Legim is a Haitian eggplant stew that is served as a side along with rice, plantains, and meat or fish. Sometimes Legim is made as a one-pot dish cooked with braised meat. If you would like to add the meat to this recipe, add it in at the same time as the vegetables and the sauce are combined. Find the epis recipe here, and the braised meat recipe here.
Ingredients
Onion
– 1 yellow or white
Carrots
– 3, peeled
Cabbage
- 1 small or ½ large savoy or other green cabbage
Eggplant
– 1 medium
Chayote_Sqaush
- 1 medium
Green_Beans
- 2 handfuls
Celery
- 2 stalks, optional
Garlic
– 2 cloves
Oil
– 3 Tablespoons, divided (vegetable, canola, olive)
Epis
– ¼ cup*
Tomato_Paste
- ¼ cup
Water
– 1 cup (more as needed)
Boullion
– 1 Tablespoon low or reduced sodium bouillon paste or powdered bouillon
Spinach
– 2 cups, chopped
Parsley
- 3 sprigs
Thyme
- 3 sprigs
Instructions
Step 1
Wash all the vegetables. Roughly chop the carrots, onion, eggplant, chayote, cabbage, green beans and celery. Mince the garlic.
Step 2
In a large pot, heat 2 Tablespoons of oil on medium-high heat. Add the chopped carrots and onions and cook for 5-10 minutes or until tender. Add the garlic, cabbage, eggplant, chayote, green beans, celery and about 1-2 cups of water. Bring it to a simmer, and then reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for 45-60 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent burning, until the vegetables are very tender.
Step 3
Once all vegetables have been cooked, use a mortar or pestle to smash all vegetables together. You may wish to set aside some carrots before smashing the vegetables, for the visual and textural purpose of keeping some of the carrots whole. Set aside.
Step 4
In another large pot, heat the remaining oil over medium heat. Add the epis and fry for a couple of minutes until very fragrant. Add the tomato paste, 1 cup of water, and bouillon (optional), to make a thick sauce.
Step 5
Add the vegetables to the sauce. Add the sprigs of parsley and thyme, and cook over low heat for about 30 more minutes to allow the flavors to come together. Add the chopped spinach in the last 15 minutes.
Step 6
Enjoy as is or serve with rice, cornmeal, or boiled plantains!