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Jamaican Stew Peas

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Author: Imma

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Jamaican stew peas – This cozy Jamaican stew is made using red beans, meat and is cooked in aromatic coconut milk broth with Jamaican spices and spinners. A hearty Island stew!

Jamaican Stewed Peas

Despite the name, this stew does not contain peas at all. It actually has kidney beans, which are called red peas in Jamaica. You can start by cooking them from scratch, which would take you some time or just go with canned beans.

One recurring ingredient in Jamaican stew peas is salted pigtail often available in Latin and Caribbean Markets. Yes, I must admit it does adds some fatty goodness and distinct flavor to the stew peas.

However, I switched it out in place of smoked turkey – it’s readily available  in most American supermarkets and adds another layer of flavor with it’s smoky beef note — plus it’s healthier.

Jamaican Red Stewed Peas

Okay Folks! If tradition is what you are after and you want that truly authentic flavor – then by all means GO FOR IT!

I’m sticking with smoked turkey.

Oh, another great substitute would be ham hocks, and/or oxtail. Or just use beef. Whatever works for you.

Jamaican peas stew

Spinners are a great addition to stew peas – you just can’t make stew peas without them.

What are spinners? Tasty little Jamaican dumplings -helps thicken the stew and makes it more substantial.

Jamaican stew peas

This stew begins with browning the beef and turkey to add some flavor, then followed by an aromatic base of onions, thyme, allspice, and garlic. Their natural sugars caramelize and kick start all that shines about the stew.

The red peas follow and are joined by the coconut milk and other additions.

Jamaican Red Stewed Peas

As for the spinners, they are so easy to make. The long, gently tapered dumplings are a combination of flour, salt, and water. This mixture is formed into dough then rolled into dumplings. Once dropped in the simmering broth, they cook and you have dense dumplings that hold up to the bulk of the stew.

Once everything is combined, the stew simmers until all the ingredients meld beautifully together.

Jamaican stew peas

To put it simply, Jamaican stew peas with spinners is the epitome of comfort food. The stew is outstanding and the spinners make it all the more tempting.

Jamaican Red Stewed Peas Collage

Enjoy!!!!

NOTES!

  • It’s best to use the “fresh” coconut milk for this recipe. If using the canned variety use about 1/2 and 1/2 – 1 cup coconut canned coconut milk and 1 cup water to equate 2 cups coconut milk.
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Jamaican Red Stewed Peas

4.92 from 12 votes
Prep: 20 mins
Cook: 1 hr
Total: 1 hr 20 mins
Caribbean
Servings 4 -5

Ingredients

  • 2- tablespoon canola oil or more
  • 1-1/2 pound meat smoked turkey, beef, oxtails, pig's tail
  • ½ onion diced
  • 2-3 green onions Scallions
  • 1 scotch bonnet pepper
  • 2-3 teaspoon minced garlic
  • 2 teaspoons allspice
  • 2 teaspoons fresh thyme
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 large bay leaf
  • 4 cups cooked kidney beans or 2-3 15oz. cans rinse and drained
  • 2 cups coconut milk
  • 3 cups broth or more chicken or vegetarian
  • Salt and white pepper to taste

Jamaican dumplings (Spinners)

  • 1 Cup flour
  • 4 Tablespoons coconut milk/water or enough to form a soft dough.
  • ¾-1 teaspoons garlic salt or salt

Instructions

  • Season stew beef with salt and pepper to thoroughly cover all sides
  • Heat the oil an oven safe Dutch oven pan over medium heat. Add stew beef and turkey sauté, about 2 -3 minutes per side, until beef slightly browns up.
  • Add onions, green onions, garlic, thyme, bay leaf, paprika, and allspice and sauté for about 3-5 minutes.
  • Pour in coconut milk, broth, and beans and bring to a boil and let it cook for about 40 minutes or more depending on your choice of protein. If using a tough cut of meat is preferable to cook first before adding the beans.
  • While the stew is simmering make the spinners by combining water, flour and garlic salt in a medium bowl-knead dough for about 30 seconds to 1 minute to form soft dough.
  • Divide dough into 10-14 equal pieces.
  • Shape dough by rolling with your hands, as if you are making a log- somewhat like a sausage. Repeat the process until finish. Set aside
  • About 15 minutes or more before stew is ready, gently drop dumplings into the pot – you may have to add more water or coconut milk if needed
  • Let it cook until tender- about 15-20 minutes.
  • Adjust seasonings salt and pepper
  • Serve piping hot

