Dinawa

Ingredients

Beans

• 500 gdried cowpeas, dinawa
• water, for soaking
• 1.5 litreswater, for cooking
• 1 teaspoonsalt

Leaves

• 400 gcowpea leaves, young and tender
• or 400 g spinach or amaranth leaves
• water, for washing

To cook

• 1onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoonsoil
• 1tomato, chopped
• black pepper
• salt to taste

To serve

• bogobe, sorghum porridge
• or pap, maize porridge
• grilled meat

Directions

1. Rinse the cowpeas and pick out any stones. Cover them with plenty of cold water. Leave them overnight or for eight hours. They swell to about twice their size. Drain and rinse them before cooking. Cowpeas do not carry the lectin risk of kidney beans.
2. Put the drained beans in a large pot. Cover them with fresh cold water. Bring it to a boil and skim the foam. Let them cook for about ninety minutes. Check the water level every half hour. Top it up with hot water if it drops.
3. Add the salt only once the beans are soft. Judging the beans takes a taste. Pick the young leaves from their stems. Discard any thick or woody stalks. Wash them in several changes of cold water. Lift them out rather than pouring the water off.
4. Repeat until the water runs completely clear. Chop them roughly with a knife. Heat the oil in a wide heavy pan. Add the chopped onion to the oil. Cook it for about six minutes until soft.
5. Add the chopped tomato to the pan. Let it break down for four minutes. Add the washed chopped leaves. Stir them through the onion base.
6. Let them cook for about eight minutes. They should be tender but still green. Season them with salt and black pepper. Both are done across Botswana.
7. Drain some liquid off the beans if combining. The relish should be thick rather than soupy. Spoon the relish beside the porridge. Pinch off porridge and use it to scoop. It keeps three days refrigerated.

Technique

• The cowpea, Vigna unguiculata, was domesticated in Africa and tolerates drought far better than most beans, which is why it suits semi-arid Botswana.
• The plant is eaten twice over: young leaves picked through the season as morogo, and the dried beans harvested at the end.
• Cowpeas do not carry the lectin risk that makes red kidney beans need a hard ten minute boil.

Substitutions

• Black-eyed peas are a variety of the same bean and cook the same way.
• Spinach, amaranth or pumpkin leaves stand in for cowpea leaves.

Variations

• Some households serve the beans and leaves separately and others combine them.
• A version cooked with groundnut paste is made in some families.
• Morogo covers a wide range of leafy greens eaten the same way in Botswana.

History

A Setswana field crop eaten twice over, first the young leaves as morogo and later the dried beans.

Frequently asked questions

What is Dinawa?

Dinawa is a salad & side from Botswana: cowpeas boiled soft and served with their leaves as relish. A Setswana field crop eaten twice over, first the young leaves as morogo and later the dried beans.

How long does Dinawa take to make?

Dinawa takes 20 minutes plus soaking of preparation and 1 hour 30 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes serves 6. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Dinawa?

Yes, within limits. Black-eyed peas are a variety of the same bean and cook the same way. Spinach, amaranth or pumpkin leaves stand in for cowpea leaves.

What is the most important thing to get right in Dinawa?

Rinse the cowpeas and pick out any stones. Cover them with plenty of cold water. Leave them overnight or for eight hours. They swell to about twice their size. Drain and rinse them before cooking. Cowpeas do not carry the lectin risk of kidney beans.