Shakalaka - Its Chakalaka !

Chakalaka is a South African spicy vegetarian gravy made with onion,tomatos,peppers and beans. It can be a side dish or a sauce or whatever way you like it. For me it is a side dish to be served with rice/breads and also as a soup in itself. You can have a chakalaka whatever way you like. I have adapted the recipe from here.

Ingredients:
Red Kidney Beans: 1/2 cup  presoaked and cooked

Onion: 1 almost big: chopped finely
Green Bell Pepper: 1 medium size chopped into bite sized pieces
Garlic: 1-2 cloves minced
Fresh Hot Chillies: 1 -2 small chopped /slit lengthwise

Curry Powder: as per taste
Tomato: 1 chopped into cubes
Tomato Paste: 1-2 tbsp

Salt and pepper: as per taste

Preparation:
Cook the beans and keep aside. You can use canned beans or even baked beans in tomato sauce, in which case avoid the tomato and paste.

Heat oil in a deep pan. Add in onion,garlic,fresh chilli  and bell pepper cubes. Cook till the onions are transparent and the raw smell of the peppers disappear stirring occasionally to prevent burning for a few minutes.

Add in the curry powder,saute till the raw smell goes -just about another minute and then add the chopped tomatoes, tomato paste and little salt and pepper. Mix well and cook till the tomatoes turn pulpy and then add the cooked beans along with the water in which it was cooked. Adjust the salt and pepper and cook for another 15-20 on simmer till the flavours blend and the required thickness is reached.

Serve warm with rice/rotis or enjoy as a soup with optional accompaniments.

A simple comforting soup or a hearty side stew. Normally it is served as accompaniment to meilie pap (rice porridge). I loved the stew I had made and found it similar to the several chilis or tomatoey stews I had made earlier.