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 536kcal (27%)| Carbohydrates: 73g (24%)| Protein: 32g (64%)| Fat: 44g (68%)| Saturated Fat: 27g (169%)| Cholesterol: 42mg (14%)| Sodium: 1204mg (52%)| Potassium: 1199mg (34%)| Fiber: 14g (58%)| Sugar: 3g (3%)| Vitamin A: 955IU (19%)| Vitamin C: 12.4mg (15%)| Calcium: 104mg (10%)| Iron: 11.9mg (66%)
Author: Imma
Course: Main
Cuisine: Caribbean
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Nutrition Facts
Jamaican Red Stewed Peas
Amount Per Serving
Calories 536 Calories from Fat 396
% Daily Value*
Fat 44g68%
Saturated Fat 27g169%
Cholesterol 42mg14%
Sodium 1204mg52%
Potassium 1199mg34%
Carbohydrates 73g24%
Fiber 14g58%
Sugar 3g3%
Protein 32g64%
Vitamin A 955IU19%
Vitamin C 12.4mg15%
Calcium 104mg10%
Iron 11.9mg66%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Jamaican Stew Peas

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Comments & Reviews

  5. E Chin says

    Just made this dish and it was DELICIOUS!
    Thank you for sharing your take on a much loved Jamaican dish !

    Reply

  6. Annalise says

    It irritates me to no end when people say its not the true Jamaican Way. There is no such thing when you have a vast amount of people. We all do not cook the same. I know people who use canned coconut milk to make rice and peas. Some people swear by the powder coconut milk mixture. People soak their peas or use the canned. Me personally I use coconut cream. And I soak my peas with garlic, thyme and seasoning salt. Boil it first too. My mom doesn’t boil it first.

    Rant over now. Back to the recipe. How much ginger would you reccomend? I want to make one with and one without.

    Reply

  8. UGUSA says

    I made this dish for my Ugandan husband and one of our friends from Burkina Faso and it was AMAZING! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I love that people from all over the world can come together over a great meal. This will be my “safe” dish to try out on my in-laws!

    Reply

    • imma africanbites says

      Very well said, hon. And it’s great how we most of us are gathered for the love of good food. Happy weekend! 🙂

      Reply

  9. UGUSA says

    I made this dish for my Ugandan husband and one of our friends from Burkina Faso and it was AMAZING! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I love that people from all over the world can come together over a great meal. This will be my “safe” dish to try out on my in-laws!

    Reply

  10. Jodi says

    I just found this recipe on Pinterest and I can’t wait to give it a go. My husband smokes a lot of meats and this sounds like a great way to use up the leftovers and make a completely new and tasty dish. Can you tell me how spicy it is with the Scotch Bonnet pepper? I like a little heat but not too much.

    I can’t wait to explore your blog even more! Thanks!

    Reply

    • imma africanbites says

      Hi, Jodi. It isn’t that spicy, although that would depend on your heat tolerance. But do let me know how it turns out for you.

      Reply

  11. Arleta says

    i’ve been making this the wrong way based on another recipe, yours turned out great! I love how you have the box to edit serving amount – very efficient 🙂

    Reply

  12. Kay says

    hi,

    thank you for your amazing website!!!!

    How do you make a vegetarian version of this dish without meat?

    Thank you!!!

    Reply

    • Rowena says

      I am a vegan so I am trying it without the meat but just using all the recommended seasonings including a generous amount of garlic..I have it cooking now and so far it it looking good. I will serve this by itself with some dumplings…that will be enough for me.I use veggie stock and also powdered coconut milk which works just as effectively!!

      Reply

  13. Jamaicantillidie says

    I love stew peas. I also tried it with a mixture of salted beef and stewing beef. You can use any meat you fancy. But it tastes best with the salted type.
    I add fresh chopped tomatoes aswell this is how we do it in Jamaica.

    Reply

  14. True ja says

    I must say nice work… But your method is not the true jamaican way. We dont saute out meet before. But i guess you are using the American meet that cook easily. We use a number of meat At the same time Exp salt beef, pig tail, chicken foot and Turkey neck together. That how most us Jamaican cook it back home.

