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Gujarati-Style Black Eyed Peas


Edward

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Hello Everyone,

I got inspired by a can of blackeyed peas in my cupboard and a bunch of dill sitting in my fridge. Here is what I came up with. This recipe isn't officially written or tested, but its simple so it should work out fine. It turned out delicious.

Gujarati-Style Blackeyed Peas with Dill

(Lobhia aur Suwa)

3 tablespoons ghee or oil or a mixture

3/4 teaspoon mustard seeds

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds

1/8 teaspoon fenugreek seeds

1 medium onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)

1 large garlic clove, minced

1 cup peeled and diced fresh tomato

1 teaspoon Gujarati or Marathi-style garam masala, divided

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon red chili powder

1/4 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon sugar (optional)

1 (15.5 ounce) can blackeyed peas, with liquid

3/4 cup coarsely choppped fresh dill

Water as needed

Salt to taste

In a medium saucepan heat the ghee or oil over medium-high heat. When hot toss in the mustard seeds. As soon as they begin to splutter and pop add the cumin and fenugreek seeds. Cook until the cumin darkens a few shades.

Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to turn golden, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and stir for 1 minute more. Add the tomato to the pan and cook, stirring, until it begins to turn to pulpy sauce, about 3 minutes. Toss in half of the garam masala and all of the paprika, red chili powder, turmeric and the sugar if using. Stir once or twice. Now stir in the blackeyed peas with their liquid and the dill. Add enough water until you get the consistency you want, up to 1 1/2 cups. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes.

Stir in salt to taste, the remaining garam masala and 2-3 tablespoons more chopped dill before serving.

I ate it with plain basmati rice and a raita, but if you make it on the drier side it would go great with rotli.

Try this and let me know what you think.

If you don't have Gujarati or Marathi-style garam masala, the regular kind will work fine. Though I would avoid a pure Moghul garam masala, it is too cardamomy for this. You can make an approximate version by adding a little fennel seeds, ajwain, sesame seed, dried red chili and a star anise to your regular garam masala recipe.

Edited by Edward (log)

Edward Hamann

Cooking Teacher

Indian Cooking

edhamann@hotmail.com

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Hello Everyone,

I got inspired by a can of blackeyed peas in my cupboard and a bunch of dill sitting in my fridge. Here is what I came up with. This recipe isn't officially written or tested, but its simple so it should work out fine. It turned out delicious.

Gujarati-Style Blackeyed Peas with Dill

(Lobhia aur Suwa)

3 tablespoons ghee or oil or a mixture

3/4 teaspoon mustard seeds

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds

1/8 teaspoon fenugreek seeds

1 medium onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)

1 large garlic clove, minced

1 cup peeled and diced fresh tomato

1 teaspoon Gujarati or Marathi-style garam masala, divided

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon red chili powder

1/4 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon sugar (optional)

1 (15.5 ounce) can blackeyed peas, with liquid

3/4 cup coarsely choppped fresh dill

Water as needed

Salt to taste

In a medium saucepan heat the ghee or oil over medium-high heat. When hot toss in the mustard seeds. As soon as they begin to splutter and pop add the cumin and fenugreek seeds. Cook until the cumin darkens a few shades.

Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to turn golden, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and stir for 1 minute more. Add the tomato to the pan and cook, stirring, until it begins to turn to pulpy sauce, about 3 minutes. Toss in half of the garam masala and all of the paprika, red chili powder, turmeric and the sugar if using. Stir once or twice. Now stir in the blackeyed peas with their liquid and the dill. Add enough water until you get the consistency you want, up to 1 1/2 cups. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes.

Stir in salt to taste, the remaining garam masala and 2-3 tablespoons more chopped dill before serving.

I ate it with plain basmati rice and a raita, but if you make it on the drier side it would go great with rotli.

Try this and let me know what you think.

If you don't have Gujarati or Marathi-style garam masala, the regular kind will work fine. Though I would avoid a pure Moghul garam masala, it is too cardamomy for this. You can make an approximate version by adding a little fennel seeds, ajwain, sesame seed, dried red chili and a star anise to your regular garam masala recipe.

Edward can you please add this recipe to the eGRA. Thanks!

Monica Bhide

A Life of Spice

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hello Edward-this is my progress report.

cooked up two batches of lobia (one for a follow up version)

made a small batch of goda masala from this recipe i found online-

4 cups coriander seeds

1 cup dry coconut

1/2 cup white sesame seeds

1/2 cup black sesame seeds

1/4 cup cumin seeds

4-5 teaspoon caraway seeds (used ajowain instead)

2 teaspoon asafoetida (left out)

1-2 stick of cinnamon

3-4 cloves

1 black cardamom

3 dry red chilies

1 teaspoon turmeric powder & salt to taste( left out)

added star anise and some fennel.

a few roasted ,ground peanuts for the final mix.

hope all this isn't too far from what you had in mind?

proceeded as indicated in the recipe (i confess to having upped most of the spicing a notch or two)also dropped in the paprika etc before the tomato-force of habit i guess!anyway the verdict is- woody,tangy, herby -dillicious !sorry that was waiting to happen!this is to be eaten tomorrow with rotis.a squeeze of lemon is all i will add.the batch waiting to happen will be an attempt to fuse another favourite 'lima bean and dill polou' with this spicing-possibly a bit closer to the subtlety of the original!looking forward to trying that out.thank you! :biggrin:

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  • 3 weeks later...

i'm curious--what makes this a particularly gujarati recipe? is it the peanut oil? certainly punjabis and other north-indians cook lobia and channa in the same way.

with the onion and garlic it is unlikely to be a jain recipe--do you know what its antecedents might be?

