Mharagué ya nadzi

Ingredients

The beans

• 400 gdried red kidney beans
• soaked overnight
• water, for the hard boil

The pot

• 2onions, chopped
• 5garlic cloves, crushed
• 3cm ginger, grated
• 2tomatoes, chopped
• 2 tablespoonsoil
• 1 teaspoonground cumin
• 1 teaspoonground turmeric
• 1green chilli, whole
• salt and black pepper

The coconut

• 400 mlthin coconut milk
• the second pressing
• 400 mlthick coconut milk
• the first pressing

To serve

• plain white rice
• or coconut rice
• grilled fish
• lime wedges

Directions

1. Soak them, drain them, and discard that water. Boil them hard in fresh water for ten minutes. Imported oil costs money and must be shipped. Spoon it off and thin the rest with water. Put the beans in a large bowl of water. Cover them well and leave them overnight.
2. Discard the soaking water entirely. Drain the soaked beans and rinse them. Put them in a pot with fresh water. Bring them up to a hard rolling boil. Boil them hard for ten full minutes. It must be a genuine rolling boil. Let them simmer until nearly tender. Give them about one full hour.
3. Squeeze a bean between your fingers. It should crush with little resistance. Take them off slightly underdone. Fully soft beans collapse in the stew. Drain all of the cooked beans. Keep a little of the cooking water. Heat the oil in a wide heavy pot. Add the chopped onions in to it.
4. Cook them for a good eight minutes. Add the crushed garlic and grated ginger. Cook them for two more full minutes. Add the cumin and the turmeric. Fry them for about thirty seconds.
5. Add the chopped tomatoes to the pot. Cook them down for about six minutes. The tomato should soften and break down. Cook it until it goes quite jammy. Add the drained beans to the pot. Turn them through the base gently. Adding the thin coconut is the next step. Pour in the thin coconut milk. Add the whole green chilli to it.
6. Season it with salt and black pepper. Simmering it takes about thirty minutes. Bring it up to a gentle simmer. Let it simmer for about thirty minutes. Coconut milk splits if boiled hard. Keep it at a bare simmer throughout. Small bubbles should barely break the surface.
7. Pour in the thick coconut milk. Stir it gently through the pot. Let it warm through for five minutes. The thick milk must not boil at all. Take the pot off as soon as it is hot. Judging it takes a careful look.
8. Add reserved bean water if too thick. Simmer it a little longer if too thin. Lift the whole green chilli out. Discard it entirely before serving. Taste it and adjust the salt as needed. Coconut milk needs more salt than expected. Taste it properly right at the end. Serving it is always done hot. Spoon it over plain white rice. Serve grilled fish alongside it. It keeps three days refrigerated.

Technique

• Raw kidney beans contain phytohaemagglutinin, which causes severe sickness if they are undercooked, and low slow heat makes it worse rather than better — partially heated beans are more toxic than raw ones. Soak them, discard that water, then boil them hard in fresh water for ten full minutes at a genuine rolling boil before lowering the heat. Never cook dried kidney beans gently from raw and never in a slow cooker.
• Coconut milk is used instead of oil across Comorian cooking, providing the fat as well as the liquid — a technique shared with the Swahili coast across the channel, where boats have moved between for centuries. Coconut palms grow on all the islands while imported oil has to be shipped and paid for.
• The thin coconut milk cooks the beans over a long gentle simmer and the thick goes in only at the end to warm through, since thick milk splits with long cooking. Take the beans off the boil slightly underdone, since they soften further in the coconut.

Substitutions

• Tinned coconut milk separates the same way: refrigerate the tin unshaken, spoon the set cream off the top and thin the rest with water.
• Coconut rice in place of plain white rice doubles the coconut.

Variations

• The green chilli goes in whole and unpierced for aroma without heat, and is lifted out before serving.
• Coconut milk dulls seasoning, so it needs more salt than expected; taste it right at the end.
• It is better on the second day, once the beans have taken up more of the coconut.

History

Coconut milk replaces oil in most Comorian cooking, a technique shared with the Swahili coast across the channel.

Frequently asked questions

What is Mharagué ya nadzi?

Mharagué ya nadzi is a salad & side from Comoros: red beans stewed slowly in coconut milk, served with rice. Coconut milk replaces oil in most Comorian cooking, a technique shared with the Swahili coast across the channel.

How long does Mharagué ya nadzi take to make?

Mharagué ya nadzi takes 15 minutes plus soaking of preparation and 2 hours of cooking. The recipe makes serves 6. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Mharagué ya nadzi?

Yes, within limits. Tinned coconut milk separates the same way: refrigerate the tin unshaken, spoon the set cream off the top and thin the rest with water. Coconut rice in place of plain white rice doubles the coconut.

What is the most important thing to get right in Mharagué ya nadzi?

Soak them, drain them, and discard that water. Boil them hard in fresh water for ten minutes. Imported oil costs money and must be shipped. Spoon it off and thin the rest with water. Put the beans in a large bowl of water. Cover them well and leave them overnight.