Bean Escabeche

This was our last Peruvian meal. I had planned it in the hopes of inviting our Paleo diet following neighbors over for dinner but I kinda forgot to invite them over...I think this is Paleo friendly, except for the rice. Okay I just took the time to Google "Paleo Diet" and no, this is not Paleo friendly. I thought you could eat beans when paleo but I guess not. I guess it's a good thing I didn't invite them over.

Ingredients

2 cups canary beans, soaked overnight. These are also known as Peruvian or Mayocoba beans. I used one cup and soaked for six hours.

1 lbs 2 oz smoked pork ribs. I used just under 1.5 because I didn't use the pork jowl.

11 oz pork jowl cut into 3 even sized pieces.

2 tbsps veggie oil

1 onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tbsp Panca chili paste

2 cups Peruvian Style white rice to serve

S&P to taste

For the sauce:

2 red onions, sliced. I didn't have a red onion so I just eliminated this part.

2 yellow peppers, seeded, membrane removed, and thinly sliced

2 tbsps veggie oil

3 garlic cloves, chopped

2 tbsps Panca chili paste

1 tsp honey

2 bay leaves

3 tbsps red wine vinegar

1/2 cup veggie broth. I also ran out of veggie broth so I used chicken stock instead.

Drain the beans and cover with cold water. Add the pork ribs and jowl, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and then simmer for 45 minutes, or until the beans are cooked. Set aside.

Heat the oil and add the onion and garlic; saute until the onion is soft. Add the oregano, chili paste, S&P, and cook until the paste has thickened. Add the beans and the bean cooking liquid, bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for another 45 minutes. I cooked for an additional 20 minutes. You want to cook until the sauce has thickened and reduced.

For the sauce, saute the onion and peppers over high heat for a few seconds. Reduce the heat and add the garlic and chili paste. Cook for 1 minutes, then add the honey, bay leaves, vinegar, and stock. Cook until it has thickened and reduced.

When serving, pour the the sauce over the beans, with the rice on the side. 

This was probably my least favorite meal of the week but not because it wasn't good, it just wasn't as impressive as the others. The meat was extremely tender and the sauce was sweet and tangy but it just didn't blow my mind the way the others did. It was still better than anything we ate during Finish or German week but just not as great as its predecessors.

Like I said in the last post, we will definitely revisit this cuisine. I kinda regret NOT buying this cookbook but thankfully, that's what Amazon is for.