Red Red, Ghanaian Bean Stew with Fried Plantain

Red red is a Ghanaian bean stew made with black-eyed peas, onions, tomatoes and red palm oil, traditionally served with a side of fried plantains and a sprinkling of gari. For those not familiar with it, gari is a coarse toasted cassava flour. It makes an altogether delightful dish that is perfectly suitable for vegans and vegetarians alike, and is naturally gluten-free. It is one of the simplest ways to experience the flavours of Ghanaian cooking, so if you would like to try something new, have a go at this.

I don’t remember being very fond of red red as a child, but for some reason the older I get, the fonder of it I become. It makes me wonder whether we gravitate towards the things that remind us most of home and our childhood when we are far away. My mother used to make this dish for us and now whenever I make red red, I think of her. Red red is a truly tasty and comforting dish.

What are the essential ingredients?

Cowpeas or Black-Eyed Peas

Black-eyed peas, a variety of cowpeas, are the most common bean to use. White black-eyed peas are very easy to get, hold their shape in the stew, and maintain a satisfying bite. Sometimes I mix them with chickpeas. Canned or dried versions of the beans work beautifully; however, the dried beans are the best. In Nigeria, there is a preference for brown cow-peas called oloyin or honey beans. These are very soft and sweet; therefore, if you use them, your stew will have a mashy consistency with delicious sweeter notes. My mother used the red version of cow-peas, and even though I didn’t really know what bean it was at the time, I remember that distinct colour.

It does make me wonder why we call red red, red red.

There are three possibilities: partly due to tomatoes, the red beans, or the palm oil, which we will discuss next. Considering that there are a variety of ways to make red red, and many people opt out of using tomatoes, I can almost immediately eliminate that as a reason, but we won’t rule it out. It could be due to the palm oil’s bright red-orange colour. And it could be the red beans.

Well, my mother once told me that tomato paste was becoming popular when she was at boarding school in the early 60s. This was right after President Kwame Nkrumah’s administration promoted local industries by investing in tomato processing. As the tomato paste trend rose, so did the popularity of serving red red at schools, and mama suggests it was, in fact, students who coined the term red red.

Red Palm Fruit Oil (Dende)

Palm or dende oil in the context of this recipe is the crude red fruit oil from the oil palm tree, Elaeis guineensis. It is a close cousin to the coconut tree therefore, it has an aromatic and rich nutty flavour once you cut through the fruit. A lot of Ghanaian red palm oil is made by cooperatives of women farmers. I have seen my mother make soup from palm fruits, called palm nut soup. As the soup is cooked, oil settles to the top. The cooperatives produce red palm oil using the same heat-and-separation method. I explain easy ways to buy palm oil in the “Where to get ingredients” section of this post.

The West African Trio: Onions, Tomatoes, Chilies

A great trio of onions, tomatoes and chilies are the start to most Ghanaian stews. Red red is no exception. And the chilies we use are scotch bonnet peppers with a unique flavour and aroma. These days we include ginger and garlic and enrich the stew by adding tomato paste. The stew takes an incredible amount of water, so you will use up about 500ml of vegetable stock and might still need a drop or two of water. You simply can’t make a mess of this dish.

Plantain And Gari (Toasted Cassava Grits)

The last 2 things you will need to complete this dish are plantains and a little bit of gari as a garnish. Fried plantains are the ubiquitous side dish, although I prefer to roast mine. I simply season them and coat them lightly in oil, then place on a parchment paper lined baking tray. Silicon mats are even better for this. I bake them until golden brown at a high oven temperature.

The addition of gari is quite interesting. This is because it’s made from cassava, a crop originally from South America. An interesting note is that they have something almost identical to gari in Brazil. It’s called farofa. Some sources claim our West African gari is something learned from South America through returnees from Brazil; this is a plausible claim. However, gari is always presented as a compliment to red red; with a dusting of gari on the side. It adds a textural crunch to the dish. Gari has many other uses in West African cooking, which I am happy to share in due course.

Some Variations

Red Red is not strictly a meatless dish, but it gives a balanced meal with additional proteins. Salted, smoked, or dried fish make flavoursome additions. It can also be cooked with meat like beef or goat. If you don’t like plantains, try roasted sweet potatoes. Their natural sweetness mimics the plantains. You can also serve it with rice or chapati.

