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Kiburu
Kiburu: Chagga mash of green cooking bananas and red beans from the slopes of Kilimanjaro
Chagga farms around Moshi and Marangu grow bananas and beans side by side under the coffee bushes, and kiburu brings them together in one pot: green cooking bananas simmered with red beans and onion, then mashed into a thick, rustic, pinkish mound. It is filling everyday food, mild, starchy and savoury, with whole beans still showing through, and it is eaten with a spoonful of tomato-onion relish, a bowl of greens or a mug of sweet milky chai on the side. Red kidney beans must be boiled hard for at least 10 minutes before simmering, because undercooked kidney beans can make you ill. Chef's tip: rub a little oil on your hands before peeling green bananas; the sticky sap stains skin and knives.
- Total time
- 75 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 7 oz dried red kidney beanssoaked overnight in plenty of cold water
- 8 green cooking bananas (matoke)about 1 kg; peeled and halved
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 onionchopped
- 2 ripe tomatoeschopped
- 1 ¼ tsp salt
- 2 spring onions (optional)sliced
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Drain 7 oz dried red kidney beans, put them in a large pot with 1.5 litres fresh water and boil hard over a high heat for 10 minutes, skimming any foam.
10 minStep 2: Lower the heat, half-cover and simmer until the beans are soft enough to crush easily against the side of the pot.
35 minStep 3: Meanwhile, oil your hands, peel 8 green cooking bananas (matoke) and drop them into a bowl of salted water so they don't darken.
Step 4: Drain the bananas and add them to the beans with 1 ¼ tsp salt. There should be just enough liquid to cover; top up with hot water if needed. Cover and simmer until a knife goes into the bananas with no resistance.
20 minStep 5: While the bananas cook, heat 3 tbsp vegetable oil in a small pan over a medium heat and fry 1 onion until golden. Add 2 ripe tomatoes and cook until soft and jammy.
8 minStep 6: Pour off most of the cooking liquid from the pot, keeping a mugful. Tip in the onion and tomato and mash everything with a potato masher or wooden spoon, adding back liquid until it is a thick, slightly coarse mash with some whole beans.
Step 7: Taste for salt, scatter over 2 spring onions if using, and serve hot.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 420 kcal
- Protein
- 14 g
- Carbs
- 75 g
- Fat
- 11 g
- Fibre
- 15 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does kiburu take?
- About 75 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 60 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of green cooking bananas (matoke)?
- Mango, same weight (in smoothies and shakes).
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
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