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Tunisian Swiss chard stew (pkaila)

Vered Guttman
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Pkaila is a Jewish Tunisian dish that starts with the “essence” of slow-cooked Swiss chard (or spinach) to very dark color and smooth texture. The pkaila essence is then cooked with beef, dry beans and sometimes with marrow bones. Pkaila is considered a festive dish, served in special occasions and holidays alongside couscous. It is often served on Passover with a side of rice instead of the couscous.

The stew is cooked for a few hours, and sometimes even overnight, like cholent, and then served on Shabbat for lunch.  

The Libyan version of the stew is called tabcha b’silk, but the origin is considered Tunisian.

You can double the chard quantity, cook and puree as directed to make the pkaila essence, then freeze half for later use.

Tunisian Swiss chard stew (pkaila)
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Tunisian Swiss chard stew (pkaila)

Recipe by Vered GuttmanCourse: Main courseCuisine: Tunisian, Jewish, IsraeliDifficulty: Medium
Servings

6

servings
Prep time

30

minutes
Cooking time

3

hours 

45

minutes
Total time

4

hours 

15

minutes

Pkaila is a Jewish Tunisian dish that starts with the “essence” of slow-cooked Swiss chard (or spinach) to very dark color and smooth texture. The pkaila essence is then cooked with beef, dry beans and sometimes with marrow bones.

You can double the chard quantity, cook and puree as directed to make the pkaila essence, then freeze half for later use.

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 lb. Swiss chard or 1 lb. spinach

  • ¼ cup olive oil

  • 1½ beef chuck, in large cubes

  • 2 marrow bones (optional)

  • Kosher salt

  • 1 small yellow onion, diced

  • 3 cloves garlic, chopped

  • 1 cup dry lima bean or pinto beans, soaked in water overnight

  • 1 tablespoon dried mint

  • ¼ teaspoon white pepper

  • 2 cups boiling water

  • 3 Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut to 1½ inch cubes

  • 1 cup chopped cilantro

  • For serving

  • Prepared couscous

DIRECTIONS

  • If you’re using Swiss chard, remove the stems and chop the greens. You will not use the stems in this recipe, but you can use them for soups or simple salads (slice stems and sauté in oil, paprika and lemon juice.)
  • Put oil in a heavy bottom large pot over medium-high heat. Add chard greens or spinach to fill it all up, cover the pot and cook for a few minutes until it is wilted. If you have more greens left, add them now, mix, cover with lid again and cook until all the leaves are wilted. Remove lid, reduce heat to low, and cook for about 1 hour (not covered!), stirring occasionally, until chard is very dark. Make sure the chard doesn’t get dry and starts sticking to the bottom, add a little water if it does.
  • Transfer chard to a blender and mix until smooth.
  • While the chard is cooking, salt beef and bones.
  • Add beef and bones to the same pot you used for the chard and brown on both sides for a few minutes. Add onion and garlic and sauté for a few minutes longer, stirring occasionally. Drain beans and add to pot, together with spices, the puree’d chard and 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Pour boiling water to almost cover the stew, about 2 cups, mix to spread the chard all over, bring to boil, then cover and cook on low heat for 2 hours.
  • Add potato to pot and push it gently into the sauce, then top with chopped cilantro. Cover and continue to cook for another 45 minutes, until beef is very tender and potatoes are ready. Adjust salt to taste.
  • Serve over couscous.
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