Make Ahead

Porotos Granads with Polenta Dumplings

by:
December  3, 2009
4
4 Ratings
Porotos Granads with Polenta Dumplings
  • Serves 8
Author Notes

Porotos Granads is an Andean stew that comes from the Mapuche Indians and is a national dish of Chile. “Porotos” is Chilean for “beans” and the traditional recipe includes three types of beans. This hearty and savory variation only uses pinto beans and replaces the corn with the polenta dumplings and quinoa. *The recipe below serves 6-8 hungry diners but freezes well and is even better the next day —joannE.

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 8 ounces Slab Bacon
  • 1 Medium Yellow Onion, medium dice
  • 2 Carrots, small dice
  • 2 Celery Stalks, small dice
  • 4 Garlic Cloves, minced
  • 1 14.5-oz Can Diced Tomatoes, strained – juice reserved
  • 1 Bay Leaf
  • 1 tablespoon Paprika
  • 1/2 cup Red Wine
  • 1 1/2 pounds Butternut Squash, cut into 1 ½ inch cubes
  • 32 ounces Low Sodium Chicken Broth
  • 1 cup Red Quinoa
  • 2 15-oz Cans of Pinto Beans, do not strain or rinse
  • 3 tablespoons Fresh Basil, chopped
  • 2 cups Water
  • 1 cup Polenta *Do not use quick cooking polenta
  • 1/2 teaspoon Salt
Directions
  1. Heat large heavy bottom soup pot (a Dutch oven works well) over medium high heat, add olive oil. Sauté bacon until brown and crispy. Remove bacon with slotted spoon and set aside on a paper towel to drain excess fat.
  2. Sauté onions and carrots in the bacon fat until well caramelized. Add the garlic, celery and tomatoes, sauté until all the moister has evaporated and the tomatoes have taken on a dark red almost rusty color (approx 7-10 minutes). Add paprika and bay leaf.
  3. Deglaze the plan with red wine and reduce until almost dry. Add reserved tomato juice and broth. Bring stew to a boil and add butter nut squash. Reduce heat to low and cover. Let simmer for 20 minutes. Add quinoa and simmer covered for an additional 10 minutes.
  4. While the quinoa cooks, brings 2 cups of water and ½ tsp salt to a boil in a small saucepan. Turn of the heat and whisk in polenta. Using two spoons form polenta into 2 inch dumplings.
  5. Return the stew in a simmer and gently drop the dumplings on top (do not stir). Cover and let dumplings steam for an additional 10 minutes over low heat.
  6. Garnish with the crispy bacon and fresh basil. *Garnish with the crispy bacon and fresh basil.
  7. QUINOA FUN FACT: Quinoa is native to Chile and completes the stew's already well rounded nutritional profile. It is great source of protein (12-18%) and is the only plant based food source that contains all 8 essential amino acids.
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4 Reviews

Queen M.
Queen M. July 18, 2012
I don't care for butternut squash. What do you think of subbing carrots?
 
Amber O.
Amber O. January 22, 2010
Finally checking back since I'm going to make this in the next few days. I appreciate you responding.
 
joannE.
joannE. January 12, 2010
Hi Amber, Thanks for checking out the recipe! I used Hungarian Sweet Paprika for this recipe but the California Paprika you described sounds wonderful! For the dumplings I used Quaker's Corn Meal (not quick cooking) which is ground pretty fine. If you are using a coarse ground polenta you may need to increase the cooking time or decrease the size of the dumplings. ~ Happy Cooking!
 
Amber O.
Amber O. January 11, 2010
What kind of paprika do you use? I have Hungarian sweet, Hungarian half-sharp, and California paprika which is much more tomatoey in flavor. Very intrigued by the dumplings...again, what kind of polenta do you prefer? I have a coarse stone-ground kind as well as a fine stone-ground kind. I'm concerned that a coarser variety might not steam in the amount of time you cook it.