Red pepper, aubergine & adzuki

A break in the sunshine calls for something slightly warmer today and this is a lovely stew that’s lightly spiced with harissa and full of flavour. I’ve used creamy aubergines and sweet peppers to compliment the nutty adzuki beans - which I’d forgotten much I liked!

Adzuki are a great addition to a veggie dish as they give a nice bite and texture, which works well to contrast with the softer vegetables. My husband isn’t a massive bean fan, but he likes adzuki as they’re relatively small compared to other types - they pretty much went under his radar!

This is another dish that I make a big pan of and store in the fridge for quick healthy lunches with a chunk of sourdough, or eat for dinner in different ways - with roasted squash wedges, a baked sweet potato or grilled halloumi, veggie sausages, chicken or fish if you’re BBQing with friends.

Ingredients

Serves 4-6

• 150g dried adzuki beans

• 2 aubergines, 1cm slices

• 2 medium red onions, chopped

• 3 large garlic cloves, grated

• 1 tsp cumin seeds

• 1 tsp ground coriander

• 1 tsp smoked paprika

• 1 tsp ground harissa spice blend

• 3 red peppers, sliced

• 2 tins 400g tomatoes

• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar

• 1/2 tbsp maple / honey

• 1 tsp sea salt

• A handful of fresh coriander

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180ºc.

• Simmer the adzuki for approx 45 minutes until soft, drain and set aside.

• Spread the aubergine on a large tray, brush with olive oil on both sides, sprinkle with sea salt, then put in the oven for 10 minutes.

• Heat ½ tbsp olive oil in a large pan and fry the onions gently for 10 mins, then add the garlic and ground spices cooking for 30 seconds.

• Next add the red peppers and cook for a further 10 minutes.

• Then add the tomatoes, aubergine and adzuki, simmer for 20 minutes.

• Add the red wine vinegar and maple, simmer for 5 minutes. Then finish by stirring in the salt. Serve with fresh coriander leaves

  Tip

• Other serving ideas: cous cous, brown rice, top with plain yoghurt or plant-based coconut. I like Coconut Collab, especially with savoury dishes.

• Use chickpeas instead of adzuki if you can’t get hold of them.

• You can cook the aubergine in the same pan if you prefer - fry on a medium to high heat using plenty of olive oil until 2-3 sides are browned. Set aside and add back in following the instructions above. I prefer to use the oven as I can get on with prepping the other ingredients while the aubergine cooks.

• Coriander is optional!