Plate 09 of 10

Bruine Bonen met Rijst

Name: Bruine Bonen met Rijst
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 90 min
Total time: 115 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Suriname
Ingredients: 500 g Dried Dutch brown beans, or pinto beans, soaked 8 hours and drained; 250 g Smoked pork belly or slab bacon, in 1 cm cubes; 250 g Salted beef or corned beef brisket, boiled 15 minutes to desalt, in 2.5 cm cubes; 2 L Cold water or unsalted beef broth; 2 medium Yellow onions, finely chopped; 6 cloves Garlic, crushed to a paste; 2 medium Ripe plum tomatoes, seeded and diced; 45 g Double-concentrated tomato paste; 30 g Surinamese celery leaves, finely chopped; 8 whole Allspice berries, lightly cracked; 15 g Granulated cane sugar; 45 g Unsalted butter, to finish; 8 g Fine sea salt; 3 g Freshly ground black pepper; 1 whole Madame Jeanette pepper, unbroken; 500 g Long-grain white rice, steamed, to serve

BB met R, the everyday comfort meal of the whole country. Dutch brown beans soaked overnight and simmered an hour with smoked pork belly, desalted salt beef, a tomato sofrito, allspice and a whole Madame Jeanette, a quarter of the beans crushed against the pot wall into a glossy gravy, mounted with butter and spooned over white rice.

Prep: 25 min
Cook: 1 hr 30 min
Serves: 6
Difficulty: Easy

Researched · Kitchen testing pending

Brown beans stewed with smoked pork and salted beef in a thick gravy, served beside white rice and sliced cucumber.

Bruine bonen met rijst, universally BB met R, is Suriname’s everyday comfort meal across every community. Dutch colonists brought the dried brown bean, and Afro-Surinamese cooks turned it into a deep Creole stew with cured meats, allspice and a tomato sofrito.

The gravy is the thing: beans simmered until creamy with smoked bacon and salted beef, a portion crushed against the pot wall into a thick liaison, scented with allspice, garlic and a whole Madame Jeanette, and spooned over steaming white rice.

Ingredients

500 gDried Dutch brown beans, or pinto beans, soaked 8 hours and drained
250 gSmoked pork belly or slab bacon, in 1 cm cubes
250 gSalted beef or corned beef brisket, boiled 15 minutes to desalt, in 2.5 cm cubes
2 LCold water or unsalted beef broth
2 mediumYellow onions, finely chopped
6 clovesGarlic, crushed to a paste
2 mediumRipe plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
45 gDouble-concentrated tomato paste
30 gSurinamese celery leaves, finely chopped
8 wholeAllspice berries, lightly cracked
15 gGranulated cane sugar
45 gUnsalted butter, to finish
8 gFine sea saltto taste, after the salted meats
3 gFreshly ground black pepper
1 wholeMadame Jeanette pepper, unbroken
500 gLong-grain white rice, steamed, to serve

The bean liaison

Brown beans are up to sixty percent starch inside insoluble cell walls. Soaked and simmered at 95 °C the starch gelatinises. Crushing a quarter of the tender beans against the pot releases amylose and pectin into the liquid, and that alone makes a thick, glossy gravy.

Why the sugar

A tablespoon does not sweeten the dish. It suppresses the sharp malic and citric acids of the tomato so the allspice and smoke come through.

Salt last

Heavy salt or acid before the beans have softened firms their pectin and leaves them hard. Desalt the beef, cook the beans tender, then season.

The five tastes on this plate

Salt is cured beef and smoked belly, rounded with sea salt. Fat is rendered pork and the finishing butter. Acid is tomato and paste, balanced by cane sugar. Heat is garlic, black pepper, allspice and the whole pepper's steam. Umami is cured beef collagen, bacon and the bean fond.

Equipment

6-quart enamelled cast-iron Dutch oven
Small saucepan, for desalting
Ladle
Rice pot with a tight lid

The traditional pot is a heavy cast-aluminium caldero. A pressure cooker can take the beans to tender in about 35 minutes before the uncovered simmer.

