Haitian Legume
Haitian legumes are sometimes called Haitian legims, dependingon whether you include beans in it or not. Legumes are the same as beans, afterall. Haitian legims mean something a little bit different, though. The termrefers to a tasty Haitian stew that includes a mixture of different vegetableswhich offer an original, rich flavor to each bite. If you include beans andrice in with the legim dish, then you could technically call it Haitianlegumes.  Haitian legim is a nationally recognized cuisine inHaiti. What is fascinating is that Haitians cook legims in a variety ofdifferent ways. As mentioned above, some of them add beans and rice to thestew. But there are also Haitians who use plantains and white rice instead.Sometimes bean puree might get added to really give the stew a distinct flavor. What you need to understand is there are many layers tothis dish. Each layer must be prepared correctly and in proper order. That willgive it a richer flavor. Haitians normally eat Haitian legims for dinner atnighttime. Â
Ingredients
- ½ lb of Eggplant (cut thinly)
- ½ lb of Cabbage (shredded)
- ¼ lb of String Beans (cut in half)
- ½ lb of Carrots (diced)
- 5 oz of Fresh Spinach
- ½ Yellow Bell Pepper (medium sized, chopped)
- 2 Chopped Garlic Cloves
- 2 Whole Garlic Cloves
- 1 Onion (medium-sized, chopped)
- 4 Sprigs of Thyme
- ½ cup of Chopped Parsley
- 3 tbsp of Tomato Paste
- 1 Scotch Bonnet Pepper
- Water
- 2 tsp of Dry Spice (blend)
- 1½ tsp. of Salt
- 3 tbsp of Olive Oil
Instructions
- Put a large pan on a stove and add the olive oil to it.Set the heat to medium-low intensity. Add the chopped onions and sauté themuntil they’re tender. It should take no longer than 5 minutes.
- Change the heat from medium-low to low on the stove. Adddry spice and tomato paste into the chopped onions and mix it all together. Nowadd the chopped garlic cloves into the mixture and stir it all together. Next,add the thyme and parsley to the mixture and stir it around for about 3minutes.
- If the olive oil and juices get absorbed by theingredients, you can add more olive oil if the pan is too dry. Don’t add toomuch. Just a teaspoon should be good enough. The idea is to prevent the garlicand other ingredients from getting burned. If they do get burned, then it willdiminish their flavor.
- Add several different layers of vegetables, starting inthis order: eggplant, whole garlic cloves, onions (use the leftovers), cabbage,spinach, whole scotch bonnet pepper. Pour 1.5 cups of water into the mix.Increase the heat intensity to medium. Cover the pan and let the food cook forup to 40 minutes.
- Once the vegetables are tender, take out the scotchbonnet pepper and throw it away. Use a spoon to mash up the vegetables andblend them together. Don’t make it mushy, though. Put string beans and carrotsinto the pan and mix them together. Leave it to cook for 5 minutes. Add 0.25cups of water if the pan dries out.
- Put bell peppers into the mix. Cover the pan and set theheat intensity to simmer. Let it cook until the liquid is gone, which shouldtake about 10 minutes. Mix everything thoroughly. Â
- If you want to make the dish extra hot, you can addanother scotch bonnet pepper into the mixture and leave it there for 10minutes. Take it out and serve the meal. The dish goes great with boiledplantain and white rice.
Video
Notes
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