A recipe for black beans with kale and latin flavours to spice up your day when your body screams for warmth, and nutrition after the festive season onslaught. I love the texture, delicious spice and lingering warm sensation this stew gives me. It works perfectly as a main dish for vegetarians or as a generous side dish for a fish or meat course. Go on! Samba in to your kitchen and crank up the music. Get cooking!
Black Beans and Kale: Nutrition Maxed and Delicious
Black Beans
There is one food group you should feel more attracted to: Legumes (lentils, chickpeas, beans etc). Legumes give you protein and fibre. 
Research shows that of all groups of food commonly eaten worldwide, no group has a more health-supportive mix of protein-plus-fibre than legumes. Included here, of course, is the amazing protein-plus-fibre content of black beans. In Brazil the black bean is considered its own food group, such is its importance to the national health. For very good reason. This article gives you the full load down: Black Beans – whfoods.org.
You won’t find this outstanding protein — fibre combination in fruit, vegetables, grains, meats, dairy products, nuts and seeds, or seafood.
The almost magical protein-fibre combination in legumes—including black beans—explains important aspects of their health benefits for the digestive tract, the blood sugar regulatory system, and the cardiovascular system. Are you worried about the ability to digest them, or possible gas? Read up on how to soak them, or use organic tinned beans as they will not lose their nutritional content by canning.
Kale
Kale is king of the greens according to super food gurus and nutrition research. Kale is
How To Cut Kale
jam-packed with essential vitamins A, C and K as well as minerals like copper, potassium, iron, manganese and phosphorus. A cup of fresh kale has only about 40 calories but packs almost 3 grams of protein and has over 1000% more vitamin C than a cup of cooked spinach. Unlike spinach, kale’s oxalate content is very low which means that the calcium and iron in kale are highly absorbable in the human digestive system.
Eating or Juicing Kale?
Eating kale is beneficial for maintaining healthy skin, hair and strong bones, as well as helping with digestion and lowering the risk for heart disease.
Many also use Kale in juicing and smoothies which is thought to boost its health benefits. Read: Health Benefits of Juicing Kale – healthambition.com.
The possible health benefits of consuming kale include improving blood glucose control in diabetics, lowering the risk of cancer, lowering blood pressure, improving bone health, lowering the risk of developing asthma and more. For more information: Proven Benefits of Kale – authoritynutrition.com
Recipe: Latin Black Beans with Kale
Inspired by cold weather and the need to have a comforting yet nutritious dish, a picture from Mexico and a lonely tin of black beans gave me the idea to mix them with kale, tomatoes, onions and latin zing. The result was way beyond expectation! I added some soaked raisins and feta cheese – but you can choose whichever combinations suit you best.
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- Black Beans with Kale
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- Black Beans with Kale and Feta Cheese
To convert from metric: Cooking conversion
- 5 Tablespoons Vegetable Broth
- 2 Yellow Onions (large)
- 4 Tomatoes (medium)
- 1/2 Celery chopped
- 1 Carrot grated
- 1/2 Pepper (red or yellow) diced
- 200 gram Cabbage
- 400 gram Black Beans - soaked over night, or 1 can undrained
- 600 gram Kale chopped
- 2 Tablespoons Lime Juice (Lemon works well too!)
- 1 chilli fresh (optional)
- 1 Tablespoon ginger fresh (grated)
- 2 teaspoons chilli powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika powder (sweet)
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- Chop all your vegetables, i.e. onion, celery, pepper, cabbage and kale and set aside.
- Grate the ginger and carrot and set aside in two separate dishes.
- Open your can of Black Beans but don't drain off the water! Or drain the beans that you have soaked for 24 hours.
- In a large pan fry up the garlic, fresh chilli, ginger, cabbage and onion until they are translucent.
- Add the celery, carrots, pepper and let them get soft for about 5 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes and vegetable broth. Let it bubble away on medium heat for another 5 minutes.
- Now add chilli powder, cumin, paprika powder and cinnamon and stir.
- Black bean can (undrained!) or soaked beans go in now while you stir.
- With a fork push the bean to mash some and leave others whole.
- Kale is the last to go in, while you lower the heat to lowest setting.
- Let the stew simmer until it thickens.
- At the very end add the lime (or lemon) juice.
- Ready to serve! Yum!
- Feel free to add or take away according to that you have at home. You can exchange the kale for spinach, and canned black beans (organic) work just as well. Serve this as a side dish or as a main meal. The serving size above is set for a main course (serves 4). Enjoy!
Recommended and Related:
- Black Beans – Health Benefits and Use – whfoods.org
- Kale – Health Benefits and Use – authoritynutrition.com
- Health Benefits of Juicing Kale – healthambition.com
- 15 Kale Smoothies and Benefits for your Health – easyhealthysmoothie.com
- Winter Wellness: The Food and Moves You Need – thegoodista.com
- Cooking Conversions – convert-me.com
Did you like the recipe? Comment:
A great source of inspiration with nutrition facts and such a delicious recipe. I will try as soon as a get hold of kale and black beans!
Lovely spices too!
Enjoy the recipe, and welcome back to The GOODista anytime!