Black-Eyed Pea Patties with Chili Sauce

Looking for something different to serve to a special friend of mine who happens to adore black-eyed peas, I consulted my treasured copy of World Vegetarian Classics by Celia Brooks Brown. Once again, I was attracted to the two chapters devoted to African recipes. This one is Nigerian in origin, and is served with pilipili, which essentially means chili sauce. Ms. Brooks suggests using canned beans, as the traditional preparation involves rubbing the skins off. I decided to use dried beans, neglected to rub off the skins, adjusted the measurements slightly and came up with bean patties instead of the smaller cakes featured in the book. The earthy taste of the black-eyed peas really come out here, and is perfectly complimented by the chili sauce.

I served these for dinner, along with Rice and Green Lentils in Coconut Milk to incorporate the essential grain component of the meal.

This is my contribution to World Food Day - Time to be Thankful, an event hosted by Ivy, Val, and Giz. I'm thankful that I have access to good food, have acquired the means to transform it into something not only nourishing but delicious and most of all, I am thankful that I have loved ones to share with.

Black-Eyed Pea Patties with Pilipili


For the bean patties:

1 cup of dried black-eyed peas
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 - 2 fresh green chilies, finely chopped
1 teaspoon of sea salt
2 eggs
1/4 cup of unbleached white flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
oil for frying

For the pilipili:

2 red bell peppers, seeded, and halved
2 fresh green chilies, roughly chopped
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
1 clove of garlic, coarsely chopped
juice from one small lemon

Soak the beans in water overnight. Drain, transfer to a large pot, cover with fresh water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and cover and cook until the beans are soft - roughly 40 minutes. Drain and transfer to a food processor. Pulse the beans, adding warm water a tablespoon at a time until you get a smooth paste that has a consistency much like a thick cake batter. Add the onion, green chili, salt, eggs, flour and baking powder. Pulse until the mixture is thoroughly combined.

In a large non-stick pan, heat a shallow pool of oil over medium heat. When hot, drop in heaped tablespoons of the batter and fry until golden on each side.

To make the chili sauce, put the peppers in a pot of boiling water and cook until they are soft - roughly 8 minutes. Drain and transfer to a food processor, along with the chillies, salt, garlic and lemon juice. Process until well combined. Serve with the bean patties.

Makes enough to feed 4-6 people.

You might also enjoy these Northeast African Millet Patties.