Rice and peas

Ingredients

• Red kidney beans — soaked overnight250 g
• Long-grain rice500 g
• Coconut milk400 ml
• Scotch bonnet1
• Thyme6 sprig
• Spring onions4
• Garlic4 clove
• Allspice berries6
• Saltto taste

Salt and spices grow more slowly than the rest: doubling a dish does not double the pepper.

Weight converts to ounces and volume to cups. Grams of flour are not turned into cups, because that depends on how tightly it is packed.

Method

1. 1

   Boil the soaked beans in a litre and a half of water for an hour, until soft.

   65 min

2. 2

   Add the coconut milk, garlic, spring onion, thyme and allspice and bring it to the boil.

   8 min

3. 3

   Rinse the rice until the water runs clear, add it to the pot and level it with a spoon.

   8 min

4. 4

   Lay the whole scotch bonnet on top, season, and check that the liquid covers the rice by a finger.

   5 min

5. 5

   Cover and cook twenty minutes on a low heat, without lifting the lid once.

   22 min

6. 6

   Take it off the heat and let it stand covered for ten minutes.

   12 min

7. 7

   Remove the chilli and the thyme sprigs, fluff the rice with a fork and serve.

   5 min

About the dish

"Peas" here means red kidney beans or pigeon peas rather than green peas. That is Jamaican usage, and the confusion with garden peas is a standing source of wrong recipes.

The beans are cooked first and the rice then goes into their liquid. It is that dark bean water that stains the rice its characteristic pinkish brown.

The scotch bonnet goes in whole and comes out before serving. It gives a fruity aroma without heat — a burst chilli makes the whole pot inedible.

Worth knowing

• — Never lift the lid. Every opening lets steam out and the top layer of rice stays underdone.
• — Do not throw away the bean liquid. Without it the rice comes out white, and that is no longer rice and peas.
• — Use full-fat tinned coconut milk. A diluted one gives a thin flavour, and it is the fat that makes this rice as satisfying as it is.

Nutrition

Per serving at the base yield, calculated from the ingredients rather than measured in a lab.

Calories

480 kcal

Protein

13 g

Fat

14 g

Carbs

76 g

More from Jamaica

• Jerk chicken — Chicken in a marinade of scotch bonnet and allspice, smoked over pimento wood.
• Ackee and saltfish — Jamaica's national dish: ackee fruit, which looks and behaves like scrambled egg, with soaked salt cod.
• Jamaican patties — Pastries of turmeric-yellow flaky dough with a spiced beef filling.