    Reply

  15. Lala's Baby says

    I made it yesterday and it was a hit with my finicky eaters, and it was my first time cooking it! I love, love, love my aunt’s version and this one was very close in taste. There were a few variations because I only had one can of kidney beans so substituted the second can with cannellini beans and soaked a hand full of dried beans I had on hand overnight. Question: is that two teaspoons of ground or whole allspice? I used (about 15) whole allspice and it added a burst of flavor to the soup. It was my first time making spinners too and I used coconut milk, garlic powder and Himilayan salt. That was a good combination. The meat of choice was smoked turkey wings and stewed beef; a Yummy combo! I made a big pot and we’ve been eating it as soup (minus the rice) because it’s sooo savory. There’s barely three bowls left. I’ve stretched this into about six or seven servings for around $10. It’s a great value. Thanks for the recipe.

    Reply

    • ImmaculateBites says

      So pleased to hear it was a hit even with your little ones! Thank you so much for taking the time to give such a detailed feedback! So appreciated .

      Reply

  16. Val says

    it’s sometimes difficult to get salted pigtails, only fresh ones. I boil my pigtails (or use a pressure cooker) with about 1.5 cups of salt. change the water and add another 1.5 cups of salt for the 2nd boil. not as good as actual salted pigtails but close enough. I then season them with lots of garlic, onions, thyme, green seasoning and a lil more salt and then cook them right away (soup, pelau etc) or freeze them for another day. don’t really like the taste of unsalted pigtails

    Reply

    • ImmaculateBites says

      Really appreciate you taking the time to share this with us Val. Am sure other readers would benefit from this. Thank you so much.

      Reply

  17. Sebastian Wahl says

    This is excellent. Found smoked pigtail and pork neckbones at the local grocery store. We cant get salted pigtails or salt beef in the states, but we can get smoked pigtails, that is still pretty good and close to authentic i hope. I have made this dish before. One time as an undergraduate I cooked a pot of this along with sweet potato curry, tamarind balls and hard dough bread for a jamaican girl I loved. She didnt love me back hahahahaha. But I still love cooking west indian, south american ,mexican, haitian guadaloupe and martinique, mid eastern and west african food. Hopefully one day I find a lady like you that is a good fit ahem. hahaha. Im an Austrian American. My dad is from vienna and has a thick accent, I will give you some of his recipes if you want, they are good. I first made this stew from the “Complete Caribbean Cookbook” (that my guyanese chum introduced me to) they called for pureeing some of the beans and meat to thicken the stew. Not a bad idea. LAter. also at the local jamaican restaurant they blend up a potato into their chicken and goat curries to thicken it, they make a huge batch, i am not sure how many potatoes they blend up. malanga/taro/eddo/dasheen.cocoyam is also a good thickener. alafia

    Reply

    • ImmaculateBites says

      Hahaha! You will find your perfect match Sebastian – Don’t give up! Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with us.

      Reply

    • Fula says

      You can find salted pig tail and beef in the stares you have to go to an Asian or Caribbean neighborhood to find. Some meat stores in Italian neighborhoods will also carry it. If you live in NYC it’s easy to find

      Reply

  18. Lydia Penn says

    Hi Imma, how long should the stew cook for before adding the spinners and then how long after as well?

    Reply

    • ImmaculateBites says

      It should cook for about 30-40 minutes depending on the beef. About 15 – minutes more .

      Reply

  20. Warren Wilson says

    What would be a good natural, free of preservatives, substitute for the unique flavor of pigtails? I shop at Whole Foods Market and they don’t carry pigtails that are organic. Please let me know. Thank you!

    Reply

      • Sebastian Wahl says

        we have a farmers market here, try and find a farmers market and get fresh meet from them. oxtails, pug feet or tail should work. belly would be really good too. i agree. u can mix meats. a bit of stew beef and a few pig feet would be nice.

        Reply

  23. Eno A. says

    I am a 24 year-old Nigerian, and I am a huge fan of your posts.
    However, with this particular dish, is it absolutely necessary to use the spinners as a thickening agent? Can I substitute it for another starch such as African Yams?

    Reply

    • ImmaculateBites says

      You sure can! I think the African yams would be a great substitute. Do let me know how it works out for you.
      Thank you so much for trying out my recipes.
      Happy Cooking!!!!

      Reply

  25. Urban @ Urbanskitchen.com says

    Looks great. Been a long while since last had Island Stewed Peas. Having it with Salted Pigtail (Almost impossible to find), aren’t anything can beat that with its unique flavor. I like it with Beef as well and been a while since last had that too. Have to cook sometime. Yeah this is real Island comfort food.

    You forgot to add Ginger from instructions line 3 to recipe list.

    Reply