Dried Beans, Dried Peas, Lentils, and Nuts
Dried beans, dried peas, and lentils, also known as legumes or pulses, are among the earliest of cultivated crops. These little nutritional powerhouses, bursting with protein, vitamins, minerals, fiber, and complex carbohydrates, are mere seeds that grow in large and small pods. Valued as nuggets of gold, they sustained ancient Vedic India, the biblical Middle East, the pharaohs of Egypt, and the royals who strolled in the gardens of Babylon.
What our ancestors did to plow the earth and wrest from it foods to nourish us is something we of the supermarket culture have quite forgotten. As a child, I remember sitting with my mother and all the other women of our large Indian household, perpetuating my little place in a family ritual.
The oldest woman of the house—generally my grandmother—would place a few handfuls of lentils, split peas, or beans into the big metal plates we each held. Quite automatically, we drew the legumes to the edge nearest our bodies. Then, in an ancient ritual, enacted as if in a half-remembered dance, we began pushing the lentils toward the far side one by one, plucking up and discarding all sticks and stones as we did so. Sometimes we sang, sometimes we gossiped, sometimes we were lost in our own silences.
As we were doing this in India, Chinese, Syrians, Mexicans, and Peruvians were doing the same in their own courtyards, gardens, and kitchens. The following poem, “A Woman Cleaning Lentils,” comes from Turkey, written by the Armenian poet Zahrad. It unites us all.
A lentil, a lentil, a lentil, a stone.
A lentil, a lentil a lentil, a stone.
A green one, a black one, a green one, a black. A stone.
A lentil, a lentil, a stone, a lentil, a lentil, a word.
Suddenly a word. A lentil.
A lentil, a word, a word next to another word. A sentence.
A word, a word, a word, a nonsense speech.
Then an old song.
Then an old dream.
A life, another life, a hard life. A lentil. A life.
An easy life. A hard life, Why easy? Why hard?
Lives next to each other. A life. A word. A lentil.
A green one, a black one, a green one, a black one, pain.
A green song, a green lentil, a black one, a stone.
A lentil, a stone, a stone, a lentil.
In this chapter, I tackle legumes alphabetically, starting with azuki beans. (You will also find a photograph of all the beans used in this book in the color section.)
In each area of the world different legumes are cherished. Whether these were native to the soil or were transported there centuries ago by travelers has been recorded, if only to show that some recipes have remained unchanged for two thousand years while others kept absorbing outside influences. Most of my recipes are traditional; I like the clarifications that time and custom bring. Sometimes the period of time does not have to be long. But local traditions need to be strong and overpowering, not the daily buffeting of rootless fads.
I was raised in a nation where legumes and legume flours are eaten daily. In India lightly sprouted beans may appear in a salad with tomatoes and cucumbers, chickpea flour may be made into fritters or pancakes, and mung beans may appear as a halvah for dessert.
For this chapter, I began by looking for similar dishes from around the world. The Riviera yielded Italian and French pancakes as well as great “fries” made from chickpea flour; Mali had the best black-eyed pea dumplings and Trinidad some of the most mouthwatering soups. In Cyprus, I found excellent black-eyed peas cooked with chard and chickpeas with spinach. Nuns in Macedonia baked delicious large white kidney beans. Legumes were transformed into sweet coconut-flavored porridges in Indonesia and into fermented bean paste soups in Korea and Japan. Some of these recipes appear in this chapter. Others are scattered throughout the book.
It is believed that the more legumes you eat the more you can eat them. In other words, while they may be hard to digest for those unused to their consumption, slowly increasing the daily quantity ingested greatly helps the body to adjust to them. In order to make the most of a protein-rich food filled with the B-complex vitamins (thiamine, pyridoxine, niacin, and folic acid), as well as dietary fiber that is thought to prevent some types of cancer and heart disease, and help with weight control and complex carbohydrates that provide long-term energy, this is a step worth taking. One-half cup of cooked lentils, for example, has only 115 calories and provides 20 percent of our daily protein requirement. It is also cheap. As legumes do not generally provide a complete protein, however, they need to be supplemented. This can be done easily by adding a grain (corn, rice, or wheat), nuts or seeds (cashews, sesame), or dairy (eggs, milk, yogurt, or cheese) to the meal.
I find it utterly charming that the two regions of the world known for their daily consumption of legumes, India and Latin America, have very similar sayings “dey dal may pani” and “ponle mas agua a los frijoles,” which translate to mean that when guests exceed the quantity of food, just “add water to the beans”! It represents conviviality, sharing, and never saying no to the hungry.
The Indian word
dal, which will appear frequently in this chapter, actually means a bean or pea (or any seed) that has been split. The verb
dalna means “to
split.” The word still retains its correct usage, but at times it is used generally in India to stand for the whole family of legumes.
While legumes may be bunched together for their general nutritional value, they all have their own very individual textures and tastes. Some feel “powdery,” others are viscous, and a few can turn deliciously creamy. There are beans with dark bitter flavor, others that are earthy, and a few that are light, delicate, and downright “aristocratic.” Legumes can also be manipulated to have different textures and tastes. For example, they can be cooked until soupy or so that they retain their shape and crispness. And combining several legumes creates new flavors and textures.
Canned beans, sold by all supermarkets, may be used instead of the dried ones, though their taste is never quite as clean as the taste of beans that you have soaked and cooked yourself. Also, the tinny liquid from the cans is unusable, whereas the liquid from home-cooked beans is naturally sweet and perfect for soups and stews.
The world of dried legumes is very large and includes whole beans, whole lentils, and whole peas and chickpeas. But most peas, beans, and lentils have skins or hulls that can be removed, thus hastening the cooking, and making hulled legumes yet another category. Beans and peas may also be split, with or without having their hulls removed first. So the permutations become quite endless. In a good legume shop you will find hulled split beans and hulled split peas as well as unhulled split beans and peas, hulled split lentils, large pale chickpeas and small yellow chickpeas as well as hulled and split chickpeas. In addition there may be dozens of bean flours. There should not be too many broken pieces or any signs of infestation.
While legumes lend themselves well to long storage, ideally they should be kept no longer than a year. Keep them in tightly closed jars in a cool, dark cupboard. Remember that the fresher the legume, the faster it will cook.
These days most legumes we buy in supermarkets are fairly free of debris. However, it is still a good idea to pick over them in case there is a lurking stone that could ruin your teeth. Measure out the legumes you intend to cook and spread them on one side of a large white plate. Move the legumes a few at a time to the opposite side, discarding any sticks, stones, or deformed or worm-eaten seeds.
Next, transfer the picked-over legumes to a bowl and cover with water. Swish the legumes around quickly, then pour out the water. Be speedy here, as you do not want the legumes to soak up any of the dirty water. Husks and sticks will float away. Do this 4 or 5 times, or until the water runs clear. Drain.
Whole dried beans often require an overnight soak to help them cook evenly—and relatively quickly—the following day. This does not generally apply to split peas and lentils. Another reason for soaking whole beans—and for discarding the soaking water—is to get rid of some of the oligosaccharides that cause flatulence. It is interesting to note that many of the Latin American nations that have been cooking whole red kidney beans, pinto beans, black beans, lima beans, and navy beans for thousands of years do not soak them overnight. They just add water to the dry beans and set them to cook slowly, adding extra boiling water whenever it is needed. I can only assume that over the millennia, their bodies have adjusted to the oligosaccharides and that the effect now is minimal. But for most of us, it is still wisest to soak. Put the picked-over and washed beans in a large bowl, cover with water by about 5 inches, and leave overnight or at least 8 hours. Drain thoroughly the next morning, discarding the soaking water, and then proceed with the recipe. Generally, the beans will expand to three times their original volume.
We cannot always plan ahead and sometimes we need to hurry up our bean cookery. This is where the Quick-Soak Method comes in handy. Pick over the beans and wash them as above. Now put them in a saucepan and cover with water by 5 inches. Bring to a boil and boil rapidly for 2 minutes, then cover the pan and turn off the heat. Let the beans soak in the hot water for 1 hour (longer, if you can spare the time). Drain thoroughly and proceed with the recipe.
