Tuesday, February 8, 2011

My Life Would Succ(otash) Without You

NATIONAL DISH OF EQUATORIAL GUINEA - Succotash

I know what you're thinking, "Leo you is crazy! Succotash is not a dish, it's something Sylvester says!" Well although that awesome lisping cat does spout 'Sufferin' Succotash' whenever something doesn't go his way, Succotash is in fact a dish containing white beans, corn and capsicum cooked in a curry sauce.

Most of the recipes I found talk about Succotash coming from America, where it is a traditional Thanksgiving dish. Even Wikipedia pronounces the name stems from Native Americans living in the New England region. Now this may be all true, and who am I to argue? I don't have a PhD in Succotash (shock horror I know!) But the recipe that I was after needed to be Equatoguinean (awesome demonym). With a little scouring of the internet, I managed to find a recipe that was West African inclusive.

So with fear of inciting the beginning of the Apocalypse, where did Succotash originate? I'm assuming it was created in Africa and brought across to the Americas, where is has flourished. But you know what they say when you assume? I am generally right!

Enjoy, or as they say in Equatorial Guinea, ¡Buen apetito! or Bon appétit! (both Spanish and French are official languages)




Link towards the West African version: http://www.celtnet.org.uk/recipes/miscellaneous/fetch-recipe.php?rid=misc-succotash

Difficulty:         4
Appearance:   4
Taste:              4 

TOTAL:           12


So basically with Succotash, you just throw all the ingredients into a pot and let them simmer. It is made easier (and takes less time) if you use canned beans instead of dried ones.

For such a simplistic meal, I was pleasantly surprised by the complexity of the outcome. The colours of the corn, beans and capsicum vibrantly compliment each other, with none of them overpowering.  And the fragrance was amazing. You know how I love a good aroma coming from the kitchen.

But the best surprise was the taste. The vegetables were SO fresh and crunchy and were made to pop by the flavour of the sauce. The only spices that were used are curry and chili powder, but man do they pack a punch! Succotash is generally a side dish so I cooked a small batch. In hindsight that was extremely foolish. My step-sister who lives with me was not yet home, so I left her some in the fridge. Needless to say it was all gone before she came home. After one bite I was hooked. I'm thinking Succotash needs to be added to this year's Thanksgiving menu. So to finish off, a word of advice: if you're making a batch of Succotash, pretend you're cooking for 20 people (or equally the Molefaces). This is the only way to stave off inevitable disappointment when you reach the bottom of your bowl. "Oh no! I ate all my Succotash! Oh that's right, I made enough to feed New York City. SCORE!"

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