Coconut Bean Soup

This is a very popular soup found all over the island. It is a mixture of coconut milk, kidney beans and spices. It’s creamy and decadent and sure to be a family favorite.

This soup cooks very quickly, and is a great pantry meal when you find no time to go to the store. If you’re in a hurry, and need this soup fast, or if you just happen to be out of the spices listed, you can use a good curry powder instead, 1/2-1 tbsp should suffice. Start with 1 and go by taste, adding more if you like it stronger.

This soup is great to pack for lunch at the office, and freezes well too!

Coconut Bean Soup

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Course Lunch, Soup, World Recipes

Cuisine Zanzibar

Servings 6

Ingredients

  

• 1 tbsp 1 Tablespoon oil
• 1/2 cup Onions, chopped
• 1/2 cup ½ cup green peppers, chopped
• 1 Minced jalapeno or serrano pepper
• 2-3 cloves Minced garlic
• 1" piece Minced ginger
• 2 tsp Ground turmeric
• 2 tsp Ground cumin
• 1 tsp Ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp Ground cardamom
• 1 Pinch Crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp Pepper
• 1 cup Fresh tomato, seeded and cut into chunks
• 2 cans Kidney beans with liquid (or black-eyed peas)
• 1 can Coconut milk
• 3 cups Water
• 1/2 cup Cooked rice optional
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut Garnish
• Fresh cilantro, toasted almond slices Garnish

Instructions

 

• In a large saucepan, heat the oil and sauté the onions until softened.
• Add peppers, spices, salt, pepper, and tomato, and saute for 2 minutes.
• Add the kidney beans with their liquid, the coconut milk, and water.
• Simmer gently for 10 minutes, Stir in the cooked rice, if using, and heat for about 2 minutes til hot.
• Ladle into bowls. Top each serving with 1 Tablespoon of shredded coconut, cilantro and almonds, serve.

Notes

Serve with cornbread to make it a meal, and give it an American twist! Alternately, instead of mixing in rice, if you like "rice and beans", add a big scoop of hot rice to the bowl, and ladle over the soup. Enjoy!

Keyword beans, coconut, comfort food, vegan, vegetarian