Jamaican Stew Peas – Immaculate Bites

Jamaican Stew Peas Recipe – This cozy Jamaican stew is a delectable mix of red beans, meat, and special dumplings called spinners. Cook it all up in an aromatic coconut milk broth with Jamaican spices for a hearty island stew! 🏝️

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

Spinners are a great addition, too, because stew peas aren’t the same without them. These tasty little Jamaican dumplings help thicken the stew, making it more substantial. They’re super easy to make and cook when dropped in the simmering stew broth.

Once everything is together, the stew simmers until all the ingredients meld beautifully. Simply put, Jamaican stew peas with spinners are the epitome of comfort food. The stew is outstanding, and the spinners make it all the more tempting. 😋

What Kind of Meat for Jamaican Stew Peas?

Traditionally, you’d make Jamaican stew peas with salted pork tails, often available in Latin and Caribbean markets. Yes, it does add 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 a smoky, almost beef flavor—plus, it’s healthier. Other ideal substitutes include ham hocks, oxtail, or even beef. Use whatever works for you.

Recipe Ingredients

1. Meat – Stew beef, smoked turkey, salted pigs’ tails, ham hocks, or any other meat you choose works with this stew. 
2. Kidney Beans – These red peas are what the stew is named after and why it’s such a hearty dish.
3. Seasonings – Diced onion, minced garlic, and scotch bonnet pepper, plus plenty of spices like allspice, thyme, smoked paprika, black pepper, and bay leaves, add depth and layers to the overall flavor. 
4. Broth – Chicken or vegetable broth gives this dish its soupy stew consistency while adding flavor.
5. Coconut Milk – Homemade coconut milk works great for this recipe—however, canned coconut milk and powdered coconut milk with water work. If using coconut cream, mix one cup with one cup of water for the two cups. It’s all good.
6. Spinners – Flour, coconut milk or water, and a little salt are all you need to make the tasty Jamaican dumplings.

How to Make Jamaican Stew Peas

Assemble the Stew Peas

• Season the meat with salt and pepper, thoroughly covering all sides.
• Heat the oil in a large pot or oven-safe Dutch oven pan over medium heat. Next, add the meat or meats and sauté for 2-3 minutes per side until any beef slightly browns up.
• Add the onions, green onions, garlic, thyme, bay leaf, paprika, and allspice and sauté for another 3-5 minutes.
• Liquids and Peas – Pour in coconut milk, broth, beans, and a whole scotch bonnet and bring it all to a boil. Let it cook for about 40 minutes or more, depending on your choice of protein. 

Make the Spinners

• Combine – While the stew is simmering, make the spinners. Combine water, flour, and garlic salt in a medium bowl-knead dough for about 30 seconds to a minute to form a soft dough.
• Divide the dough into 10-14 equal pieces.
• Form – Next, shape the dough by rolling each piece with your hands, as if you are making a log – somewhat like a sausage.
• Cook – Add the spinners to the stew about 15 minutes or more before the stew is ready. Gently drop the spinners into the pot and add more water or coconut milk if needed.
• Test – Let it cook until the dumplings are tender, for about 15-20 minutes. Taste your stew and adjust the seasonings as needed.
• Serve piping hot!

Recipe Variations

1. Make it vegan! Skip the meat and use vegetable broth for the stew base for Jamaican stew peas that will appeal to vegetarians and vegans alike.
2. Add extra vegetables. Veggies like carrots and bell peppers make welcome additions to this stew if you’re so inclined.
3. Pea swap. Your dish will be a little less traditional, but you could swap out kidney beans for pinto beans, black beans, or any other bean you prefer. 🫘

Tips and Tricks

1. If you use a tough cut of meat, let it cook until tender before you add the kidney beans. 
2. The scotch bonnet added whole won’t make the dish as spicy. It simply adds some nice flavor. Just make sure it isn’t bruised or damaged before adding it to the stew, use caution when stirring, and take it out along with the bay leaves before serving. 
3. If you do want your Jamaican stew peas extra spicy, cut up the pepper and saute it with the onion and garlic instead of dropping it in whole. 🔥

Make-Ahead Instructions

Stews and soups are great for making ahead. Cook up a pot a day or two in advance and let it cool completely before storing it in an airtight container in the fridge. When ready to indulge, reheat it on the stovetop over medium heat.

While freezing might damage the dumplings, you could cool and freeze the stew without them. Freeze the dumplings separately and cook the stew and dumplings together after thawing overnight in the fridge. They should last for 3-4 months in an airtight freezer-safe container.

Serving and Storage Instructions 

Serve Jamaican stew peas piping hot for pure comfort food.

Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for 3-5 days or freeze for 2-3 months. Reheat them on the stovetop or in the microwave until heated through.

What Goes With Jamaican Stew Peas

Many folks like to serve this stew alongside a bed of steaming white rice or Caribbean rice and peas. You could also serve it over cornmeal coo coo. Try it with a side of callaloo or even some grilled pineapple. 🍍

More Savory Jamaican Dishes to Try

1. Callaloo and Saltfish
2. Curry Goat
3. Fried Dumplings
4. Oxtail Stew
5. Curry Shrimp

Watch How to Make It

This blog post was originally published in January 2017 and has been updated with additional tips, new photos, and a video.