An Ica-style combination where a mellow lima bean stew meets a deeply flavored beef seco. The white beans turn buttery while cilantro, chilies, and chicha de jora build the braise, with rice and salsa criolla completing the contrast. The fun starts when everything meets in the same spoonful and the neatly separated plate stops mattering.
Turn what you find into an experience you can actually bring to your kitchen.
Rinse the dried lima beans, place them in the pressure cooker with a little over half of the water, and bring to a boil without sealing the pot. Boil for 2 minutes, turn off the heat, and leave them in the hot water for 45 minutes. Drain and discard that water; this quick soak lets you cook the dish the same day without leaving the beans tough.
Return the soaked beans to the cooker with another portion of the water and part of the salt. Seal and pressure-cook for 30 to 35 minutes, until fully tender when bitten but still holding their shape. Turn off the heat and wait until all pressure has released before opening; reserve the beans with a little of their cooking liquid.
Heat part of the oil in a medium pot and cook part of the onion for 4 minutes, until soft. Add part of the garlic and cook for another 1 minute. Add the beans with a few spoonfuls of their cooking liquid and another portion of the salt; mash roughly one quarter against the side of the pot and cook for 5 minutes, until the beans are creamy and cohesive while plenty of whole beans remain visible.
While the beans cook, cut the beef into medium pieces and pat it dry. Heat the remaining oil in a large pot over high heat and brown the meat for 5 to 6 minutes, working in batches if needed, until it develops deeply browned edges. Add another portion of the onion and cook for 4 minutes; stir in the remaining garlic, the yellow chili, ají panca paste, cumin, black pepper, and another portion of the salt, then cook for another 3 minutes, until the seasoning is glossy and smells cooked rather than raw.
Blend the cilantro assigned to the seco with the chicha de jora and the remaining water until green and smooth. Pour it over the beef and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Once simmering, partially cover and cook over low heat for 35 to 40 minutes, until the meat is tender and the sauce is concentrated, juicy, and thick enough to coat a spoon. Add the peas for the final 5 minutes; if the sauce is still too loose, finish cooking uncovered.
Slice the remaining red onion very thinly and toss it with the remaining cilantro, ají limo, lime juice, and the last portion of salt. Let it sit for 5 minutes while you finish the stew; it should retain crispness and clean acidity, since its job is to cut through the creamy beans and the richness of the seco.
Warm the cooked white rice and serve each plate with a generous portion of beans, the beef seco with plenty of sauce, and rice alongside. Finish with salsa criolla without burying it under the stew. The right result has tender beans that still hold their shape, beef that yields to the fork, and a dark green sauce that mixes into the beans without making them watery. Done! Get all three into the next spoonful—that is where this dish fully makes sense. 😌
