Rice & Beans or Peas (Jamaican)

The first thing you must-do if you’re using dried kidney beans is to make sure you soak them overnight in a bowl of water. This softens the texture of the beans. I prefer dried beans, but you can use the canned kidney beans instead. Drain the water from the beans and rinse thoroughly with water.

Place your beans in a medium saucepan, add about 3 cups of water and boil for about 1 hr under a medium flame. Your beans should now be tender (test by sticking a fork into one of them).

While your beans are simmering, you can now add your unsweetened coconut milk, and stir for about 5 minutes.

Then you add your chopped garlic, scallions (green onions), thyme, allspice seeds, and scotch bonnet pepper.

Add your salt and pepper to the mix

Stir under a medium-high flame for about 5 minutes or so. Then you can add your rice and cook until the rice is cooked and fluffy, which takes about ½ hr to 40 minutes. There you have it, delicious Jamaican rice and peas.