South African Samp and Beans (Umngqusho)

This is a traditional South African Samp (mngqusho) and Beans (mbotyi) recipe. My amaXhosa friend, Ntombizanele Sokupa, gave this recipe to our family and we thought it was delicious. Samp is the same thing as hominy, except the kernels are cracked into a few pieces. The samp and beans can be and are commonly soaked overnight, but my friend says it will still take 2 hours to cook and the flavor is not as good this way. Without pre-soaking the samp and beans it will take 3-4 hours to cook at medium heat. This recipe can take a lot of time, but it tastes great!

• Ready In: 3 hrs 15 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 2  cups  samp (cracked hominy)
• 3  cups black-eyed peas (cowpea) or 3  cups  sugar  beans or 3  cups pinto beans
• 1  onion
• 2 -3  potatoes
• 1  large tomatoes
• 2 -3  tablespoons canola oil
•  salt, to taste
• 1 -2  vegetable bouillon cube
• 2 -3  teaspoons curry powder

Directions

1. Mix and wash the samp and beans together.
2. Put them in a large pot with 5-6 cups water and cook samp and beans until they start becoming soft. Check on it every 30 minutes or so to see if the samp and beans need more water and to see when they are start to soften (don't wait until they are cooked through and too soft).
3. Once the samp and beans are slightly soft, but not done (when they look like they need about another 20-30 minutes left of cooking) drain some of the water if there is more than a few cups of water still cooking with it and add everything else (the vegetables, oil, salt, spices and seasonings). Cook the remainder of time it takes until the beans are very soft (usually 20-30 minutes more).