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If I am not mistaken, I think what gives this distinction as a gujerati dish, is the use of fresh dill.

Rushina

Does any other group in India use fresh dill in cooking?

I called it Gujarati "style" because it is influenced by some Gujarati flavors, but is not necessarily a classic dish. The Gujarati garam masala that the dish calls for has a very distcint taste that comes from the use of fennel or star anise, ajwain, sesame seeds and hot red chilies;things you don't find in standard garam masalas.

So, that combined with the dill, a touch of sugar, and the the peanut oil tadka gives the dish a Gujurati feeling. The onion and garlic are my additions. Sabut toor dal is also really good this way.

Edward

Edited by Edward (log)

Edward Hamann

Cooking Teacher

Indian Cooking

edhamann@hotmail.com

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Happy to report that it turned out very good. Even my wife loved it! and she is picky. Was not aware of the use of dill in Indian cooking. Learn something new every day. Did not have time to get fresh dill so made do with the dried stuff. Fresh next time to see the difference.

Thank you Edward.

Bombay Curry Company

3110 Mount Vernon Avenue, Alexandria, VA 22305. 703. 836-6363

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Arlington, Virginia

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Happy to report that it turned out very good. Even my wife loved it! and she is picky. Was not aware of the use of dill in Indian cooking. Learn something new every day. Did not have time to get fresh dill so made do with the dried stuff. Fresh next time to see the difference.

Thank you Edward.

Great! I'm glad it turned out good. Definitely try it with fresh dill. It really does make a difference. The fresh stuff plays the role of both a shaak and a seasoning.

Edward

Edward Hamann

Cooking Teacher

Indian Cooking

edhamann@hotmail.com

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I called it Gujarati "style" because it is influenced by some Gujarati flavors, but is not necessarily a classic dish. The Gujarati garam masala that the dish calls for has a very distcint taste that comes from the use of fennel or star anise, ajwain, sesame seeds and hot red chilies;things you don't find in standard garam masalas.

So, that combined with the dill, a touch of sugar, and the the peanut oil tadka gives the dish a Gujurati feeling. The onion and garlic are my additions. Sabut toor dal is also really good this way.

I made a kadhi the other day, using the recipe in the Camellia Punjabi book. As a child I didn't like kadhi much, so I've never cooked it in the past, but this recipe looked good, there was okra in it, which I love, and I had tons of yoghurt in the fridge which needed using up, so I made it.

The vagar was quite distinctive - lots of cloves fried in ghee with methi seeds (fenugreek) and cumin and then, off the fire, a pinch of asafeotida and some fresh curry leaves. The moment I poured it on the kadhi I got this huge fragrant smell which was EXACTLY the smell I remember from my Guajrati aunt's house.

Odd, because I didn't think this a particularly Gujarati vagar - the amount of cloves, 8-9, in particular seemed odd, also curry leaves seem a much more south Indian thing - yet obviously it was right in some way because of the memory. The kadhi was good, though I don't think its changing my childhood opinion of kadhi,

Vikram

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  • 3 weeks later...
Hey Guys, I don't know a thing about Indian cooking so here is the idiot question: will this recipe work with cranberry beans?

Yes, it will work very well.

There is an equivalent for cranberry beans in Indian cuisine, it is the light flecked rajma.

I fry by the heat of my pans. ~ Suresh Hinduja

http://www.gourmetindia.com

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Hey Guys, I don't know a thing about Indian cooking so here is the idiot question:  will this recipe work with cranberry beans?

Yes, it will work very well.

There is an equivalent for cranberry beans in Indian cuisine, it is the light flecked rajma.

Episure, how do you cook cranberry beans Indian style?

Ya-Roo Yang aka "Bond Girl"

The Adventures of Bond Girl

I don't ask for much, but whatever you do give me, make it of the highest quality.

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Are they canned, fresh or dried.?

Fresh from the Greenmarket. I usually cook them in water with onion, thyme, marjoram, some parsley and a smoked chili to give it some flavor. Drain, toss with mint, olive oil and a sprinkle of salt eat with bread. But, since they are so good from the market, I can't pass up buying a whole lot of them, so now I'm looking for different ways to cook them.

Ya-Roo Yang aka "Bond Girl"

The Adventures of Bond Girl

I don't ask for much, but whatever you do give me, make it of the highest quality.

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Are they canned, fresh or dried.?

Fresh from the Greenmarket. I usually cook them in water with onion, thyme, marjoram, some parsley and a smoked chili to give it some flavor. Drain, toss with mint, olive oil and a sprinkle of salt eat with bread. But, since they are so good from the market, I can't pass up buying a whole lot of them, so now I'm looking for different ways to cook them.

You could use Edward's recipe which is exact and precise. However since you are new to Indian cuisine, this is what I suggest :

Quantity of beans- about 300 g

Cook them with a little water, tomato puree, garlic, smoked chili and salt.

After they are cooked tender, take some butter and saute 1 tsp cumin seeds and 1 tsp garam masala and stir this in to the pot. That's it.

What other spices do you have access to?

Try this out first and then we will lure you into making some more complex recipes. :smile:

Edited by Episure (log)

I fry by the heat of my pans. ~ Suresh Hinduja

http://www.gourmetindia.com

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Thanks Episure, I will try this an Edward's recipe. If I don't have access to the good stuff, I bribe people to smuggle them for me. :cool: I am 10 minutes away from Kaluystans and a train ride away from Jackson heights, so i can pretty much get a lot of stuff here.

Ya-Roo Yang aka "Bond Girl"

The Adventures of Bond Girl

I don't ask for much, but whatever you do give me, make it of the highest quality.

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