Vegetarian Brazilian Feijoada-Black Bean Stew

Brazilian Feijoada is a recipe for black bean stew originally developed by slaves to use lesser cuts of meat. This is a vegan version. Serve this dish with brown rice or quinoa and greens. I made this for my book club meeting yesterday and it was a hit. Instead of adding the habanero hot sauce into the stew, I took the bottle along so that anyone who wanted to add some heat was free to do so.

Ingredients:

2 16 0z cans black beans, rinsed under cold running water

• 1 clove garlic, chopped fine
• 1 can stewed italian tomatoes, chopped
• 1 can (19 oz) black beans
• 3 cups of water
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 carrot, chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 teaspoon orange zest
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 tsp habanero hot sauce (optional)
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano (or 1 teaspoon dried)
• Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• Chopped fresh parsley or cilantro

Directions:

• Heat olive oil in a large, heavy bottomed sauce pan.
• Sauté the onion, carrot, garlic and celery for five minutes, or until the onion is translucent.
• Add the zest, cumin and oregano and cook two minutes.
• Add the beans, water and tomatoes to the vegetable mixture.
• Bring to a boil, lower heat to medium and stir in the tomato paste. Salt & pepper to taste.
• Stir in the hot sauce if using. Add more water to desired consistency, if necessary.
• Reduce heat to low and stir in the parsley.
• Allow to simmer at low heat, partially covered, for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.