Ewa Aganyin (Togolese Mashed Beans and Special Sauce)
Ewa aganyin is a Togolese street food of soft mashed beans served with a dark, oily chile sauce. The sauce is the point: dried chiles are puréed, then cooked slowly in palm oil with browned onion until the oil separates and floats on top. It takes patience and plenty of stirring. Eat it with bread, garri or fried plantain, which soak up the sauce and balance its heat.
Instructions
Pick over the dried beans to remove any debris, then rinse them. Soak the crushed dried chiles in warm water for at least 3 hours, or preferably overnight.
Put the beans in a pot over medium heat with half of the chopped onions, a little salt and enough water to cover. Boil until tender, checking often and adding water whenever the pot starts to run dry. A pressure cooker will shorten this considerably.
While the beans cook, drain the soaked chiles and blend them with a few of the remaining onions to a purée, adding a splash of water only if the blender needs it.
When the beans are tender, mash them until almost smooth.
Heat a clean, dry pan over medium heat, add palm oil and leave it for about 2 minutes. Add the rest of the chopped onions and fry until browned but not burnt.
Stir in the chile purée and cook on low heat. When the colour turns from bright red to brown, season with salt and bouillon cubes to taste. Add more palm oil if the sauce soaks it up, but do not add any water.
Keep cooking on low heat, stirring often, until the oil rises and floats on top of the sauce. A slight scorch is acceptable, but watch it closely.
Serve the mashed beans with the sauce, with bread, garri or fried plantain on the side.
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