Spicy Goan Curry Black-Eyed Peas

I stumbled across Hungry Desi last night and wanted to make everything I saw. I started with a recipe for black-eyed peas that Nithya adapted from Ruta Kahate’s “5 Spices, 50 Dishes” (as it appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle). I looked back to the original recipe, and added back in the coconut milk that Nithya left out.

 

 

Black-Eyed Peas Spicy Goan Curry Style
Adapted from Ruta Kahate, with ideas from Hungry Desi

In a large saucepan, heat the oil and saute the onion over medium-low heat until the onions turn deep golden brown, about 8 minutes:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, minced

To the well-browned onions, add the spices and cook another couple of minutes, stirring:
1 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoons finely minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon finely grated ginger
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cayenne (I left this out by mistake, but I would have used much less anyway)
1/2 teaspoon cumin

Add the tomato and cook over low heat, stirring, until the tomato melts into the onions and spices:
1/4 cup minced tomato

Add the beans, water and seasonings and simmer on low, covered, for about 10 minutes:
two 15-ounce cans black-eyed peas, drained
1 cup water
salt, to taste (the beans are pretty salty, so this is optional)
1/2 teaspoon sugar (not really so necessary)

Uncover the beans, add the coconut milk and simmer for another 8 minutes:
1 cup canned coconut milk (I used half this amount)

Add the cilantro and lemon and heat for a minute more before removing from the heat:
2 tablespoons minced cilantro leaves (I left this out, my husband is not a cilantro fan)
1 tablespoon lemon juice (I left this out from sheer laziness, and it was still really, really good)

Tags: black-eyed peas, curry, Rosh Hashana