Cowpeas Curry / Black Eyed peas Curry / Lobia Curry

           When I read the way Aparna described about My Legume Love Affair and the reason she is in for the event, I was smiling because I'm also in her shoes. I started getting into more and more blog events and trying to cook accordingly to tackle the completion dates and one day I realized that I am using my passion to compete instead of doing what I really wanted to do.

Just like her, I now take part only in a few events that I feel I can put my best without losing the fun of blogging. So joining you Aparna with this Cowpeas curry recipe for the first time in "My Legume Love Affair".

Ingredients:

To Saute and Grind:
Onion - 2 heaped cups (2 large onions Roughly chopped)
Tomato - 1 heaped cup (1 medium tomato)
Green chilli - 4 no's (your little finger sized)
Garlic - 5 big pods
Oil - 1 teaspoon

To Temper:
Oil - 2 tablespoon
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
Fennel seeds - 1 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 5 to 6 leaves
Dry Red chilli - 2 no's

For Curry:
Cow peas / Black eyed peas - 1-1/2 cups (This is dry peas measurement)
Chilli powder - 1-1/2 teaspoons
Coriander powder - 3-1/2 teaspoons
Salt - as needed
Water - 2-1/4 cups (Includes for cooking curry only)


Method:

• Soak the cow peas in a bowl of water above 2 inches of the level of cow peas for 6 hours. After 6 hours they look bulged and raised up. You will get about 3-1/2 heaped cups of Cow peas after soaking.

• In a kadai, add a teaspoon of Oil with Onions, Green chilli, Garlic, Salt and saute until the onions are transparent. Add Tomatoes now and saute until they are soft, switch off the stove and let it cool down. Grind the mixture to fine paste.

• Heat a pressure cooker, add oil and temper the ingredients under "To Temper" column. Add the ground paste with Chilli, Coriander powders and required salt. Saute until it bubbles. Add Soaked Cow peas with water. Check for salt and pressure cook up to 4 to 5 whistles(I ran it for 5 whistles).

• Mix well and curry is ready to serve.

My Notes:

• Soaking Cow peas overnight is also acceptable, if so remember you will need to run only less number of whistles.
• We can pressure cook Cow peas separately and add that to the cooked paste with powders and give a boil too but pressure cooking along with masala makes the curry more smooth and tasty.
• Grated coconut can also be added while sauteing onions and tomatoes and then grind to paste or after pressure cooking add some coconut milk and switch off by not letting the cooked curry to boil. 

Happy to Send this Recipe to :

The 61st Edition of My Legume Love Affair (MLLA)
Hosted by Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen