The challenge here was to create a meatless dish while retaining the distinctive smoky quality of feijoada (pronounced “fay-zhwa-duh”), the Brazilian national dish. The answer was to use a smidgen of liquid smoke, a prominent ingredient in commercial barbecue sauces. If you have an aversion to liquid smoke, try adding a chipotle pepper
1 cup black beans, cook and reserve
1-1/4 cups bean cooking liquid
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 large red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 large tomato, cored and diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
1 tablespoon vinegar, rice or red wine
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, leaves (or 1 teaspoon dried)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon bottled liquid smoke (or chipotle chili pepper)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, garnish
Serving Size : 4
Cook beans … Place the beans in plenty of water and cook for 1 hour, until tender. Drain, reserving 1-1/4 cups of the cooking liquid; set aside. (Black beans can bulk to 2.5 times the dry measure.) Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the onion and bell pepper. Saute for about 5 minutes. Add the tomato, garlic, and jalapeno and cook for 4 minutes more. Add the beans, reserved cooking liquid, vinegar, all of the seasonings (except the garnish), and liquid smoke and cook for 30 to 40 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally. The mixture should be thick and chunky. Ladle the feijoada into large bowls and sprinkle with parsley. Serve with the rice. For an impressive presentation, stir in about 1 cup of chopped spinach a few minutes before serving. The verdant spinach balances the dark hue of the molten black beans.
Yield: 4 to 6 servings For 4, each serving provides: 483 Calories — 7 g fat