Jamaican Rice and Peas (Beans) Recipe

Today's recipe was sent to me by a friend of mine directly from Jamaica. It is a culinary preparation that every self-respecting tourist should try at least once if they go on holiday there.

History and ambiguity

Some may have noticed that although this recipe is called ‘rice and peas’, it actually uses beans. This peculiarity is due to the fact that the recipe originally included the use of peas, which have since been replaced with beans for convenience.

Ingredients

As the taste varies a lot from cook to cook due to the fact that everyone uses different quantities to achieve a certain dominant taste, I have not been told the quantities but I am sure that with some trial and error you can achieve a fairly satisfactory result.

• White or brown rice;
• Red beans (or hot peas);
• Coconut milk;
• Thyme;
• About 4 grams of allspice seeds;
• 1 or 2 sticks of green onion;
• Salt without exaggeration;
• 4 to 6 cloves of garlic;

Preparation

The rice should be bland. Remember that the cooking times for plain rice and brown rice vary. The recipes for preparing this dish that can be found on the internet are very different, some of them adapted to the needs and taste of other countries.

But I rely on my friend because she is originally from there and because, as we all know, there is nothing better than a nice dish prepared in the family in the traditional way.

• Cook the peas or beans by putting them in water together with garlic;
• While cooking, add coconut milk, thyme, green onion (squeeze it to release the juices), allspice seeds and salt, stir to combine the ingredients. It is very important to realise that the amount of coconut milk will change the taste substantially. The more coconut milk you add, the creamier the taste will be. However, my friend advises me not to overdo it because otherwise the dominant flavour will be coconut and that is not what we want;
• If it is necessary, small amounts of water must be added during cooking because the amount of liquid must be sufficient to cook the rice, which is known to absorb to varying degrees;
• At this point, it is time to add the rice; my friend recommends washing it, but the one we usually buy in European shopping centres is already washed and bagged of course. The pot should be closed with the lid on but remember to stir occasionally otherwise the mixture will stick to the pot and there will be no even cooking.
• A few minutes before the rice is ready, foil should be placed on top of the pot instead of the lid so that the rice is steamed. Remember to set the flame well or the foil will explode. This is a trick to make the rice softer, but it is not essential.

Reflections

This concludes our guide on how to prepare rice with peas the Jamaican way. If you have already tried this recipe, please feel free to leave a comment. My endless thanks go to my friend who was very kind in offering me this new and excellent recipe that is so special and exotic to my taste buds.