Growing up, there were weekday meals and weekend meals. My mother used to cook lots of vegetables during the work week and reserve the dishes that took longer to cook, like curries and stews, for the weekends. It was a time management thing I guess. Two working parents and a busy home to run, it was difficult, but my mom always found a way to make sure we had a healthy traditional meal on the table.
I remember as a child how much I despised bora, it just had a taste that didn't sit right with me, but I still ate it so as to not waste the money my mother spent on these freakishly long string beans. I also have vivid memories of my uncle Chris, who would sometimes stop by randomly; he would eat a couple of the beans raw, right out of the refrigerator! I thought it was pure craziness, these beans were so bitter and I couldn't find a good taste in them, but that was then.
As I got older I noticed I actually started to like bora! It became one of my favorite dishes prepared by my mother. I even realized when I went to Guyana that it was quite common to enjoy them raw, and I certainly did! Loved the crunch of the uncooked bean and equally loved the nutty taste when cooked. I started cooking bora when I moved out on my own and it has now become a weekday meal for me again. So here's to giving a second chance to the foods you once hated as a child, but now love as an adult! Another one of mom's recipes, documented and shared 🙂 Enjoy!
Bora, Bodi, Chinese long beans
These long beans have various names, I have heard it called, yard long bean or Chinese long beans. Trinidadians call it bodi, Guyanese know it as bora. The most interesting one to me is "yard long bean" because even though they are called yard-long bean, they are only about 18 inches long and can grow up to 30 inches in length! They are used in many different ways; in Guyanese cooking, we chop it into small pieces and use it in fried rice, it can also be curried or included in Guyanese-Chinese stir fry dishes.
My two favorite ways to have bora is sauteed and in fried rice. Today I have sauteed this bora with white belly shrimp (link to my white belly shrimp and pumpkin recipe) and potatoes. Many people add different proteins to this dish. You can certainly serve it with saltfish, shrimp, chicken, and even minced beef. It can be served alongside rice or roti (see here for my oil roti recipe) and even bakes (my fry bake recipe). This is the way my mom makes her bora. The cook in your family might have a different recipe, which I am sure is just as delicious!
Preparation
Chop the heads off of the bora beans and cut the rest of the bean into 1-inch pieces. I also like my bora a little longer, some people cut them into ½ inch pieces. Do what you prefer. My mom used to cut this by hand, a few bora beans at a time.
Rinse beans after chopping and set aside.
Prep all your ingredients. 1 large tomato, 1 small yellow onion, 3 cloves garlic, 2 small potatoes, 2 handfuls of white belly shrimp and desired amount of hot pepper.
Add 3 tablespoon oil to a pot and saute onions, garlic, and pepper until onions are tender. Add tomatoes and once tomatoes are soft, add bora beans.
If you prefer to use salt, you may do so, my mom always used chicken or vegetable bouillon cubes. I've seen these in two sizes, rectangular, and little cubes. I used one rectangular shaped cube. I assume this would equal about 3 smaller cubes.
After about 5-6 minutes of placing bora beans in the pot, add bouillon cube, black pepper, and ⅓ cup water (not pictured). Let this cook for 20-25 minutes.
After 20-25 minutes, if you feel the beans are still a little hard, let it cook for an additional 5-6 minutes before adding the potatoes. The tenderness of the bora is all about preference.
Let potatoes cook until tender.
While potatoes are cooking, cook your protein separately. If you are adding beef or chicken, cook it before adding the bora to the pot.
Fry Bora with Shrimp and Potatoes
Ingredients
- 1 bundle bora beans
- 1 small yellow onion
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 wiri wiri pepper or scotch bonnet
- 1 large tomato
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 3 tablespoon canola or olive oil
- 1 large chicken/vegetable bouillon cube or 3 small maggi cubes
- 2 teaspoon tomato paste
- ¼ cup water
- 2 small potatoes or 1 large, peeled and chopped
Shrimp seasoning
- ½lb shrimp
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- dash black pepper
- dash salt
- 1 teaspoon oil
Instructions
- Chop heads off of beans and cut into one-inch pieces. Rinse chopped beans and set aside.