Generally, legumes are boiled in 3 to 4 times as much water by volume, then seasoned when they are tender. Many believe that adding salt or sour too early inhibits the tenderizing process. Older beans can take much longer to cook, sometimes as much as an hour longer. Just keep testing them.
Do you have hard water? If you do, add ⅛ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda for every pound of legumes or use bottled water.
This is another way to speed the cooking of all legumes. As they tend to froth up a bit, adding 1½ teaspoons of peanut or corn oil to the water helps prevent the pressure cooker vent from clogging up. Salt is best added afterward. Look for specific pressure cooker directions for individual legumes in the alphabetical listing.
Once you have cooked your legumes until they are tender, draw a teaspoon out to taste. They are bland and boring. You add some salt, but that does little. Fortunately, legumes transform easily. How you transform them depends upon your culinary background.
The most important item, common to all culinary traditions, is lubrication in the form of oil, butter, or coconut milk. The “dryness” associated with legumes
vanishes with a dollop of good virgin olive oil,
ghee (clarified butter), or creamy coconut milk. But so much more can be done to perk up
legumes.
Look at three very different traditions, the tarka of India, the tiganissi of Cyprus, and the sofrito of the Latin world, that are used to finish off legumes and many other foods.
This Indian technique (also called chhownk and bhagaar) is used for vegetables, rice dishes, and snacks as well. Once the legumes are cooked, salt them and leave them in a warm place. Then heat oil or ghee in a small pan until it is very hot. To the oil add either a single spice or any combination of spices or seasonings that you like. When the spices begin to sizzle, quickly pour the oil and seasonings into the pot of legumes and put on the lid to trap all the hissing flavors.
In India literally hundreds of combinations of seasonings are used to give endless variety. Among the most ancient is whole cumin seeds, a common flavoring for beans and split peas in Vedic India. In Bengal, you might do a tarka of nigella, mustard seeds, and fennel seeds in mustard oil or bay leaves, cloves, and cardamom in ghee. In Tamil Nadu, it could be fresh curry leaves, mustard seeds, red chiles, and chana dal (the last being a split chickpea used rather unusually as a spice), all sizzled in sesame oil. In the Punjab, it could be ginger, garlic, and tomatoes in white butter.
Very similar to the tarka of India, this Cypriot technique involves heating oil—peanut or olive—in a small pan, then perhaps adding a dried red chile and garlic. When the garlic begins to color, the oil and seasonings are poured over the cooked legumes. Lots of lemon juice is squeezed over the top and the legumes are eaten with crusty local bread. Sometimes tomatoes, added to the pan just after the garlic, and cooked briefly, replace the lemon juice.
Again, this technique is very similar to the tarka and tiganissi. Once the beans (probably black, lima, or navy beans) are cooked and salted, olive oil is heated in a pan. Chopped garlic, onion, tomato, fresh green chiles, and green herbs such as epazote or culantro are added and the mixture is lightly sautéed. Once softened, the mixture is emptied into the pot of beans and the flavors are allowed to meld together briefly before serving.
Cooked legumes may be eaten with rice or breads. They may be wrapped in tortillas and other flatbreads. Leftovers should be stored in the refrigerator in a covered container.
Cooked legumes, especially those that have been stewed, tend to thicken and jell as they sit. To reheat them, first stir them with a light hand to break up the jelled mass, adding a little water as you do so. Then reheat gently in a pan, stirring frequently, or in the microwave.
I have included cashews and peanuts in this chapter as well. Peanuts are technically a legume. But the cashew is a nut (or fruit). However, in India and Sri Lanka, where it grows with abandon near the sea, it is cooked like a legume. You will find recipes for both “nuts” at the end of this chapter.
These small red beans are very popular throughout East Asia. However, when I began searching for traditional recipes for savory main dishes in China, Korea, and Japan, I was hard put to find any. I knew of course that once cooked, pureed, and mixed with sugar,
azuki beans (this is their Japanese name) become the chocolate of Eastern Asia and are used, among other things, as a stuffing in all manner of pastries. I have also had them in sweet soups and desserts in China, Korea, Japan, the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia. In both Korea and Japan there are also several festive dishes, this time savory ones, in which azuki beans are combined with glutinous rice or
rice flour. But savory dishes that featured the beans alone?
I finally found two, both from southern China, in Yunnan. These recipes follow.
Pick over and wash the beans. Put them in a bowl with water to cover by about 5 inches and soak overnight. You may also
Quick-Soak them.
Now, for every cup of dried beans add 3 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer, partially cover, and cook 1½ to 1¾ hours, or until the beans are tender. About 1 teaspoon of salt should be added about 10 minutes before the cooking is finished, as should most other seasonings. A cup of dried beans will yield about 2½ to 3 cups of cooked beans.
urad beans) Put the picked-over, soaked, and drained beans into a pressure cooker with enough water to just cover them (about 1¾ cups) and 1½ teaspoons vegetable oil, preferably peanut or corn oil. Cover, bring up to pressure (15 pounds), then lower the heat while maintaining the pressure and cook 10 to 12 minutes. Allow the pressure to drop by itself. Remember that young beans may require a little less time and older ones a minute or two more. You will be left with very little liquid; if you need more, add a little water or stock. About 1 teaspoon of salt should be added at the end and the beans cooked without pressure over low heat for 2 to 3 minutes more.
Kwei-Min Lei’s
Stir-Fried Azuki Beans with Green Pepper from Yunnan
Hungdo Chow Ching Jiao
This recipe calls for dried Chinese black mushrooms, which are really dried shiitake mushrooms.
Serve this with plain rice and vegetables. The beans are also very good when served over noodles, with a green salad on the side.
When reheating the beans, you will probably need to add a little water; use the mushroom-soaking liquid, if you like.
1 cup red azuki beans, picked over, washed, and drained
6 dried Chinese black mushrooms
2 tablespoons peanut or canola oil
3 scallions, sliced into very fine rings (use all of the white and half of the green section)
3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
½ large green pepper, seeded and cored, cut into ⅛-inch dice
1 fresh hot green chile or to taste, finely chopped (optional)
2½ tablespoons soy sauce
¼ teaspoon salt (use if needed)
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons oriental sesame oil
Soak the beans overnight in 3 cups of water or use the
Quick-Soak Method, using the same amount of water. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid.
Combine the beans with 3 cups of fresh water in a heavy pan and bring to a boil. Cover partially, turn the heat down to a low simmer, and cook gently for 1½ to 1¾ hours, or until the beans are tender. (If you wish to use a pressure cooker, see
here.) Crush some of the beans lightly against the side of the pan with the back of a spoon.
While the beans are cooking, soak the mushrooms in 1 cup of hot water for 30 minutes. Lift them out of the soaking liquid and cut off the stems. (Strain the soaking liquid and save for stock or for thinning out the beans.) Cut the caps into ⅛-inch dice.
Put the oil in a wok or large frying pan and set over high heat. When hot, add the scallions and stir-fry rapidly for 30 seconds. Add the garlic, green pepper, chile, and mushrooms and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the cooked beans and stir to mix. Turn the heat to low and add the soy sauce, salt, if needed, and sugar. Simmer gently for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the sesame oil and stir to mix.
SERVES 3 TO 4
Kwei-Min Lei’s
Azuki and Whole Mung Beans, Crushed and Sautéed
Chow Ar Ni
In an unusual dish from Yunnan in southern China, red and green beans are served side by side on the same plate, sometimes arranged in the yin and yang pattern. This may be eaten Chinese style with plain rice and other stir-fried vegetables or it may be eaten with bread, either flatbreads (pitas, tortillas) or crusty European-style loaves cut into thick slices. The texture of the beans is that of a coarse puree, so it is easily spooned or spread on bread. With some cheeses, cornichons, or pickles on the side, this can make a perfect light lunch or first course. You could also stuff the puree into pita bread, adding some chopped, seasoned tomatoes and some lettuce for a perfect “pocket” sandwich!
