One-Pot Beans and Plantains (Bean and Plantain Pottage) – West African Flavours

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This One-Pot Beans and Plantains recipe with black-eyed beans and palm oil (bean and plantain pottage) is finger-licking West African street food at its best. Recipe suitable for Gluten-Free diets.

blue bowl containing beans and plantains

Hey Folks. Time to intro you to something a little bit more different. More different from the usual Sierra Leone Flavours I hear you ask? Yes – as in introducing you cooking with palm oil. It is a pantry staple for all Sierra Leoneans including myself and it adds a really unique rich flavour to your food.

Why You’ll Love One-Pot Beans and Plantains

This One-Pot Beans and Plantains recipe (bean pottage I hear my Nigerian friends call it) is finger-licking street food at its best – think filling protein from the black-eyed beans, flavour from the palm oil and fish and a little hint of sweetness via the plantains. And if you stuff this mixture into warm bread and it will pretty much fill you up for the entire day.

closeup of west african beans and plantains in a blue bowl

I sooooo remember sitting in my little corner biting into my black-eyed bean and plantain sandwiches, and seeing a few beans escape onto the table.

After I finished my sandwich, I would then pick up every single bean and slowly savour them aka eat my sandwich twice. And would you know it, my eldest is exactly like me.

How to Make One-Pot Beans and Plantains

Time to stop talking and leave you with the recipe for this One-Pot Beans and Plantains recipe and urge you to try something a little bit different.

Here is how to make One-Pot Beans and Plantains. Please do try it and if you do make it, then please do tag #recipesfromapantry on Instagram  or twitter so that I can pop over and have a look. It is really, really awesome for me when you make any one of my recipes. You can also share it on my Facebook page.

Thank you for reading my one pot beans and plantain recipe post. And please come visit again as I continue dreaming up recipes, traditional African recipes, African fusion recipes, Sierra Leone recipes, travel plans and much more for you.

Don't forget to tag #recipesfromapantry on Instagram or Twitter if you try One-Pot Beans and Plantains - West African Flavours! It is really, really awesome for me when you make one of my recipes and I'd love to see it. You can also share it on my Facebook page. Please pin this recipe to Pinterest too! Thank you for reading Recipes from a Pantry.

blue bowl containing beans and plantains
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4.95 from 18 votes

One-Pot Beans and Plantains - West African Flavours

You will love this rich and flavourful recipe.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time1 hour 45 minutes
Total Time1 hour 45 minutes
Course: Main
Cuisine: African
Servings: 6
Calories: 415kcal
Author: Bintu Hardy

Ingredients

  • 400g beans soaked overnight and rinsed
  • 1.125 l water
  • 200 ml palm oil
  • 1 onion finely chopped
  • 3 tbsp dried fish flakes
  • Chopped Scotch bonnet chilli to taste
  • 1 jumbo maggi cube
  • 1 plantain peeled and cut into thin discs
  • A large handful of very finely chopped spinach
  • Salt

Instructions

  • Put beans and water in a pot and bring to the boil. Skim off the layer of foam, reduce heat and simmer for 15 mins.
  • Mix in the palm oil, onion, fish flakes and scotch bonnet chilli and let simmer for about 1.5 hr or until the beans are done to your taste.
  • About 15 mins before the beans are ready stir in the maggi cube and plantain, cover the pot and cook till the plantain is done.
  • Stir in the chopped spinach, adjust seasoning and serve with some rice.
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Notes

Notes - you could use oil instead of palm oil, and other quick wilt greens instead of spinach. If you don't have a maggi cube then please substitute the water with vegetable or chicken stock. Keep an eye on the water when cooking the beans and add a half cup of water at a time if the water dries out.

Nutrition

Calories: 415kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 33g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Sodium: 13mg | Potassium: 360mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 345IU | Vitamin C: 7.1mg | Calcium: 26mg | Iron: 1.9mg
One Pot Beans and Plantains Recipes - Recipes From A Pantry

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59 Comments

  1. Found this recipe (and the rest of your website) from a friend who made this and posted it on fb. Interested in seeing if this works in a slow cooker to make it even easier. This looks delicious. Can’t wait to try this and pretty much everything else on this website! Looking forward to any yuca / kava recipes as well!

  2. 5 stars
    This was an amazing dish. I made a larger batch with a few substitutions and additions .

    Assuming 1cup -110g

    4 cups of beans – soaked overnight ( 2 nights for lack of time)
    3 tablespoons palmnut oil
    3 or 4 slivers of Anchovies blended with scotch bonnet
    Half a small plantain – (was almost going bad)
    1 large sweet potato- the white kind- Murasaki Sweet potatoes you can find at Trader Joe’s
    2 scotch bonnet
    1.5 BOU bouillon
    Shiitake mushrooms
    1 tsp course pink Him. Salt

    I cooked this on med for 1 hr and med-low for another 1.5 hrs until beans was almost tender.

    The tenderness of the sweet potatoes and beans is hearty and so well flavoured by the palm nut oil.

    The heat from the scotch bonnet might be considerably high for most. A half or 1 would do fine. I might try habanero pepper the next time for its flavour.

    No spices added/needed. I omitted onion and garlic and it came out so good still! I simply didn’t know I could enjoy a meal without those two 😀

    Thanks for this wonderful recipe 🙂

  3. 200 ml of Oil ? One-Pot Beans and Plantains (Bean and Plantain Pottage) – West African Flavours
    Is that a misprint?

    I made it with 2 tablespoons of Oil, (and substituted 3.5 oz. smoked herring fillets for the fish flakes) and
    enjoyed the dish.
    Should I have actually used nearly a cup of Oil(200ml)?

  4. This definitely does not work well in the instant pot… It’s more of a soup than what’s pictured. 🙁

  5. 5 stars
    I couldn’t find fish flakes and I thought the green plaintains was an ingredient. It tasted ok. I had it for 3 days. The taste got better. I’m attempting again today (still cannot find fish flakes and I have the correct plantain) I truly love this because it’s simple and filling. Any suggestions on where to find fish flakes?

    1. Asian food market. Also if you can only find green plantains, you can let them ripen. In Seattle it took 2 weeks but a warmer humid climate would ripen in a few days. It’s so good with ripe plantains 🙂

  6. Can you tell me how the palm oil is used? It doesn’t list it as an ingredient. How much as well please. Can’t wait to try this.

  7. How much beans? Start with cooked or dry beans? What type? No beans mentioned in the recipe but they must be called for. TIA.

    1. It’s called for scroll down before the comment section. but a fresh bag of beans will do – soak overbite and proceed with recipe 🙂

  8. 5 stars
    This one pot plantain and beans looks amazing! I always love the unique flavor that red oil adds to any dish! I can eat the whole bowl and would still want more !

  9. My mom has been visiting the past few weeks and she has made this for us three times!! My husband loves it and it’s a childhood favorite of mine.

  10. I love plantains, this hearty dish is a comforting dish on those cold windy nights.

  11. This looks so good! I love that you have plantains in this. I’ve cooked with them a couple of times, but need to try them more often. This is a great recipe to do so! Thanks!