- Chop onion, garlic, tomato, potatoes, and pepper.
- Prep and season shrimp. Add shrimp to a bowl, add seasoning and mix. Heat a frying pan with a little oil, add shrimp and cook 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Heat kahari or pot with 3 tablespoon oil on medium heat. Add garlic, onions, and pepper. Saute until onions become tender. Add tomatoes.
- Once tomatoes are soft, add chopped bora. Let cook a few minutes then add bouillon cube, black pepper, paprika, tomato paste, and water. Mix to combine. Cover with lid, turn heat to medium and let cook for 20-25 minutes. Stirring occasionally.
- After 20 minutes, add the potatoes, cook until potatoes are tender.
- Once potatoes are cooked, add shrimp to the pot and toss to combine.
Food is Love. Love is Food. says
Yummerz!!!
Cynthia says
Young lady, you out to know that this is a favourite combo of mine! Love bora with shrimp and potatoes!
camera obscura says
this was my absolute favourite dish as a child. i too used to eat bora raw and still love it. thanks so much for the recipe!
asha hariprashad says
great site.I love fried Bora
Jasmin D'Aguiar says
I add coconut milk to my Bora, it's a much richer taste.
Hulahindu says
Which type of heat should be used to cook this with? Also, should this be cooked covered or uncovered? Thanks. 🙂
hulahindu says
I finally made this. The only thing I did differently was use a can of diced tomatoes instead of one tomato because that's all I had on hand. I cooked it on medium heat, uncovered. The bottom of the pot burned (even with stirring it every 4-5 minutes) and the potatoes did not cook all the way through. I will need to make some adjustments for next time. 🙁
jenine freeman says
Alica,
This dish came out amazing. Thank You!
jenine freeman says
This dish was delicious. Thank You!
pjbakki says
This is a fantastic site!!
Bibi Hassan says
Can canned green beans be used as a substitution?
Bibi Hassan says
Can canned green beans be used as a substitution?
Tiffany says
I made this for my mom and she LOVED IT! this blog is God sent
Alica says
Hi Tiffany, that's great to hear. Mom's approval is the best!
Lianne says
Hilary Alicia. I just found your blog. I'm do glad you mentioned this dish. I've been scouring the Internet to find typical guyanese weekday meals do I can meal plan but still keep it traditional for my fam. Can you list some other typical weekday meals you remember? Or do a post on that. Thanks
Lianne says
Sorry for all the crazy mispellings. I'm using my phone lol
Alica says
Hi Lianne, welcome, so glad you found my blog! As for some suggestions- I remember my mom always made bhaji, pumpkin, squash, kareila, dhal + rice with some vegetable. I have recipes for all the dishes I mentioned above. Let me know if you have trouble finding them. 🙂
Maryam says
Going to try your method My hubs and Iove Bora. Thanks love that you are demonstrating with pictures it’s so detailed thanks a lot Alica
Alica says
Thanks! So glad you're finding the site useful :).
Lara says
Hi Alica! Made this last night! Didn't have boullion cube so used salt, omitted the shrimp for a vegetarian option, and added a little bit of tomato paste for extra tang (pregnancy cravings haha). Thank you for providing such tasty easy to follow back-home recipes. The pictures are so helpful!
Alica says
Hi Lara, your changes sound great! Glad you enjoyed it :).
Zee says
Hello Alica,
I have a problem cooking Bora. Mine always comes out hard. I boiled it for over an hour and it's still hard. I was trying to maker fried bora like you did. Even if I curry my bora it's always hard. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. My Mom comes a really soft fried bora work chicken but mine is hard. Any advise? Love your recipes.
Doonwati Singh says
Hi Alica, I must say that you're very beautiful! I'm very curious to know how does the name bora came about; is it a French name? Thank you in advance. You're doing a great job; love you and your site. God blessings.