The red and green beans not only provide different colors on the same plate but are also seasoned differently to give diners a bit of variation. The mung beans are kept quite plain and seasoned with just oil, garlic, and a little sesame oil. The red beans, however, have scallions and either cayenne or a good dollop of garlic-flavored chili paste.
Soak and cook the two beans at the same time in different utensils. The beans can be cooked ahead and reheated separately before serving.
1 cup red azuki beans, picked over, washed, and drained
1 cup whole unhulled mung beans, picked over, washed, and drained
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, preferably peanut oil
3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
3 scallions, white parts and half the tender green part, cut into very, very thin rounds
1 teaspoon chili paste with garlic or ½ teaspoon cayenne (use more or less as desired)
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons oriental sesame oil
2 tablespoons peanut oil
3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
¾ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground white or black pepper
2 teaspoons oriental sesame oil
1 tablespoon oriental sesame oil
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
Soak the azuki beans and mung beans separately overnight in 3 cups of water each or use the
Quick-Soak Method, using the same amount of water. Drain the beans and keep them separated, discarding the soaking liquid.
Combine the azuki beans with 3 cups of fresh water in a heavy pan and bring to a boil. Cover partially, turn the heat down to a low simmer, and cook gently for 1½ to 1¾ hours, or until the beans are tender. (If you wish to use a pressure cooker, see
here.) At the same time, cook the mung beans in a separate pan in exactly the same way.
Put the oil in a wok or large frying pan and set over high heat. When hot, add the garlic and scallions and stir-fry rapidly for 30 seconds. Add the azuki beans and stir for 30 seconds, crushing the beans against the sides of the pan with the back of a spoon. Turn the heat to low. Add the chili paste, stir to taste, and then add salt to taste (about ½ teaspoon) and the pepper. Stir to mix. Pour in the sesame oil and give a final stir. Turn off the heat and keep warm.
In a second wok or large frying pan, combine the oil and garlic and set over high heat. As soon as the garlic starts to sizzle and turn golden, add the mung beans. Stir for 30 seconds to mix. Turn the heat to low, then add the ¾ teaspoon salt and pepper and stir to mix. Add the sesame oil, stir once, and turn off the heat.
To serve, ladle the beans side by side onto a large, preferably oval or round, platter. Drizzle the sesame oil over the top and sprinkle the chopped cilantro evenly over the central section of each of the beans.
SERVES 6 TO 8
We know that these small black beans of Central American origin have existed in Mexico for at least 5,000 years. Even after Spanish culture introduced the region to a whole new diet that included beef, rice, cheese, and chickpeas, black beans more than held their own and are still consumed daily as
Refried Beans and
Black Beans with Rice for breakfast, and
Costa Rican Black Bean Soup or
Black Beans “Charros” for dinner. The beans can also be used in stews.
Pick over and wash the beans and then add water to cover by about 5 inches. Leave to soak overnight or use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain and discard the soaking liquid. Now, for every 1 cup of dried beans add 3 cups of water and cook 1½ to 1¾ hours, or until the beans are tender. About 1 teaspoon of salt should be added about 10 minutes before the cooking is finished, as should most other seasonings. A cup of dried beans will yield about 2½ to 3 cups of cooked beans. For 4 cups of cooked beans, which one of the recipes requires, cook 1½ cups of dried beans; the cooking times will not change.
Rosario Guillermo’s
Refried Beans
Frijoles Refritos
I find that these beans, although typically Mexican, go well with all meals, especially those that lend themselves to being eaten with breads. In Mexico, they are served with almost everything: I have been offered them on a plate with fried eggs, as a kind of dip with crisp tortilla chips stuck in them (to be had with beer, the kind where the rim of the can is first rubbed with a cut lemon and then with salt), and with heated soft corn tortillas to be rolled together with some spicy salsa and a little grated Parmesan or Monterey Jack cheese.
Rosario Guillermo, whose recipe this is, forms the beans into a cake and serves it beautifully on a bed of lettuce leaves. Tortilla chips are artistically arranged on the top to look like sails—or is it the Sydney Opera House that she is thinking of? (Rosario is a sculptress from the Yucatán.)
Parmesan cheese can be sprinkled over the refried bean cake.
It is best to use nonstick pans for the last stages of cooking.
1¼ cups dried black beans, picked over, washed, and drained
4 tablespoons canola oil
5 tablespoons finely chopped onion (½ medium)
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
6 canned plum tomatoes, finely chopped
1 jalapeño or any other fresh hot green chile, finely chopped
1¼ to 1½ teaspoons salt
6 to 8 soft lettuce leaves
Tortilla chips
Soak the beans overnight in water to cover by 5 inches. Alternatively, you may
Quick-Soak the beans using the same amount of water. Drain thoroughly and discard the soaking liquid.
Combine the beans and 4 cups of water in a medium pan. Bring to a boil. Cover partially, turn the heat to low, and simmer gently for 1½ hours, or until the beans are tender. (Alternatively, you may
pressure-cook the beans.)
Put 3 tablespoons of oil in a medium nonstick pan and place over medium-high heat. When hot, add the onion and garlic. Stir and cook for about 4 minutes, or until the onion is golden. Add the tomatoes, chile, and salt and stir and cook for 1 minute. Add the beans and their cooking liquid and continue to cook over medium-high heat, mashing the beans with a potato masher or a wooden spoon as you do. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the beans come off the sides of the pan easily. Remove from the heat.
Just before serving, put the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a medium nonstick frying pan and place over medium-high heat. When hot, add in the beans and stir them around for about 2 minutes. Using a rubber spatula or the back of a wooden spoon, press the beans onto the bottom of the pan, flattening the top and forming a cake. Let it brown lightly on the bottom for about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.
Arrange the lettuce leaves over the top of the bean cake in such a way that they extend a little around the edges. Now put a large plate over the frying pan and invert the cake onto the plate. The lettuce leaves should land at the bottom. Stick some tortilla chips into the cake and serve the rest on the side.
SERVES 6
MEXICO
Rosario Guillermo’s
Black Beans “Charros”
Frijoles Charros
This stew, spicy and tart, may be served with heated corn or wheat tortillas, or with plain rice.
1¼ cups dried black beans, picked over, washed, and drained
1½ teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons canola or olive oil
5 tablespoons very finely chopped onion
4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
6 canned plum tomatoes, finely chopped, plus ¼ cup of their liquid
½ to 1 jalapeño chile or any other fresh hot green chile, very finely chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro leaves
Soak the beans overnight in water to cover by 5 inches. Alternatively, you may
Quick-Soak the beans using the same amount of water. Drain thoroughly and discard the soaking liquid.
Add 4 cups of fresh water to the beans and bring to a boil in a heavy medium pan. Cover partially, turn heat to low, and simmer gently for 1½ hours, or until the beans are tender. (Alternatively, you may
pressure-cook the beans.) Transfer half of the beans and their cooking liquid to a blender or food processor, add the salt, and puree. Return the pureed mixture to the pot with the whole beans and combine well.
Put the oil in a large frying pan and place over medium-high heat. When hot, add the onion and garlic, stirring and sautéing until they are golden. Add the chopped
tomatoes and their liquid and the jalapeño, and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook gently for 10 minutes. Stir the tomato mixture and the chopped cilantro into the beans, and bring to a simmer over low heat. Simmer gently for 5 minutes and serve hot.
SERVES 6
COSTA RICA
Albertina Brenes de Estrada and Ada Bassey’s
Black Beans with Rice or “Spotted Rooster”
Gallo Pinto
So pervasive is Costa Rica’s national breakfast dish, even the local McDonald’ses and Burger Kings feel the need to have it on their menus. Nourishing and hearty, it is often served with eggs (generally scrambled) and fine corn tortillas. A hot sauce, such as the tamarind-based Salsa Lizano, is always on the table. If you can’t find it, Tabasco sauce will do. I like to put Simple Red Salsa or Guacamole on the table as well.
