Botswana Oregano-Bean Salad
Botswana has a variety of local delicacies, and its cuisine is known as the Rainbow’s Gastronomy. The following are some of Botswana’s traditional dishes: Dikgobe, Mogodu, Seswaa, Vetkoek, Phaphatha. When it comes to Botswana’s traditional drinks, they have a famous beer called Bojalwa that goes amazing with this Oregano-Bean Salad. Botswana’s cuisine is unique, but they do share some characteristics with South Africa’s cuisine like vetkoek and pap.
For this recipe, mixed beans with oregano blend makes all the difference. In many African dishes, beans are cooked in stews, soups, or mashes; hence, combining a mixture of beans seasoned with fresh or dried oregano makes for an unusual but exciting delicacy. I particularly love to pair this salad with beef chunks.
Easy Botswana Oregano Bean Salad With Garlic Steak Bites
Ingredients
For the bean salad base
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium red onion, finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
- 1 medium cauliflower, cut into florets
- 1 large tomato, finely diced
- ½ cup canned pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- ½ cup canned black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
- Sea salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1/3 cup fresh oregano, shredded
For the garlic steak bites
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb chuck steak
- Sea salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 tbsp dried parsley
Instructions
Prepare the salad ingredients
- Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan or saucepan over medium heat. Then, add the onions and saute them for 5 minutes or until they become translucent.
- Add the garlic and allow it to cook for a minute while stirring.
- Next, stir in the chopped carrots and cauliflower florets. Leave them to cook for another 5 minutes so they can become tender.
- Then, add the tomatoes, pinto beans, and black-eyed peas. Give the ingredients a good stir so that the flavors blend together. Allow the mixture to cook for about 5 minutes. The ingredients should just become heated throughout.
- Season the salad base with sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper.
- Remove the salad mixture from the heat and stir in the fresh shredded oregano. Set this mixture aside.
Make the garlic steak bites
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Season the steak with sea salt and black pepper.
- Add the steak to the heated pan along with the butter, garlic, and dried parsley.
- Allow the steak to cook for about 4-5 minutes per side, depending on the doneness you want (see tips section).
- Once completely cooked, remove it from the heat and allow it to rest for 5 minutes.
- Then, cut the chuck into bite-sized slices or cubes.
Assemble and serve your Botswana oregano bean salad
- Make sure that all of the elements are warm (this is a warm salad).
- Mix in the steak bites and toss the components together well.
- Serve with some extra fresh chopped parsley and oregano.