Where To Get These Ingredients

Ingredients for red red such as palm oil, black-eyed peas or oloyin beans and gari, are now widely available in the UK online or at Afro Caribbean grocers. In London, you will be able to find these in most supermarkets South of the river. You can find them in areas such as North End Road market, Brixton and markets around Peckham and East Croydon. Plantains are also popular at Asian grocers, so if you are reading from further afield like Melbourne (oh I miss that place), the Victoria Market is a great place to start to search for them. Use the list below for an easy go-to online solution (contains affiliate links).

• Mama swears by Zomi palm oil
• Best value black eyed peas
• Honey Beans (oloyin beans)
• Gari (dried cassava flakes)

Nutritional Information

This makes a healthy, balanced vegan dish. The beans are protein-rich, fibre-rich, and rich in vitamins like iron and folate. Plantains are also fibre-rich and have high levels of potassium. This helps you to live longer by lowering blood pressure and reducing the risk of stroke. The palm oil is rich in beta carotene, which is good for the eyes. It is also great for promoting HDL cholesterol, which helps reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Need I say more? It sounds good so far. But with everything, moderate your intake, mix it up with some fresh vegetables. I love to serve this dish alongside dips like aubergine dip, and a tray of tomato and fresh herb salad like mint or basil. If you are in Nigeria and can get a hold of scent leaf or efirin, try it with the salad.

Jump to the recipe below or watch our tutorial on YouTube. Red Red, A Ghanaian Bean Stew.

Updated by Freda on 8 August 2026

Print Recipe

Red Red, Ghanaian Bean Stew with Fried Plantains (Vegan, Vegetarian, Gluten Free)

(10 votes, average: 4.20 out of 5)

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By Freda Muyambo – Serves: 4

Prep Time: Overnight soaking plus boiling the beans – Cooking Time: 40 minutes

Red red is a Ghanaian bean stew served with fried plantains. This recipe is simple, wholesome, gluten-free and vegan. Use whole beans and soak them. If you don't have the patience for that use canned beans, the dish is just as delicious.

Ingredients

• 1 cup of dry black-eyed peas (180-200g or 1 can of beans)
• 1/4 cup red palm oil
• 1 large onion
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 3 to 4 medium size, ripe tomatoes or 1 can of tomatoes
• 1 inch fresh ginger
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 scotch bonnet peppers
• 500ml vegetable stock
• salt to taste
• Water for soaking and boiling beans, extra as needed.

Instructions

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1. The first step is to pre-cook the beans if you are using dried beans from the market. Ensure they are clean and free of debris, then soak the beans in fresh water for about 2 hours or overnight, this makes the cooking process quicker. You can also soak the beans in hot water for half an hour before cooking. Boil the beans for 30 to 45 minutes until soft. Sometimes it takes longer, but an energy efficient method may be pressure cooking too. I will update on pressure cooking when I try this. If using ready to eat canned beans, you can start from step 2.

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2. Now that the beans are ready you can start the recipe. Chop the onions and tomatoes, crush the garlic and grate the ginger. Add the palm oil to a pan and saute the onions until caramelized. Add the tomato paste and fry for about a minute. My mother swears by this in all recipes she uses with tomato paste, to cook off the raw and sour taste.

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3. Add the garlic, fry about 30 seconds then add the ginger and tomatoes in and fry until they have cooked down. This should take 5 to 10 minutes. The scotch bonnet peppers can be added with the tomatoes. They are potently spicy so I advise you add them whole with just a prick to regulate the heat. Remove when serving. For heat junkies or the more adventurous, chop up and add half, whole or all two scotch bonnets for mighty fiery flavour.

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4. Add the cooked beans and vegetable stock then allow to simmer for half an hour on low heat. During this time you can prepare the plantains.

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5. Take 4 plantains. Peel, slice, season with salt and deep fry until golden brown or oven roast for 10 to 15 minutes until golden brown.

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6. Serve the dish garnished with a little gari powder.

Nutrition

• 452 Calories
• 79g Carbohydrates
• 16g Fat
• 12g Fiber
• 6g Protein
• 7g Saturated fat
• 418mg Sodium
• 32g Sugar
• 7g Unsaturated fat

Notes

If you do not have easy access to palm oil, try coconut oil if it's in your pantry. A lot of flavour is infused from the oil you use, and palm oil gives this dish that original West African flavour. These ingredients should all be accessible at your local grocery store. To get your hands on palm oil or plantains, try an Afro Caribbean or Asian store, in an organic store like Wholefoods or check online. If you would like to substitute the black-eyed peas for another bean, try chickpeas/garbanzo beans, pinto, aduki or kidney beans or a combination of your favourites.