¼ cup olive oil
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 medium green or red bell pepper, cored and seeded, cut into ¼-inch dice
8 tablespoons chopped cilantro
4 cups cooked and drained black beans (1½ cups dried)
4 cups cooked plain long-grain rice (1⅓ cups raw)
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Put the oil in a large nonstick frying pan or nonstick wok and set over medium-high heat. When hot, add the onion and bell pepper. Stir and fry until the onion is translucent, turning the heat down if it begins to brown. Add the cilantro and stir for a minute, then add the beans. Stir for 2 minutes, breaking up any clumps, then add the rice. Stir as you break up clumps of rice with the back of a slotted spoon. Add salt and pepper to taste (this will depend upon how salted the beans were) and continue to stir and fry until the rice and beans are heated through.
SERVES 4
Also known as cowpea (lobhia and chowli in India), this pea probably originated in western and central Africa, though its mention in Buddhist Indian literature of 2300 years ago has convinced some that at least one variety may be native to India.
These versatile peas may be stewed plain or with herbs, nuts, or other vegetables. I have eaten them mixed with roasted coconut in western India and with chard in Cyprus. They may also be made into fritters and pancakes, the former being very popular in central and western Africa, the latter in India. African slaves brought black-eyed peas with them to the Caribbean, where they are combined beautifully with rice and pumpkin; to South America, where they are made into fritters; and to the United States, where Southerners love to pile them on plain rice and scatter finely chopped or grated raw onions over the top. This dish, “Hoppin’ John,” is eaten year-round, but especially at New Year to ensure good fortune. Indeed, Athens, Texas, which calls itself the black-eyed pea capital of America, celebrates its “Texas caviar” with an annual July jamboree that takes the form of a cooking competition.
Pick over and wash the peas and then soak them overnight in water to cover by 5 inches. You may also
Quick-Soak them. After that, the beans should be drained and cooked in roughly three times as much water or stock for about 40 minutes. (The exact amount of liquid will vary with the recipe.) At this stage, the peas are generally quite firm and separate. Further cooking for about 20 minutes softens them some more, if that is what is desired.
This is a surprisingly quick method that is ideal if you are really pressed for time. Quite magically, no soaking is required. For every cup of dried peas add 3 cups of liquid (water or stock) to unsoaked peas plus 1½ teaspoons peanut or corn oil to keep the froth from blocking the valve and 1 teaspoon salt (if needed). Bring up to pressure and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, allowing the pressure to drop by itself. Each bean will be soft and separate. It is worth noting that the texture will be somewhat softer than that of peas that have been soaked and boiled on top of the stove. It is a good idea, therefore, to cut down on the subsequent cooking times that follow the initial boiling in my recipes. Also, most of the water will be absorbed as the beans cool off; you might need to add a bit more if further cooking is called for.
In America, black-eyed peas are available frozen, which is a great convenience. Frozen peas may be cooked straight from the box, according to package instructions. You may also defrost them in hot water, drain them, and then cook them like soaked peas. Just note that for any recipe requiring 1½
cups of dried peas, you will need about 4 cups of defrosted frozen peas, as that is the volume they swell to after soaking overnight. Four cups of soaked peas should be the equivalent of two 10-ounces package of frozen peas, though I have noticed that the actual yield from these frozen packages is a bit less.
Black-eyed peas are quite wonderful when sprouted and become very easy to digest. Soak ½ cup (3¼ ounces) peas in water that covers them generously for 12 hours, changing the water once (this can be after 8 hours). Drain. Line a tray with several thicknesses of dampened paper towels. Spread the soaked drained peas on top. Cover with another two layers of dampened paper towels and set aside in a dark place (I use the oven). Sprinkle with water every 8 hours or so to make sure the paper is damp. After 36 hours you should have about 3 cups of small sprouts, about 1 inch long. (If you do not, leave a little longer.) Wash the sprouts gently in a large bowl of water, discarding the skins that float to the top. Drain and store in a plastic bag or sealed container for up to a week. Sprinkle with water if the sprouts appear dry. You can also keep the sprouts in a bowl of water for 24 hours in the refrigerator. Change the water every 8 hours.
Sprouts cook in less than 10 minutes and, because of this, as well as their protein value and digestibility, they are a very popular breakfast food in India. The most common cooking method is to stir-fry them first in a little oil and then let them cook gently, covered, with a little salt and a little water (about 4 tablespoons for the amount sprouted above) for 7 to 8 minutes, until they are just tender. Almost any seasonings may be added.
NIGERIA, MALI
Anita Harrell’s
Black-Eyed Pea Fritters
Akara
Different versions of akara
can be found in nearly all of western and central Africa. The dish traveled to most places the slaves went and is eaten today in the Caribbean and in South America as well. (In Brazil, it is called acarajé,
a word not too far from the original.)
These delicious fritters are not very different from the North African/Middle Eastern falafel, except that instead of chickpeas or fava beans they are made with black-eyed peas. They are generally eaten as a snack or as part of a meal in Africa, but you may also serve them with drinks, offering a spicy dipping sauce (such as the Moroccan Chile-Garlic Paste; Trinidadian Pepper Sauce; Delhi-Style Cilantro and Mint Chutney; Kashmiri Sour Cherry and Walnut Chutney; or even store-bought ketchup or salsa) on the side. Of course, you may eat them just like falafel, stuffed into pita breads along with shredded lettuce, sliced tomatoes, and tahini sauce.
For those who do not have a food processor, which aerates as it grinds, the African method of making the batter is to put the soaked peas through a meat grinder and then to beat in the hot water in order to make a mixture that is light and airy with a drop-easily-from-the-spoon consistency.
1½ cups dried black-eyed peas, picked over and washed
1 small onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
1¼ teaspoons salt
Freshly ground black pepper
¼ to ½ teaspoon cayenne
Peanut or canola oil for deep-frying
Soak the black-eyed peas in water to cover by 5 inches for about 16 hours, changing the water once in the middle only if it is a very hot day. Do not use the Quick-Soak Method here as you need raw peas. Drain the peas and put them in a large bowl. Cover them well with fresh water. Dip both hands into the bowl and rub the peas between your palms. You will loosen many (though not all) of the skins, which will start to float in the water like jellyfish in the sea. Skim off the free skins, with a sieve or slotted spoon; leave the stubborn skins alone.
Drain the peas thoroughly and put them into the container of a food processor along with the onion, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Turn the machine on (medium speed, if you can control it) and process, pushing down with a rubber spatula again and again until you have a grainy paste. Slowly add about 5 tablespoons of hot water, processing all the while, until the paste has a dropable consistency. It should also look light and airy but remain very slightly grainy.
Put 1 inch of oil in a frying pan and set it over medium heat. Allow it to get very hot. Now work fast: Stir the batter gently and remove a very heaped teaspoon. Using a second teaspoon, drop the batter into the oil. (The fritters will be about 1½ inches in diameter.) Repeat until the frying pan is full. Fry the fritters for about 1 minute at medium heat, turning them over as they darken, and then turn the heat down to low. Continue to fry for another 6 minutes or so, turning the fritters now and then. You should end up with fritters that have an even, rich, reddish-brown color and are cooked through. Remove them with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Make all the fritters this way, remembering at the start of each batch to (a) turn the heat back to medium and get the oil very hot again and (b) stir the batter once very gently from the bottom up. The fritters should ideally be served as soon as they are made.
(Leftover fritters may be stored in a closed container in the refrigerator and used to make the recipe that follows.)
MAKES ABOUT 40 FRITTERS; SERVES 6
Black-Eyed Peas with Herbs
This is an absolutely delicious dish that you will surely want to make part of your repertoire. Variations of this can be found over much of the Mediterranean. We often eat it with greens and rice, but you may also serve it in a soup plate like a stew, garnished with lots of finely chopped parsley. Crusty whole wheat breads and perhaps a tomato and mozzarella salad are all that would be needed on the side.
