black-eyed peas chundal

Black-eyed peas, chick peas, lima beans, pinto beans, kidney beans, black beans seem like such an easy way to add nutrition to everyday foods.

This recipe here for "chundal" (sometimes, called "thoran") is a general method for preparing these beans as a snack or side - can substitute black-eyed peas with any of the other beans, while keeping the rest of the ingredients and method the same.

Also, sprouting the beans before using in this recipe seemed like a good idea, so, I started doing that for my wee tot lately, even though cooking the sprouts sort of diminishes the nutritional value a bit... every little bit counts when they are picky-eaters.


Ingredients
1½ cups dry black-eyed peas
1 small yellow onion, sliced
½ cup fresh or dry grated coconut
1-2 dry red chilies (or fresh green chilies)
1-2 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp cumin powder
½ tsp turmeric powder
1 Tbsp lemon juice
salt to taste
water as needed

tempering:
1 tsp urad dal
1 tsp chana dal
½ tsp mustard seeds
½ cumin seeds
1 Tbsp canola oil

chiffonade 4-5 curry leaves for garnish(optional)

Preparation:

1. soak the black-eyed peas overnight, or for about 4-6 hours; drain, rinse and cook in pressure cooker, or stove-top, till cooked but still firm and not mushy; set aside
   
2. grind the coconut, garlic and chilies into a coarse paste and set aside
3. heat oil in a pan, add the tempering: dals first and when they turn golden brown, mustard seeds and when they pop and die down, add the cumin seeds, turn the heat to medium-low
4. add the onions and sauté till it turns translucent
5. add the cooked black-eyed peas, coconut paste, turmeric, cumin, coriander and salt to taste; stir well
6. off heat, stir in lemon juice, garnish with curry leaves and serve warm as a snack or side, along with rice, rasam, sambar, or even roti