Even if you have a hard time pronouncing this Haitian dish, we highly recommend you still try and make it!
Have you ever heard of Sos Pwa Nwa and Mayi Moulen? When we came across this vegan dish, we had to give it a try for $20 Tuesday. This is a hearty Haitian dish that also happens to be vegan and gluten free.
WOT we loved about this recipe: Even though it was a first for us, we loved using coconut milk in the black bean portion (Sos Pwa Nwa), yum! Mayi Moulen is also a first for us but it was super easy to whip together and has the texture of polenta.
Since this is a true vegan dish, there’s a good bit of onion, garlic, and even a habanero pepper for heat and extra flavor. If you’re unsure of the habanero, you can try a jalapeno pepper or leave the pepper out altogether. The key to this dish is to adjust the salt to taste. This dish does take some time to cook and can be made a day or two ahead and stored in separate airtight containers in the refrigerator.
We thought the beans had even more flavor the next day! If you are going to reheat, you might need to add a couple of tablespoons of water to thin the beans or cornmeal mixture. We also love that this dish makes a great snack the next day.
Vegan Sos Pwa Nwa and Mayi Moulen
Ingredients
- 2 cups dried black beans
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 large, onion
- 5 scallions
- 8 garlic cloves
- 10 sprigs parsley, plus more for serving
- 6 sprigs thyme
- 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk or 1 can
- 4 tsp sea salt, divided, plus more
- 1 habanero chile or 2 jalapenos peppers
- 1 cup fine-grind cornmeal
- 2 avocados, sliced
- sliced green onion
- sliced jalapenos
Instructions
- Place 2 cups dried black beans (no need to soak) in a colander and rinse under cold running water. In a large stockpot, combine drained black beans, 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, and 8 cups water to cover the beans. Bring to boil over high heat and cook 15 minutes.
- Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer beans, checking occasionally and adding more water if needed to keep covered, until tender but not mushy, 1½ – 2 hours. Squeeze a bean between your fingers to test.
- Meanwhile, peel and finely chop 1 large onion; set aside for mayi moulen. Thinly slice 5 scallions. Smash 8 garlic cloves with the side of chef’s knife, peel, and finely chop. Remove leaves from 10 sprigs parsley and 6 sprigs thyme and coarsely chop: discard stems.
- Purée most but not all the beans in pot with an immersion blender (or transfer about half of the beans to a regular blender and blend until mostly smooth; mix back into beans in pan).
- Heat 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a small skillet over medium. Cook scallions and a little less than half of the garlic, stirring often, until starting to brown, about 4 minutes. Scrape into beans, then add half of the parsley, half of the thyme, ¾ cup unsweetened coconut milk, and 2 tsp. sea salt.
- Drop the habanero chile or the jalapeno peppers into the beans. Bring bean mixture to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until just beginning to thicken (but don’t cook so aggressively that chile breaks open), 15–20 minutes. Sos pwa nwa should still be loose enough to spread on a plate. Thin with water if needed. Taste and season with more salt as needed. Carefully fish out and discard chile.
- Meanwhile, make the mayi moulen: Heat remaining 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook reserved onion and remaining garlic, stirring often, until starting to turn golden brown, about 4 minutes. Add 4 cups water and bring to a boil.
- Whisking constantly, gradually sprinkle in 1 cup cornmeal, then add remaining thyme, remaining parsley, and remaining 2 tsp sea salt. Cook, stirring constantly, until starting to thicken, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low and cover pot. Cook, stirring vigorously every 5 minutes orso, until cornmeal is velvety smooth and no longer gritty, 18–25 minutes. Tastemayi moulen and season with more salt if needed.
- Thinly slice 1 avocado, slice additional scallions and jalapeno.
- Mound mayi moulen on plates, then ladle sos pwa nwa nextto it, letting it spread.
- Top with avocado, scallion and jalapeno slices and serve.
Enjoy!
Making this recipe? Be sure and share it with us on the WOT Instagram or on Facebook!
If you want more $20 Tuesday recipes you can check them out here!
All photos by Lorianne DeVita
Note: $20 is an approximate cost for this dish. The actual price of all ingredients may vary.
Recipe adapted from Bon Appetite
