Togolese vegan bowl and Gut diversity

About this Recipe

This is a delicious high protein vegan bowl, full of flavours and different from what I usually share. The main starch here is Yam. Yam is a tuber vegetable like Sweet potato, high in fibre, potassium, folate, vitamin C. It’s a highly nutritious root vegetable originating from Africa and the Carribeans. I grew up eating a lot of Yams either boiled, fried or pounded. It is a staple in our west african diets and is one of the many dietary reasons why african populations that consume a lot of tubers have healthy and regular bowel movements.

Ingredients

1/2 Yam peeled
1 can of wilted spinach
1can of black eyes beans
1/2 tbsp salt
3 tbsp Olive oil
4 large tomatoes
1 large onion
4 garlic cloves
1tbsp of Ginger

No matter where you leave int he world you should be able to find these ingredients easily in African, Carribean sometimes Indian food shops. You will find the beans, and the spinach in big supermarkets as well.

Nutrition

Why is it important to eat different types of foods and keep your diet varied?

We now know through recent research and studies, that our gut microbiome plays a key role in our overall health and is home to 70% of our immune system.

Keeping our diet varied, means bringing in a diversity of bacterias that will improve our gut health and support the immune system.

A healthy gut is linked to a healthy looking skin, balanced and happy mood, regular bowel movements and an increase in energy.

Step by Step Instructions

Step 1

The Yam. Peel the Yam using a big sharp knife as the skin is quite thick and cut it into small chunks (small potato size). Once cut, rinse them thoroughly and put them to boil in salted water for 30min or until they are cooked through. You can do this at medium high

Step 2

The beans. While your yam is boiling, rinse your beans and sautes them in Olive Oil. Add 2 thinly sliced garlic cloves, 1 tbsp of ginger, salt. Add 1 cup of water to soften the beans and make them a little mushier. Cover your pan with the lid and let the beans soften for 15min on low.

Step 3

The spinach. Open your can and add the spinach to a pan to warm it up and season with chili. If there is some water in the can you can add it. The spinach will absorb it, but usually there aren’t any water in cooked spinach cans.

You can warm the spinach up for 5min, making sure it doesn’t dry up.

Step 4

The Tomato sauce. Cut your tomatoes and onions into small cubes/chunks. Then cook the mix in a pan on low with a tad of olive oil. Add some salt and some chilli flakes for a little kick. Let it cook for 5min only. You just want to soften up the onions and tomato, not cook them through.

Step 5

Once your Yam is boiled, you can have it as with the rest of the ingredients or crisp them in the oven or grill. I like them boiled but they are delicious either way.