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Rice and Beans with Sauce and Tasso

A Congolese dish of rice and beans simmered with sauce and tasso.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 15 ingredients
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Why it works: Shallot and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,737 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓

Rice and Beans with Sauce and Tasso

Time18–20 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Cook the beans

  1. Place beans in a large pot, cover with 3 inches of water, bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer 1½ hours or until tender, drain beans and reserve liquid.

  2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté shallot and garlic until fragrant.

  3. Stir in cooked beans and cook for 2 minutes.

Make the rice

  1. Measure reserved liquid, add water to equal 5 cups, stir into skillet.

  2. Stir in uncooked rice.

  3. Season with bay leaves, Adobo seasoning, salt, pepper, Lilli butter, curry powder, and cloves.

  4. Place sprigs of parsley, thyme, and scotch bonnet pepper on top, bring to a boil.

  5. Reduce heat, cover, simmer 18–20 minutes.

  6. Remove thyme, parsley, and scotch bonnet pepper before serving.

Make the sauce

  1. Combine 1 can whole tomatoes, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1 chopped onion, 1 tbsp olive oil, 2 cups water, and 1 can tomato paste.

  2. Cover with a tight‑fitting lid.

  3. Add tomato paste and onions, cook 5 minutes.

  4. Add water, cook another 10 minutes.

  5. Reduce heat to low.

Make the tasso

  1. Add all tasso ingredients except vegetable oil to a large bowl.

  2. Let marinate 3–4 hours.

  3. Transfer meat mixture to a cooking pot.

  4. Add water to cover.

  5. Heat to boiling, reduce heat.

  6. Simmer covered until meat is very tender.

  7. Fry meat in a large frying pan until golden brown.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

579Calories
13 gProtein
27 gFat
74 gCarbs

Counts 13 of 14 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 13 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Rice1 cup cooked (158g) white206
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Kidney Bean1/2 cup canned (128g) drained112
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Turmeric1 tsp ground (3g)9
Shallot1 tbsp minced (10g)7
Cloves1 tsp ground (2g)7
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Thyme1 tsp dried (1.4g)4
Bay Leaf1 leaf (0.6g)2
Parsley1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)1
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Scotchnot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Shallot + parsleytop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together3,737 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  2. Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together34,122 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  3. Olive + garlictop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together25,665 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  4. Garlic + parsleytop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together9,308 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  5. Shallot + garlictop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,000 recipes

    Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Kidney beans
Provide the main body and protein of the dish once cooked until tender.
Long grain white rice
Absorbs the seasoned cooking liquid and sets into the fluffy base of the dish.
Olive oil
Carries the aromatics and adds fat that carries flavor through the pan.
Garlic
Adds pungent aroma that mellows and sweetens as it cooks in the oil.
Shallot
Contributes a mild, sweet onion flavor that builds the base of the dish.

The step that matters

Simmer the rice covered. Once the lid is on and the heat is low, the rice cooks by trapped steam and absorbed liquid. Lifting the lid releases steam and can leave grains uneven or undercooked.

Swap the kidney beans

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (olive, shallot, clove, garlic, rice, pepper, parsley):

  1. Chickpeafits better
  2. Black-eyed peafits better
  3. Lentilsfits better
  4. Kidney beansthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against olive, shallot, clove, garlic, rice, pepper, parsley. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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