1½ cups dried black-eyed peas
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 whole dried hot red chile
3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
2 to 3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried oregano or 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh oregano
½ teaspoon dried thyme or 1½ teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme
1 teaspoon paprika
1½ teaspoons salt
Pick over the black-eyed peas, wash, and drain. Soak the black-eyed peas overnight in water that covers them by 5 inches or use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid.
In a large pot, bring the peas and 4½ cups of water to a boil. Cover, turn the heat to low, and simmer gently for 40 minutes, or until the peas are tender. Set aside without draining.
Put the oil in a frying pan and place over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the chile and stir once; it should darken and puff up immediately. Quickly add the garlic and stir once. Add the
black-eyed peas with all their cooking liquid, the bay leaves, oregano, thyme, paprika, and salt. Stir to mix and bring to a simmer. Simmer gently, uncovered, on low heat for 20 minutes. Serve hot.
SERVES 4 TO 6
Black-Eyed Peas in a Walnut Sauce
When the preceding recipe is fully cooked add
Walnut Sauce and combine thoroughly. This may be served at room temperature or hot. With a salad, some cheese, and bread, it makes for a very nutritious meal.
Black-Eyed Peas with Corn and Dill
Black-eyed peas are combined with corn in both West Africa and North India. We serve this particular version at our restaurant, Dawat, in New York, and it has been a big hit since the day it was introduced. It may be eaten with breads—Indian, Middle Eastern, North African, or European—or with rice. Some good pickles and chutneys and perhaps an Indian fresh cheese (paneer) dish or a yogurt dish is all that would be needed to complete the meal.
You may make this dish up to 24 hours ahead of time and reheat it. It should be stored in the refrigerator.
1½ cups dried black-eyed peas
3 tablespoons canola oil
½ teaspoon cumin seeds
½ teaspoon brown mustard seeds
1 to 2 whole, hot dried red chiles
15 to 20 fresh curry leaves (optional)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 to 4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
4 medium tomatoes or 2 cups canned plum tomatoes, finely chopped
4 to 5 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
2 cups fresh corn kernels (about 4 ears), defrosted frozen corn, or good-quality canned corn
1½ teaspoons salt
Pick over the black-eyed peas, wash, and drain. Put in a bowl with water to cover by about 5 inches and soak overnight. Alternatively, you may use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain and discard the soaking liquid.
Put the oil in a large, preferably nonstick pan and place over medium-high heat. When very hot, add the cumin and mustard seeds. As soon as the mustard seeds begin to pop (a matter of seconds), add the chiles. Stir once and add the curry leaves, if using. Stir once and add the onion and garlic. Stir and fry until the onion pieces begin to brown at the edges. Add the tomatoes and stir for a minute, then add the drained peas and the dill. Add 4½ cups of water, stir, and bring to a boil. Cover, turn the heat to low, and cook for about 40 minutes, or until the peas are tender. Remove the cover, turn the heat to high, and boil rapidly for 5 minutes. Stir in the corn and salt, and boil rapidly for another 10 minutes, or until the mixture is thick and all the flavors have melded.
SERVES 6
Marios Mourtezis’
Black-Eyed Peas with Swiss Chard
Louvi
In Cyprus, black-eyed peas are eaten in many forms. When they are green and still in their pods, they are boiled up and served with a dressing of oil and lemon juice. Once the legumes are dried, they are cooked with whatever greens happen to be in season. Wild greens, often quite bitter, are exceedingly popular, but so is chard.
There are two ways of serving this dish. After the black-eyed peas and chard are tender, Greek Cypriots dress the mixture with good olive oil and lemon juice. That is the simple way of eating it. But there is another. The next day (or even the same day) they might dress it up by doing a tiganissi, which means “to fry.” This little step is exactly the same as an Indian tarka: oil is heated, seasoned with garlic, onion, and red chile, then poured over the warmed peas.
In Cyprus, this dish, hot or cold, is served with crusty bread, black olives, tomatoes, cucumber, and some sheep cheese like haloumi.
You may also serve it with rice, perhaps the Soft Yogurt Cheese with Feta, Oven-Dried Tomatoes, and Crisp Zucchini Fritters.
1 cup dried black-eyed peas
1 pound Swiss chard
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 dried hot red chile
1 smallish onion, peeled and finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
Pick over the black-eyed peas, wash, and drain. Cover with water by about 5 inches and leave to soak overnight. Alternatively, you may use the
Quick-Soak Method.
Drain the peas and place in a heavy, medium pan. Add 3¼ cups of water and bring to a boil. Partially cover, leaving the lid very slightly ajar, turn the heat to low, and simmer gently for 40 minutes, or until the peas are tender.
While the peas are cooking, wash the chard and separate the dark green leafy sections from the pale stem and central vein areas. Cut the leafy section crosswise into ¼-inch-wide strips. Cut the tougher pale section into ¼-inch dice. When the peas have cooked for 40 minutes, add the chard and the salt. Stir to mix thoroughly and return to a boil over medium-high heat. Turn the heat to low, cover, and cook for another 30 minutes. Stir in the oil and lemon juice. Black-eyed peas are ready to serve as is or with the optional tiganissi below.
For the
tiganissi, heat the oil in a small frying pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add the red chile and stir for 5 seconds. As soon as the chile darkens, add the onion and garlic. Stir and fry until the pieces of onion and garlic start to turn brown at the edges. Immediately pour the oil and seasonings over the cooked peas and chard. Stir to mix and serve hot, at room temperature, or chilled.
SERVES 4 TO 6
TRINIDAD
Black-Eyed Peas with Trinidadian Seasonings
Serve this over rice with fried plantains or greens on the side.
1½ cups dried black-eyed peas
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 scallions, cut into fine rounds (both green and white parts)
1 celery stalk, cut into small dice
1 carrot, peeled and cut into small dice
½ green pepper, cored and seeded, cut into small dice
½ teaspoon dried thyme or 1½ teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme
1 teaspoon paprika
¼ to ½ teaspoon crushed dried red chiles or cayenne
½ teaspoon ground allspice
½ teaspoon ground mustard powder
1½ teaspoons salt
Pick over the black-eyed peas, wash, and drain. Soak the black-eyed peas overnight in water to cover by 5 inches or use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid.
Put the oil into a large pot and place over medium-high heat. When hot, add the scallions, celery, carrot, and green pepper. Stir and sauté for about 5 minutes, or until the vegetables just start to brown. Add the drained peas, 4½ cups of water, thyme, paprika, chiles, allspice, and mustard and bring to a boil. Cover, turn the heat to low, and simmer gently for 40 minutes, or until the peas are tender. Add the salt, stir, and cook another 20 minutes on low heat.
SERVES 4 TO 6
Black-Eyed Peas with Watercress
In India, different greens, varying with the seasons and the location, are added to black-eyed peas. Anything from radish greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, fenugreek greens, cilantro, mint, spinach, and of course watercress in the north can be used to make this vegetarian dish as nutritious as possible and to vary its flavor, adding slight bitterness, pungency, or freshness as the cook’s palate dictates. Here I have used watercress, which, like spinach, cooks rather quickly. If sturdier greens are used, they may need to be cooked gently, covered with the addition of some water, for at least an hour.
Serve with rice or a crusty bread, a yogurt relish or cheese. For more sumptuous fare, add cauliflower or carrots dishes as well as salads from the Mediterranean, India, or the Far East.
2 cups dried black-eyed peas
1½ teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons canola or olive oil
1 bay leaf
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 (1-inch) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and cut into minute dice
3 tablespoons very finely chopped cilantro
1 smallish tomato (4 ounces), finely chopped, or 3 canned plum tomatoes
Large bunch of watercress (about 6 ounces), tough stalks discarded, leaves chopped
½ to 2 fresh hot green chiles, finely chopped (remove seeds for a milder heat)
¼ teaspoon cayenne (optional)
Pick over the black-eyed peas, wash, and drain. Cover with water by about 5 inches and soak overnight. Alternatively, you may use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain and discard the soaking liquid.
