Oh.. these Black eyed peas!!!
They’re cheap, they’re adaptable to any recipe, they’re easy to make and store and they’re considered as power food. Yes, these lentils and legumes are pure gold to our health. When I don’t have right veggie lying in my pantry that goes very well with chapati, then I surely turn to legumes and lentils. At that time these black eyed peas TOP the list and accompany my lovingly cooked flat bread that is chapati. These affordable little nuggets of nutrition make for a pretty awesome gravy which is leading my current favorite chapati side dish list.
Onions, ginger – garlic and tomatoes are sauteed’ to perfection with all the classic flavors of basic spices which is then combined with already cooked, soft black eyed peas => Black eyed peas masala. It sounds pretty simple and pleasant like, and that’s because it is.
A bowlful of black eyed peas masala along with fresh, warm chapati is extremely good breakfast as per me. The legumes themselves are so beautiful to click with the contrast color built in them, so when they are cooked with juicy, pulpy tomato they get classy texture too. This visual delight with appealing, vivid colored and textured black eyed peas masala would be loved by every one for sure.
Black Eyed Peas Masala | Delicious Chapati Side Dish
Ingredients
- Black eyed peas- 1 cup
- Tomatoes- 2 nos.
- Onions- 2 nos.
- Garlic- 3 pods
- Ginger- 1" inch piece
- Salt- 1 tsp
- Red chilly powder- 1 tsp
- Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
- Garam masala- 3/4 tsp
- Coriander powder- 1 tsp
- Coriander leaves- Handful
Seasoning ingredients
- Cooking oil- 2 tsp
- Cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp
- Curry leaves- Few
Instructions
Preparation
- Soak black eyed peas in enough water for about 4 hours or overnight.
- Peel off the onions and chop them in to fine pieces. Similarly chop the tomatoes too in to medium chunks. Finely Crush ginger, garlic and keep them aside till use.
Method
- Pressure cook soaked legumes with little salt till they turn soft, I cooked for 3 whistles and simmered for about 5 minutes. Let the pressure subside naturally.
- Meanwhile heat a cooking pan and add oil. When the oil gets heated up add cumin seeds and curry leaves. As the cumin starts spluttering include chopped onions. Saute them till they turn translucent.
- Throw the crushed ginger, garlic too for sauteing. Continue stirring and add chopped tomatoes. Cook them together till the tomatoes turn soft and pulpy. At that stage you need to mix in all spice powders(turmeric, red chilly, garam masala, coriander powder and salt). Combine well.
- Finally include cooked black eyed peas along with it's water. Combining everything together, smash some of the legumes using back of the ladle so that the gravy becomes thick. Let the masala boil for a while and switch off the flame. Garnish it with chopped coriander leaves.
- Amazingly delicious chapati side dish black eyed peas masala is ready. Serve it with chapati, roti.
Notes
- I soaked the black eyed peas overnight, so I required less time to cook them till soft. If you soak for 4 hours or less, adjust cooking time accordingly.
- If you do not like the ginger-garlic smell, then you cannot skip them too.
- Adding some salt while pressure cooking the legumes helps them to absorb the salt well.
