Feijoada is one of the most popular traditional dishes of Cape Verde, the island nation off Africa. Made with various beans, meat, sausage and aromatic spices, this nutritious dish is much loved at family gatherings and festivals in the country.

Because it cooks slowly, the flavours of all the ingredients blend together beautifully. If you want to taste this Cape Verdean dish at home, here is an easy recipe for feijoada.

First, rinse beans that have been soaked in water overnight. Put them in a large pot with plenty of water over a medium flame and simmer until soft. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a separate pan and fry the bacon and pieces of meat until lightly golden brown.

Add chopped onion, garlic and bay leaves to the fried meat and stir-fry until soft. Then add chopped tomatoes and cook until they melt into the spices. Add the meat mixture and chourico sausage to the pot of boiled beans, season with salt and pepper as needed and mix everything well.

Cover the pot and cook on a low to medium heat for about an hour and a half. The beans, meat and sausage will cook together into a thick, rich gravy. Stir from time to time so it does not stick to the bottom. When the gravy reaches the thickness you want, take it off the heat. Feijoada tastes best served hot with white rice.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.