Put the peas in a heavy, medium saucepan. Add 4 cups of water and bring to a boil. Partially cover, leaving the lid very slightly ajar, turn the heat to low, and simmer gently for 40 minutes, or until the peas are tender. Add the salt and stir to mix.
While the black-eyed peas cook, heat the oil in a medium frying pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add the bay leaf. As soon as the bay leaf turns a shade darker, add the onion and ginger. Stir and fry for about 5 minutes, or until the onion pieces start to turn brown at the edges. Add the cilantro, tomato, watercress, and chile. Stir and cook over medium heat until the tomato pieces are soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Set aside.
When the black-eyed peas are tender, add the tomato-watercress mixture, turn the heat to medium-high, and cook, stirring now and then, for 5 minutes, or until all the flavors have mingled and the mixture is thick. Taste and add cayenne if more heat is needed.
SERVES 4 TO 6
Black-Eyed Pea Pancakes
Lobhia Ka Cheela
These may be eaten as flatbreads with a spicy dip or you may use them like crepes to wrap around a dish of spicy potatoes or cauliflower.
The batter can be made up to a day in advance and refrigeratored. Stir well before using.
To facilitate the pancake making, measure out ⅓ cup of water in a ladle or deep spoon so that you know exactly how much batter you will need for each pancake. You will also need a rounded soup spoon (or another metal ladle) to spread out the batter, which does not flow, and a rubber spatula to flip the pancakes.
1½ cups dried
black-eyed peas
1 (1-inch) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and cut into very fine dice
¼ teaspoon cayenne
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
1¼ teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
½ teaspoon cumin seeds
About 6 tablespoons peanut or canola oil
Soak the black-eyed peas in water to cover by 5 inches for 16 hours, changing the water once in the middle only if it is a very hot day. Do not use the Quick-Soak Method here as you need raw peas. Drain the peas and put them in a large bowl. Cover them well with fresh water. Dip both hands into the bowl and rub the peas between your palms. You will loosen many (though not all) of the skins, which will start to float to the surface. Skim off the free skins with a sieve or slotted spoon; leave the stubborn skins alone.
Drain the peas thoroughly and put them into the container of a food processor along with the ginger, cayenne, turmeric, and salt. Turn the machine on (medium speed, if you can control it) and process, stopping occasionally to push down on the peas with a rubber spatula until you have a grainy paste. Slowly add about 1⅓ cups of water and process the puree for another minute. Add the cilantro, onion, and cumin. Process for 5 seconds. You should have a thickish batter with small flecks of onion, cilantro, and cumin visible.
Put 1 teaspoon of oil in an 8-inch nonstick frying pan and spread it around by tilting the pan. Set the pan over medium-low heat, and wait for the pan and the oil to get hot; this will take a little while. Stir the batter now with a ladle and measure out about ⅓ cup. Drop the batter in the center of the frying pan. Quickly put the rounded bottom of a soup spoon or a second ladle very lightly on the mound of batter and, using a gentle but continuous spiral motion, spread the batter outward
until you have a pancake that is about 7 inches in diameter. Dribble ½ teaspoon oil on top of the pancake and another ½ teaspoon around its edges. Spread the oil on top of the pancake gently with a rubber spatula and smooth out the ridges. Let the pancake cook for 2 minutes on its first side, or until it is reddish brown. (This first-cooked side is the “right” side.) Now flip the pancake over and cook the second side for another 2 minutes, or until it has a few reddish-brown spots. Remove the pancake to a plate and keep covered. Stir the batter each time and make the remaining pancakes in the same way.
MAKES 12 TO 14 PANCAKES
INDIA
Black-Eyed Pea Sprouts with Garlic and Thyme
Chhoonki Lobhia
Once sprouted, black-eyed peas may be cooked with almost any seasonings and served hot, at room temperature, or even chilled. This particular dish may be served three different ways: exactly the way it is with rice and greens on the side; topped with a dollop of Simple Tomato Sauce, and with a green salad and crusty brown bread on the side; or topped with a “salad” made with 3 tablespoons of finely chopped onions, 4 tablespoons peeled, seeded, and diced tomatoes, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, and a little salt and pepper. Toss the black-eyed peas and “salad” just before eating and serve at room temperature with flatbreads or crusty loaves.
Thyme is not normally used in India, but I have substituted it for the tiny ajwain seeds, which have a similar flavor and are rich in thyme.
2 tablespoons peanut or canola oil
1 garlic clove, peeled and finely chopped
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon cayenne (optional)
Put the oil and garlic in a large wok or frying pan and set over medium-high heat. The garlic will soon start to sizzle. As soon as the garlic is golden, add the sprouts. Stir once and add the thyme, salt, pepper, and cayenne, if using. Stir a few times, add 4 tablespoons of water, and bring to a boil. Cover, turn the heat down to low, and cook for about 6 minutes. Uncover, turn the heat up to medium-high again, and cook, tossing the sprouts, for 3 to 4 minutes, or until most of the liquid is absorbed. Taste for the balance of seasonings and make adjustments, if needed.
SERVES 3 TO 4
There is a saying in India that if you eat ten chickpeas a day, you will never have a heart attack! I sincerely hope this is true, as I eat rather a lot of this ancient food through the course of a year. Sometimes I cook chickpeas in an Indian style—and there must be at least a few hundred recipes for them in that subcontinent alone—and sometimes I use a recipe from one of the Mediterranean or Middle Eastern countries, all of which seem to share my passion for this legume.
Chickpeas originated in ancient times, probably in the southern Caucasus region, helping to feed Turkey, Syria, Iran, and Armenia. The earliest mention of them in the Middle East dates back to 5400 B.C. They quickly spread through all of Afghanistan and then on to India, where the first mention we know dates back to 2500 B.C. They also traveled west, capturing the hearts of the entire Mediterranean, where they have remained a staple, especially in Spain, Sicily, Turkey, and Cyprus. In Southeast Asia, they are used, quite intriguingly, in sweet snacks.
The early chickpea was probably small and dark (this variety is still found in India) and was eventually bred to be large and pale. Most American chickpeas are grown in the fertile Northwest, the vast lentil and pea-growing Palouse region so named for its resemblance to a green lawn in spring.
It is interesting too that in the United States, where vast quantities of chickpeas are grown for home use and export, they are hardly ever sold when they are tender, green, and as delicious as fresh peas. Nor do we often see the feathery shoots of the plant, which are excellent in salads and may be cooked like snow pea shoots. For those nations that have been eating chickpeas for thousands of years, these are annual treats, not to be missed. I have been making a small noise
about green chickpeas for a few years now. Perhaps all the dynamic and influential chefs who control the restaurant business will help rectify this culinary oversight.
The two types of chickpeas most readily available for use in recipes are the
canned and the dried. Canned chickpeas have the advantage of convenience. They are fully cooked and you do not have to go through the time-consuming process of soaking and boiling them. However, they often have a metallic taste and their tinny-tasting liquid can never be used when recipes require it. Dried chickpeas, on the other hand, take time (but almost no effort) to prepare and they not only have better flavor, but their slightly sweet cooking liquid is a great bonus, being an almost perfect natural stock for soups and stews.
Here is something to keep in mind: 1 cup of dried chickpeas will yield 3 cups of cooked drained chickpeas; 1½ cups of dried chickpeas will yield 4½ cups of cooked drained chickpeas.
If you have to substitute
canned
chickpeas for the home-cooked ones, a 20-ounce can generally yields
about 2¼ cups of drained cooked chickpeas. A 15½-ounce can will yield about 1¾ cups of drained cooked chickpeas. After draining, rinse the chickpeas well before using them. If the liquid from cooking chickpeas is required, use a vegetable stock.
