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Cameroon vegan koki beans with plantains
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Koki beans

This Cameroonian classic is made by grinding black-eyed peas and steaming them with scotch bonnet, red palm oil and spinach leaves.
Course Snack, street food
Cuisine Cameroonian, Central African
Keyword beans, steaming
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Soaking 12 hours
Servings 3 packets

Equipment

  • 1 blender
  • aluminum foil
  • banana leaves or parchment paper

Ingredients

  • 250 mL black-eyed peas
  • 300 mL water
  • ½-1 scotch bonnet
  • 40 mL red palm oil
  • 200 mL spinach, loosely packed
  • 2 tsp vegetable stock powder or ½ cube
  • salt to taste

For packets

  • 3 pcs aluminum foil
  • 3 large pcs of banana leaves or parchment paper

Serving suggestions

  • 2 green plantains

Instructions

Peeling beans

  • If using unpeeled beans, they will need peeling.
  • Soak beans for 10 minutes
  • Transfer beans and plenty of water to a blender. Pulse for a few seconds, just to break the beans apart.
  • Transfer to a large bowl and add more water. The peals should float to the top.
    Skim of the bean peels. You might need to repeat this a few times.

Soaking beans

  • Soak the peeled beans in plenty of water overnight

Make the batter

  • Drain the soaked beans and add them, along with scotch bonnet and water to a blender.
    Don't add all water now, save some to adjust the texture after blending.
    The final texture should be just a little coarse. The batter should be watery.
  • Transfer blended beans to a bowl. Stir in stock powder/cube, red palm oil, and salt to taste.
  • Stir in the spinach leaves. If they are large, you can shred them first.

Steam koki beans

  • Place a piece of aluminum foil in a small bowl. Add a banana leaf or some parchment paper.
  • Pour the batter into the banana leaf or parchment paper. Fold up the sides of the banana leaf/parchment paper and close the aluminum foil around the package to seal it.
  • Keep making packages until you run out of batter.
  • Place a spacer, such as a steamer basket, a small cooking rack, lid of a bamboo steamer, or some aluminum foil in a large pot. Pour in a few cm of water.
  • Place the koki packages on top of the spacer. The packages should not sit in the water.
  • Steam for 60-75 minutes. Refill water as needed

Prepare sides and serve

  • While steaming the koki beans, prepare any side dishes, such as boiled plantain.
  • If boiling plantain: peel and divide into 2-3 parts. Boil in lightly salted water for 15-25 minutes.
  • When the koki bean packages have finished steaming, remove them from the pot.
    Let them cool enough to handle, then open the packages and enjoy with your side of choice.