Recipe: Plantains in Coconut Milk (Ndizi wa Nazi) (Congo/Zanzibar)

PLANTAINS IN COCONUT MILK (NDIZI WA NAZI)

"Plantains, a staple throughout much of Africa, are spiced up here to be served as a slightly sweet side dish. Warm, deeply satisfying, and quick, this is unusual and good even on weeknights. Best with West African, Caribbean, Mexican, and South American dishes.

Other vegetables you can prepare this way: green bananas or potatoes, both of which will need longer cooking time."

4 ripe (yellow-black) plantains, peeled and cut into 1-inch rounds
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon curry powder, preferably homemade
Pinch of ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus more to taste
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice or cardamom
1 1/2 cups coconut milk, homemade or canned

Put all the ingredients into a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir, then bring the mixture to a steady simmer.

Cook, stirring occasionally, until the plantains are tender and have absorbed almost all of the coconut milk, about 15 minutes.

Serve immediately, sprinkled with a little more cinnamon if you like.

Makes 4 servings
Excerpted from The Best Recipes In The World by Mark Bittman
Copyright 2005 by Mark Bittman. Excerpted by permission of Broadway, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.