MIXED BEANS STEW

MIXED BEAN STEW

Mixed been stew is a staple food at foods of the Cape.  The mix beans in tins can be turned into a salad, or a curry or a breedie and is also fantastic as a side dish as a braai. But today I going to make it into a stew since it is one of the favorite foods of the cape.

Ingredients:

2 to 3 onion 

half kg shin

2 tins of mixed beans

1 tsp of garlic

1 tsp oreganum

1 tsp mint

1 tsp sweet basil

1 tsp salt

1 tsp white or black pepper

Slice onions and washed the meat and clean off excess fat and sinue. Braise meat with the sliced onions in a medium sized pot until the meat is nicely sheared and the onions golden brown. Add salt, pepper and garlic and add water as needed until the meat is tender. Add the 2 tins of mixed bean and allow it simmer for about 15 mins, add the  oreganum, mint and basil and simmer for a further 15 mins. The aroma will prompt you that the food is done. Cook rice in salt water and when cooked, drain and steam the rice until dry. Serve four and there would be sufficient for a second helping.

COOKED BEEF TONGUE

COOKED BEEF TONGUE

A sandwich is the ideal evening meal especially it you've had a big lunch and its also great for breakfast. The varieties of sandwiches are endless and can vary from a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, to an elaborate T-bone steak with fried chips and salads. Even though this Portuguese bread roll burger below doesn't qualify as a sandwich in the general sense, one could argue that its more appropriately a burger. 

Burgers can be filling and invariably not as healthy and definitely more fattening than a cooked tongue burger. Normally Burgers Joints gives you the choice of a meat or  chicken patti with cheese and salads and considering if you don't want to make it yourself, your choices are limited to McDonalds, Burger King, Steers, Spur and KFC. Greasy, tasteless, nutritionless, bland and looks very unlike the adverts they portray. 

Cooked and skinned ready to be sliced.

Cooked tongues that are pre-corned and sold in a cooking bag available from the  local butcher beats corning it your self. A bagged tongue can be cooked in about 4cm of cold water in a average sized pot until tender.  But if it's not bagged with spices then you have to, cook the washed tongue in a pressure cooker with 4cm of cold water for about half an hour to 40 minters, add salt pepper, bay leaves, peppercorns. When done it should look something like this, once the skin is peeled off. Its best eaten sliced but slice only as needed. Sliced tongue tends to dry out.

This isn't what you think it resembles but I can assure you it's much tastier

Cut a few fairly thick slices, if it cold, heat in a pan or microwave and place on a buttered roll franked by frilly lettuce and tomato, avocado and cucumber, carrot and onion along with a healthy dollop of mayonnaise and you have a sandwich to die for. Tongue hardly has any grease, has no fat, has no bones and can be equated to a very nice spiced beef.  It is far tastier than those fatty patti burgers and much healthier and lighter. 

Four slices of cooked tongue on a bread roll with salads is a meal in itself.

As an open sandwich is looks very appetizing and can be eaten with a knife and  fork. Grated cheese, tomato sauce or atchar are great additive additional condiments for the sandwich connoisseur. As a burger, its a hands on job and a finger liking experience. Its also ideal for school lunches and can be grated for those who doesn't enjoy thickly sliced beef tongue.

A beef tongue burger isn't available anywhere except home made.

A beef tongue roll or burger is not available from any fast food outlet so if you have to desire to have one, you just have to make it yourself.  Its also great on focaccia, on a panini or a filling for a jaffle or snackwich or toast. Tongue is also a delicacy that can be found on the breakfast menu at Weddings.

Sliced tongue, toast and salad

Sliced tongue, toast, salad and coffee.

Slice tongue and spiced beef with rolls and salad in popular for breakfast at weddings.