 1 cup (8oz) of dried beans increases to 2 to 2+1/2 c (1 to 1+1/4 lb) of cooked beans. One cup of dried beans is usually enough to serve four as a side dish.
(1 lb = 453.6 gm)
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