It is cold outside. Frigid, artic, polar. Today, it took me more than 20 minutes to unearth my car from the foot of snow that drifted down on south eastern Michigan. For everyone living in Michigan, or the Midwest generally, I know that we all have similar snow stories. Stay warm and stay safe on these cold snowy days!
On cold days, eating something warm like this Long Green Bean Tomato Stew, is a necessity. Long green beans, the star of this dish, can also be called snake beans, Chinese long beans, and yardlong beans. Also known as lobia, Long Green Bean Tomato Stew is a type of maraqa, the Chaldean term for tomato stews. Maraqas are a staple in Chaldean households. Maraqas follow the same formula: tomato base, protein, and vegetable served over white rice. I have a few different maraqa recipes on the blog, including chicken curry with roasted cauliflower (qarnabeet), tomato okra stew (bomya), and beef potato curry (ka’ree).
Long Green Bean Tomato Stew
Ingredients
- 6 oz tomato paste
- 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
- 2 lbs long green beans, chopped
- 1.5 lbs chuck roast
- 1 tbsp oil
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder for meat
- 1/2 black pepper for meat
- 1/2 salt for meat
- lemon or citric acid
- water
Instructions
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Wash the long green beans. Cut into roughly one inch pieces. Add the chopped beans to a pot and cover with water. Boil on medium to high heat, allowing the beans to cook until tender.
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Place the chopped meat in a pot, and set on medium to high heat. Add garlic powder, salt, and black pepper. Stir. Allow the meat to cook until all of its juices have cooked away. Then, add two cups of water, and reduce heat to medium. Allow meat to cook until all the water has cooked away. Repeat at least once or until meat is tender.
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When the meat is cooked, remove it from the pot and set aside. Heat about 1 tablespoon of oil in the pot on medium heat. Add the onions. Sprinkle with salt. Let the onions cook until they are lightly browned.
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Lower the heat. Add 6 oz tomato paste and chopped garlic. Stir the paste, allowing it to brown, but not burn. Reduce the heat if the paste is starting to burn.
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When the tomato paste is browned, add a cup of water and mix until paste is incorporated. Add another cup of water. Add the cooked beans and meat. Stir. Allow the ingredients to boil together for 10 to 15 minutes. Taste. Add more salt, pepper, lemon, and garlic as desired.
My Ha-Yah-Tee…
[…] beans, curry or cauliflower. You can find a few of these recipes on my blog: cauliflower curry, lobia (long green beans), and ka’ree […]