African Vegetable Stew

No one knows the exact point of origin for this fantastic meatless stew. As entire tribes and families from different regions of Africa were forced on a journey to the New World, old recipes with gathered or grown ingredients from respective homelands transformed into new concoctions containing common foods found in the Americas. Prepare this tasty stew tonight as a much updated version of a traditional African recipe as our salute to Black History Month continues at Recipe-a-Day.com. In a large cooking pot over medium heat warm oil and sauté onion, garlic and white stems of chard until wilted, about 5-minutes. Add chopped greens and continue to sauté. Add beans or peas, raisins, yams, tomatoes, salt and pepper. Continue to sauté for 3 to 5-minutes. Make a well in the center of the mixture and add rice to the well. Pat rice down with a wooden spoon until moist. Cover and cook until rice is complete, about 25-minutes. Check mixture occasionally and add water 2 Tbs. at a time if rice is dry and starting to stick during cooking. Add Tabasco sauce to taste and serve. Serving Size: 4 Posted to dailyrecipe@recipe-a-day.com by The Cook & Kitchen Staff <dailyrecipe-owner@recipe-a-day.com> on Feb 15, 1998