Sauce Pwa — Print Recipe — The Culinary Codex

A thick, velvety sauce made from pureed red or black beans simmered with garlic, epis, and Scotch bonnet. The essential accompaniment to rice and cornmeal dishes.

Ingredients

2 cups dried red kidney beans, soaked overnight
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp epis paste
1 Scotch bonnet pepper, whole
2 sprigs fresh thyme
2 whole cloves
2 tbsp vegetable oil
Salt and black pepper
1.5 liters water

Instructions

1 Drain soaked beans and add to a large pot with fresh water. Bring to a boil and cook for one hour until very tender.
2 Remove half the beans and blend until smooth. Return puree to the pot with the remaining whole beans.
3 In a small skillet, heat oil and cook onion and garlic until golden. Add epis paste and cook one minute.
4 Add the onion mixture to the bean pot along with thyme, cloves, and whole Scotch bonnet.
5 Simmer for twenty minutes, stirring occasionally, until sauce reaches a thick, velvety consistency.
6 Remove Scotch bonnet, cloves, and thyme. Season with salt and pepper. Serve over rice or mayi moulen.

Did You Know?

A Haitian cook is often judged first and foremost by the quality of their sauce pwa. It is said to reveal everything about their skill.