Many of the following recipes call for 1½ cups dried chickpeas. Here is how you would prepare this amount:
Pick over the chickpeas and wash them in several changes of water. Drain. Cover with 5 cups of water and leave overnight. Drain. Alternatively, you could use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain.
In a medium pot, add 6 cups of water to the soaked and drained chickpeas and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low, cover, and cook gently for 1 to 3 hours, or until the chickpeas are very tender. About 1½ teaspoons of salt may be added in the last half hour of cooking only if the recipe does not require you to add it later.
Put the drained soaked chickpeas, 4 cups of water, and 1½ teaspoons peanut or corn oil into a pressure cooker. Cover, bring up to pressure, and cook for 20 minutes. Allow the pressure to drop by itself. Loosen the lid and let the chickpeas cool in their liquid. (If you wish to add salt, put in 1½ teaspoons and let the chickpeas simmer gently in the salted water, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Then let them cool in their liquid. If the chickpeas require further cooking, salt may be added later.)
The next thing to do is to remove the skins of the chickpeas, if you want to. (In India, we generally do not do this as the skins are considered to be excellent roughage. However, dishes do look neater without them.) To do this, drain the cooked chickpeas but save the cooking liquid to use in soups and stews. Put the chickpeas in a bowl and cover them with cold water. Rub the chickpeas lightly between the palms of your hands to loosen the skins.
So far, I have only dealt with the large, pale chickpeas most easily found in much of the Western world and the Mediterranean region. At Indian grocers, however, you will see split chickpeas that look very much like yellow split peas but which are marked
chana dal. These have a gentler, sweeter, and nuttier taste and a firmer texture than yellow split peas, and I much prefer their flavor. These are small chickpeas that have a brown skin and very yellow interior, which have been hulled and split. As a
dal (and I have only used them as a
dal in this book, though Indian shops also sell them whole), they generally cook in about 1½ hours and are wonderful combined with vegetables. Look for them in Chickpeas
and
Chana Dal Cooked Together in a
Mint Sauce, where they are combined with the larger chickpeas and end up forming part of the sauce.
There is also another interesting use of chana dal. In south India they are fried until reddish-brown and used as a seasoning!
In India chana dal is used to make chickpea flour. Indians insist that Indian chickpea flour is much easier to digest than the versions sold in the Mediterranean, which are made with the larger chickpeas.
This nutrient-rich flour is used commonly throughout India and in parts of the Mediterranean as well. Also called besan or gram flour in Indian shops and by its French name, farine de pois chiches, in specialty stores, it may be made into pancakes, pizzas, dumplings, soups, stews, quiches, rolled “pasta,” sweet halvahs, and even into panisses, which are rather like delicate French fries and found in the south of France.
A few tablespoons of roasted chickpea flour are sometimes added to seasoned stir-fried vegetables (such as green beans, bell peppers, or okra) in western India, a really delicious embellishment that increases their nutritional value and adds a nutty flavor and extra texture. Chickpea flour can be roasted by stirring it around in a cast-iron frying pan for a few minutes over medium heat. When it turns a medium brown color and no longer tastes raw, it is done. Add it to the stir-fried vegetables when they are almost cooked. It will mix with the oil, absorb all the moisture in the pan, and then cling to the vegetables almost like little bits of stuffing. Stir-fry the vegetables for another minute in order to complete the
cooking.
Chickpea flour is also used in India as a thickener for soupy stews containing vegetables or dumplings or sometimes nothing more than a mix of seasonings. The chickpea flour here may be used raw but sometimes it is sautéed in oil first, rather like the making of a roux. It then acquires a wonderful, nutty aroma, very similar to the one it gets when it is roasted. Once browned lightly in oil, you may add boiling water to the flour as you stir briskly with a whisk to prevent lumps.
Before it can be cooked, chickpea flour is sometimes diluted with liquid. In India, this liquid is often thinned-out yogurt. As dairy products help to complete the natural protein in dried legumes, this is nutritional expediency. Of course the liquid can also be plain water.
As with most flours, chickpea flour has a tendency to lump when liquids are added. To avoid lumping, follow this procedure: Sift the chickpea flour into a bowl. Pour the liquid suggested in the recipe into the bowl very slowly as you stir briskly with a wooden spoon. While the mixture is still very thick and pastelike, stop adding liquid and stir the batter briskly. Try to remove all lumps at this stage as it becomes much harder when the batter is thinner. You may even press lumps against the sides of the bowl. Now add the remaining liquid a little faster, stirring
as you go. If you let the batter sit for 30 minutes, any final lumps tend to vanish, but the batter can also be strained through a sieve before being used. Always stir the batter before using it as it tends to settle at the bottom. If you are making pancakes, stir well before you pour the batter out for every single pancake or the texture of your pancakes will vary considerably, with the last one being quite leaden!
SYRIA
Sara Abufares’
Whole Grain or “Bead” Hummus
Hummus
Most of us in the West think of hummus as a chickpea puree seasoned with lemon juice and olive oil and eaten with pita bread. There are actually many versions of hummus, which, after all, just means “chickpeas.” Here is one where the chickpeas are not pureed at all, but left whole, like beads. It is a kind of salad that may be served as a light lunch with yogurt cheese (or any goat or sheep cheese), pita bread, olives, and perhaps a green salad.
8 garlic cloves, peeled
1¾ teaspoons salt
6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
5 to 6 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
¼ teaspoon cayenne
5 tablespoons olive oil, preferably a good extra-virgin
In a mortar, crush the garlic and salt together. Transfer to a medium mixing bowl and add the chickpeas, lemon juice, tomatoes, parsley, and cayenne. Toss well to mix. Taste for the balance of flavors, adding more lemon juice, parsley, or cayenne to taste. Put the salad in a serving bowl and drizzle with the olive oil. Serve at room temperature or chilled.
SERVES 4
Middle Eastern Stew of Chickpeas, Potatoes, and Carrots
I like to serve this hearty stew in big soup plates with parsley sprinkled over the top. It is well suited to family meals as children love it. Breads, salads, and cheeses can be served on the side. You may also stuff some of this stew, along with some shredded lettuce, into a pita bread and eat it like a sandwich. Middle Eastern or North African salads would complement this dish perfectly.
¾ cup dried chickpeas, picked over, washed, and drained
2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons finely chopped onions
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
¾ pound potatoes, cut into ½ × 1-inch chunks
1 medium carrot, cut into ¼-inch slices
4 canned plum tomatoes plus 1 cup liquid from the can
1½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ to ½ teaspoon sugar as needed
3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Soak the chickpeas overnight in cold water to cover by about 3 inches. Alternatively, you could
Quick-Soak the chickpeas in the same amount of water. Drain and discard the soaking liquid.
In a medium pot, bring the chickpeas and 2½ cups of water to a boil. Cover, lower the heat, and simmer for 2½ to 3 hours, or until the chickpeas are very tender. (For the pressure cooker method, see
here. Use about 2 cups of water.) You may, at this stage,
remove the skins if you wish, and then combine the cleaned chickpeas and their cooking liquid once again.
Heat the oil in a medium pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and stir and fry until the onions are brown around the edges. Add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Put in the potatoes, carrot, chickpeas with their cooking liquid, tomatoes, tomato liquid, salt, thyme, and ½ cup water. If the tomatoes are very tart, add the sugar to taste. Bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low, cover, and cook gently for 45 minutes. Sprinkle parsley over the top before serving. Serve hot.
SERVES 4 TO 6
Chickpea Stew with Six Vegetables
This hearty stew is best served with a big platter of couscous. You may also serve it with Moroccan bread or with a crusty French or Italian loaf and Moroccan salads or any green salad.
In Morocco a very hot sauce known as harissa, made up of Moroccan Chile-Garlic Paste and some liquid from the stew, is passed around in a bowl.
