Delicious Vegan Protein: Black-eyed Peas Curry
Growing up in India, Black Eyed Peas to me was well… the American hip hop group. As much as I enjoyed grooving to “Don’t Phunk with My Heart” and “Pump It”, I love the lentil, that I started eating when I moved to Washington DC seven years ago, WAY MORE!
Of course black-eyed peas on their own are awesome. But give them the curry treatment given to chickpeas and red kidney beans and they become even more awesome! And remember, while the curry is ideally made with all the ingredients listed, missing a spice or two will not make that much of a difference.
To make the black-eyed peas curry that serves at least five,
You Will Need:
500 g of black-eyed peas, soaked overnight and cooked
(or canned, cooked)
Two medium-sized onions, chopped fine
Four medium-sized tomatoes, chopped fine
Two fat pods of garlic, crushed
One-inch cube of ginger, crushed
Canola oil to coat the bottom of skillet
Indian spices — Cumin seeds, bay leaf, two cloves,
one stick of cinnamon and two pods of cardamom
Spice powders — Red chilli powder and turmeric powder
Salt to taste
Chopped cilantro (coriander leaves) — for garnish
Chopped green onions — for garnish
One and a half cups of black-eyed peas stock / water
Method of Preparation:
Coat the skillet with oil and heat. Add in the spices. Once an aroma develops, add in the ginger and garlic pastes and chopped onion. Stir occasionally and let the onions turn translucent and eventually brown slightly.
Then, add in the chopped tomatoes and cook them down to form a sauce. Add in a teaspoon of chilli powder, a pinch of turmeric and a little salt. Add in just the cooked black-eyed peas. Then, measure one and a half cups of the water the peas were cooked in, and add it in. If you do not have the black-eyed peas stock, add an equivalent amount of water. Let the curry cook for a few minutes. Use a lid if you like.
Once the desired consistency is reached, adjust for salt and chilli powder. Garnish with chopped cilantro (coriander leaves) and chopped green onions.
Serve warm with rice or flat breads.
Black-eyed peas make an excellent source of protein for vegans such as me. Here are the details:
(Source: http://nutritiondata.self.com/)
I haven’t visited Japan yet. But from what I’ve seen in Japanese bars or izakayas, Japanese love their edamame steamed and salted. Over the past few years, I have incorporated this preparation of these green soybeans in my snacking routine and have been very impressed 
with the results. Not only does a small packet full full of frozen edamame pods, yield a filling meal, it is also a splendid source of vegetarian protien! And needless to say steamed and salted edamame are yummy to the point of being addictive.
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