Black-Eyed Peas with Spices and Herbs

The list of blogs in my google reader grows longer each week. The large number of delightful recipes that I scroll through each day tempts me away from my extensive cookbook selection. One such recipe that inspired a simple but very flavourful and spicy midweek meal was Ann's Black Eyes in a Spicy Curry. I only discovered Ann's blog recently, but already I have bookmarked some of her beautiful creations to try. Thanks to Ann for the inspiration.

Serve this spicy dish with rice or any Indian flatbread.

Black-Eyed Peas with Spices and Herbs

1 cup of black-eyed peas
1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2 - 3 hot green or red chilies
1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
2 teaspoons of garam masala
1/2 teaspoon of paprika
1/2 teaspoon of turmeric
1/2 teaspoon of cayenne
1/2 teaspoon of dried red chili flakes
1 large tomato, seeded and finely chopped

roughly 1 1/2 inch piece of tamarind

small handful of fresh mint leaves, finely chopped (I used five good sized ones)
1 teaspoon of dried fenugreek leaves (methi)
1/4 cup of fresh parsley, chopped
small handful of dried curry leaves
sea salt to taste

Soak the beans overnight in enough water to cover. Drain, transfer to a pot with 2 cups of water, bring to a boil and reduce the heat to low and cover and simmer until the beans are just tender (roughly 20 - 30 minutes).

Meanwhile, put the tamarind chunk in a small bowl and cover with 1/2 cup of hot water. Let sit for about 30 minutes.

Heat a few teaspoons of oil in a frying pan over medium heat. When hot, add the ginger, cumin seeds and hot peppers to the pan and stir and fry for a few minutes. Now add the garam masala, turmeric, cayenne, paprika and chili flakes to the pan and stir and fry for another minute. Add the tomato and continue to cook, stirring often, for another 5 minutes or so. Add this mixture to the just tender beans, along with the mint, fenugreek leaves, parsley, curry leaves and strained tamarind water (discard the pulp). Cook until the beans are buttery soft - roughly another 15 - 20 minutes. At this point, you may wish to mash some of the beans with an immersible hand blender, or scoop some out, mash and return to the pot. Stir in the salt and serve in small bowls or over steaming hot rice.

Yields 4 servings.

More black-eye pea dishes from my vegetarian kitchen:
Black-Eyed Peas with Fresh Dill
Black-Eyed Pea and Quinoa Croquettes with a Creamy Mushroom Sauce
Black-Eyed Pea Patties
Black-Eyed Peas with Mustard, Cumin and Curry Leaves

On the top of the reading stack: The Good Soldier by Ford Madox Ford

Audio accompaniment: The River Made No Sound by Pan American