Method

Soak the beans8 hr
Soak the beans in cold water 8 hours or overnight. Drain and rinse.
Soak the beans in cold water 8 hours or overnight. Drain and rinse.
Desalt the beef15 min
Boil the cubed salted beef in water 15 minutes. Drain.
Boil the cubed salted beef in water 15 minutes. Drain.
Render and brown10 min
Cook the pork belly in the Dutch oven over medium 6 minutes until the fat renders. Add the desalted beef and brown 4 minutes.
Cook the pork belly in the Dutch oven over medium 6 minutes until the fat renders. Add the desalted beef and brown 4 minutes.
Sauté the sofrito6 min
Add the onion and garlic to the fat and sauté 3 minutes until translucent. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar and cracked allspice and cook 3 minutes until the oil separates.
Add the onion and garlic to the fat and sauté 3 minutes until translucent. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar and cracked allspice and cook 3 minutes until the oil separates.
Simmer the beans1 hr 15 min
Add the beans and 2 litres water. Bring to a rolling boil and skim. Float the whole Madame Jeanette, reduce to low, cover, and simmer 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes until the beans are soft and creamy.
Add the beans and 2 litres water. Bring to a rolling boil and skim. Float the whole Madame Jeanette, reduce to low, cover, and simmer 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes until the beans are soft and creamy.
Make the liaison3 min
Lift the pepper out. With the back of a ladle, crush about a quarter of the beans against the pot wall and stir hard to thicken.
Lift the pepper out. With the back of a ladle, crush about a quarter of the beans against the pot wall and stir hard to thicken.
Mount with butter and finish12 min
Stir in the butter, celery leaves, black pepper and salt to taste. Simmer uncovered over medium-low 10 to 12 minutes until the gravy is thick and glossy and coats a spoon.
Stir in the butter, celery leaves, black pepper and salt to taste. Simmer uncovered over medium-low 10 to 12 minutes until the gravy is thick and glossy and coats a spoon.
Serve
Fluff hot rice onto wide plates and ladle the beans and meats over it, with fried plantain and pickled cucumber.
Fluff hot rice onto wide plates and ladle the beans and meats over it, with fried plantain and pickled cucumber.
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Sensory cues of doneness
- Visual: a thick, glossy mahogany-brown stew of whole soft beans and tender meat cascading over snowy rice.
- Auditory: a gentle, rhythmic bubble as the gravy thickens.
- Olfactory: sweet earthy beans, wood smoke, caramelised onion, allspice and celery leaf.
Look for thick glossy mahogany gravy, whole soft beans and tender meat over white rice. Expect gentle rhythmic bubbling as the gravy thickens and aromas of earthy beans, smoke, sweet onion, allspice and celery.

Troubleshooting

Hard beans after an hour.: Salt or acidic paste went in before they softened, or they were not soaked. Soak fully and season only when tender.
Thin gravy.: No beans were crushed. Mash a quarter against the wall and simmer uncovered ten minutes.
An oversalted pot.: The salted beef was not pre-boiled. Fifteen minutes in fresh water first.

Substitutions

One-to-one swaps, with the technique change each one needs.

Ingredient substitutions

Ingredient	Replace with	Culinary impact and technique adjustment
Dutch brown beans	Pinto, Roman or red kidney beans	One-to-one
Salted beef	Corned beef brisket or salted beef shank	One-to-one, desalted the same way
Smoked pork belly	Smoked slab bacon or a smoked ham hock	One-to-one

Scaling

Half

Halve everything in a 3½-quart Dutch oven; about an hour.

Double

A 10 to 12-quart pot with 3.5 litres of water rather than 4, to keep the body.

What to serve it with

Steamed long-grain white rice, the foundation
Bakabana, crisp fried sweet plantain
Zuurgoed of cucumber and red onion in spiced cane vinegar

Questions

Can I use canned beans?

Yes. Sauté the meats and sofrito, add drained canned beans with two cups of broth, simmer 20 minutes, and mash some to thicken.

What are Dutch brown beans?

Smooth oval beans with a creamy texture and mild earthy sweetness. Pinto or Roman beans are the closest substitutes.

Can I add chicken?

Yes. Bruine bonen met kip sears seasoned bone-in thighs alongside or instead of the beef.