“Have a taste of Nigeria’s most popular bean cake.”
Akara (Fried Bean Cakes)
Course: Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner
Cuisine: West African (Nigerian)
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Inactive: 24 hours
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 24 hours and 2o minutes
Servings: 4-6
Ingredients
- ½ Pound of dry black-eyed peas
- 1 medium each red/yellow/green bell pepper
- 2 medium whole onions
- 2 medium whole fresh tomatoes
- 3 cups of virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon of basil, thyme, and parsley
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
Preparation
- Soak black-eyed peas overnight.
- Next day, drain the peas.
- In a food processor, blend black eye peas, then pour into a mixing bowl.
- In a food processor, crush peppers and onions together.
- Add half of the peppers/onions mixture into the blended black-eyed peas and stir well
- In a deep frying pan, heat the 3 cups of olive oil.
- Now, with a tablespoon, scoop the combined mixture or roll in the palm of your hand, drop into the frying oil and fry until golden brown.
- Remove from the oil and set aside on a plate.
Dipping Sauce (Optional)
- Crush your medium whole tomatoes and add them to your remaining peppers/onions, parsley, thyme, basil, and sea salt.
- In a small saucepan, add ½ cup of olive oil. Heat the oil (medium heat), then add your mixture. Stir for 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and put into a small bowl.
- Serve with the Akara as a dipping sauce.
Optional: Hot peppers can be added to your pepper mixture to make the sauce hot.
Special Notes: Akara is a good source of protein to your diet and can be eaten at any time.
Restaurant Information: When in Richmond, Virginia, stop by Africanne on Main located at 200 E. Main Street for a serving of their home-cooked West African cuisine.