Habichuelas Guisadas (Colombian Stewed Green Beans)

No ratings yet

Green beans stewed with potato or green plantain in a broth of tomato, onion and scallion. They are cooked soft rather than crisp, which is how Colombia eats them, and the potato thickens the pot. Serves six.

Prep Time5

Cook Time45

Total Time50

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Colombian

Keyword: green beans

Servings:

Calories: 147kcal

Author: Angela Giraldo

Ingredients

1 lb green beans topped and tailed, cut in half
4 cups water
4 potatoes, or 2 green plantains potato thickens the broth; green plantain makes it heartier and slightly sweet
½ tomato, chopped
1 onion, chopped the round bulb onion
2 scallions, chopped cebolla larga: not the same as the onion above
1 bouillon cube or a cup of the water replaced with stock
A pinch of triguisar or color Colombian seasoning blends; use a pinch of cumin plus turmeric or annatto
Salt, to taste

Instructions

Put the green beans in a medium saucepan with the water, the chopped tomato, the onion, the scallions, the bouillon cube, the triguisar and the salt. Bring to the boil and cook until the beans begin to soften.
Peel the potatoes or green plantains, cut them into cubes and add them to the pot. Cook until they are tender and the broth has thickened.
Take off the heat and serve straight away.

Notes

These are not the crisp green beans of an American side dish. Colombian habichuelas are stewed until soft, with the potato breaking down a little to thicken the broth, and the whole thing is eaten over rice with a spoon. If forty-five minutes sounds long, that is why. A pressure cooker cuts it to about fifteen. Spooning hogao over the top at the end is common and makes it a fuller dish. Triguisar is a Colombian seasoning blend and color is powdered annatto: outside Colombia, a pinch of cumin with turmeric or annatto gets you to the same place.

Nutrition