5 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
1½ cups dried chickpeas, soaked and
cooked, with skins removed, if you wish, and the cooking liquid drained and reserved
1 (28-ounce) can plum tomatoes, finely chopped, liquid reserved or 2 cups peeled and chopped fresh tomato
2 medium waxy potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
5 to 6 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
5 to 6 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
2½ to 3 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ginger powder
A few saffron threads or a pinch of saffron powder (optional)
¼ teaspoon cayenne (optional)
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and halved lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces
3 small carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 large zucchini, halved lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces
½ teaspoon salt
Put the oil in a large (12-inch) pot and place over medium-high heat. Add the onion and stir and fry for 5 minutes, or until it begins to brown around the edges. Add in the garlic and stir for about 1 minute, or until it turns golden. Now add the chickpeas, 1¼ cups reserved cooking liquid, the tomatoes, potatoes, parsley, cilantro, salt, cumin, turmeric, ginger, saffron, and cayenne. Measure the reserved tomato liquid and add enough water to make 2½ cups of liquid in total. Add to the pot and bring to a boil. Cover, turn the heat to low, and cook for 20 minutes. Add the sweet potato and carrots. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce the heat again, and continue to cook for 10 minutes. Add the zucchini, bring to a boil once again, and cook, covered on low heat, for 7 to 8 minutes, or until the zucchini is tender.
Measure out ½ cup of the cooking liquid and place in a small bowl. Add the harissa ingredients and combine well.
Serve the stew hot with the harissa on the side.
SERVES 6 TO 8
CYPRUS
Marios Mourtezis’
Cypriot Chickpea Stew with Spinach
Revithia Yakhni
A simple chickpea stew is perked up very interestingly with a tiganissi—something between an Indian tarka and a Spanish sofrito—of red chiles, garlic, onion, and tomato. Serve with a crusty bread, feta cheese, or a yogurt dish and a salad.
1½ cups dried chickpeas, soaked and
cooked, with skins removed, if you wish, and the cooking liquid drained and reserved
2 celery stalks, cut into ¼-inch dice
1 pound spinach, trimmed, washed, and cut crosswise into very fine ribbons
1½ to 2 teaspoons salt
¼ cup olive oil
1 to 3 whole dried hot red chiles
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
4 to 5 garlic cloves, peeled and very finely chopped
3 medium tomatoes, peeled and very finely chopped
Put the chickpeas in a large pot together with their reserved cooking liquid, celery, spinach, and 1½ teaspoons salt. Bring to a boil. Cover, turn the heat down to low, and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the greens are tender.
Meanwhile, put the oil in a large frying pan and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the chile(s). Stir for a few seconds, or until they turn dark. Quickly add the onion and garlic and reduce the heat to medium. Stir and fry until the onion has just begun to pick up a little bit of brown color. Now put in the tomatoes. Stir and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the tomatoes have softened. Transfer the contents of the frying pan to the pot with the chickpeas, stir to mix, and continue to cook the chickpeas gently, stirring now and then, for another 5 to 10 minutes. Check the seasonings, adding more salt if needed.
SERVES 6
Chickpeas Cooked in a Moghlai-Style
Moghlai Chanay
Served with pita breads or Indian naans along with other vegetables and salads, this is perfect party fare, and it may be made a day in advance.
If using the canned variety, you will need 7½ cups (2¾ pounds) of drained chickpeas; use vegetable stock or water for the chickpea cooking liquid.
2½ cups dried chickpeas, picked over, washed, and drained
5 tablespoons peanut or canola oil
2 bay leaves
2 small cinnamon sticks
6 whole cardamom pods
2 medium onions, peeled and finely chopped
1 (2-inch) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated to a pulp
3 to 4 garlic cloves, peeled and mashed to a pulp
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
½ cup plain yogurt
5 tablespoons pureed tomatoes (not paste)
2½ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
½ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro, packed
Soak the chickpeas overnight in water that covers them by several inches or use the
Quick-Soak Method, using 8 cups of water. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid.
Put the chickpeas in a pressure cooker with 5 cups of water. Cover and bring up to pressure. Cook 20 minutes. Allow the pressure to drop by itself, uncover, and set aside. (Alternatively, you could cook the soaked drained chickpeas with 8 cups of water for 1½ to 3 hours until tender.) Allow to cool in the cooking liquid.
In a large pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the bay leaves, cinnamon sticks, and cardamom. Stir a few times and add the onions. Stir and fry for 8 to 9 minutes, or until they turn brown around the edges. Put in the ginger and garlic and stir for about 1 minute. Add the cumin and coriander, stir for a few seconds, then stir in 1 tablespoon of the yogurt. Stir and fry until it becomes one with the onions. Add a second tablespoon of yogurt and stir until it, too, incorporates with the sauce. Continue adding yogurt a tablespoon at a time until the full ½ cup has been incorporated.
Stir in the tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes. Now add the chickpeas with their cooking liquid, 2 cups of water, the salt, garam masala,
amchoor, cumin, and
cayenne. Stir to mix and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer gently, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Add most of the cilantro and stir it in, leaving just a little for a final garnish.
SERVES 8
TRINIDAD
From Khadija Ali of Tiffin’s, Port of Spain
Chickpea and Potato Curry, Caribbean Style
Potato Chana Curry
The foods of Trinidad are such an amalgam, not only of the produce and cooking styles of Africans, Amer-Indians, Indians, Syrians, Chinese, Spanish, Portuguese, and French but also of different periods in the food histories of all those involved.
The Indians of Trinidad, for example, came all the way from the villages and towns of India, starting in the early nineteenth century, mostly to work in the sugar plantations as indentured farmhands. Despite back-breaking working and living conditions akin to slavery, they managed to preserve their local food traditions. Over time, however, names of spices and dishes were half-forgotten or misremembered. New dishes, brought by Indians migrating from other regions of India, were incorporated into what was evolving into a separate Trinidadian Indian cuisine, sometimes disparagingly called “coolie food.” Substitutions were made for original ingredients and new seasonings, either indigenous to the Americas or brought by Europeans, were added freely.
This chickpea dish is such an amalgam, and a glorious one at that. It has chives, thyme, and parsley (sold in fresh bundles in the markets as “seasoning”), which hint of the Mediterranean, it has culantro and hot habanero-type Scotch bonnets, which must have come from the original Amer-Indians, as well as a curry powder made with curry leaves (most unusual for a North Indian–style dish) and yet another
Indianish spice mixture known locally as amchar masala,
whose name and makeup I find most intriguing. (More on that spice mixture.)
The first time I had this dish was in a friend’s office in Port of Spain. It was lunchtime and doubles
were sent for. Doubles,
it turned out, consisted of two Fry Bakes (fried bread) and these chickpeas, all packed up together for us in greaseproof paper. We devoured it with generous dollops of Trinidadian Pepper Sauce and Mango Chutney.
If you cannot find culantro (sold as shadow beni
or chadon bené
in Trinidad), use fresh cilantro. Serve this dish with Fry Bakes, as suggested above, or any flatbread. At a sit-down meal, serve a green vegetable and a yogurt relish as well and perhaps the Tomato “Choka.”
1½ cups dried chickpeas,
soaked and cooked, with skins removed, if you wish, and the cooking liquid drained and reserved
2 tablespoons finely chopped culantro or cilantro
1½ tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives
2 scallions, white parts only, cut into very fine rounds
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves or ½ teaspoon dried
¼ finely chopped Scotch bonnet or other fresh hot chile
2 teaspoons salt
¼ cup peanut or canola oil
1 good-sized onion (6 ounces), peeled and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and mashed to a pulp
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 × ¾-inch chunks
Put the drained chickpeas (not their cooking liquid) in a bowl. Add the culantro, chives, scallions, parsley, thyme, Scotch bonnet, and 1 teaspoon of the salt. Mix gently and set aside.
In a large, wide pot or deep frying pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. When hot, add the onion and stir and fry for about 4 minutes, or until the onion pieces turn brown at the edges. Put in the garlic; stir and fry for another minute. Now add the curry powder and stir once or twice. Quickly add the potatoes, the chickpeas, their reserved cooking liquid, the remaining teaspoon salt, and enough water to barely cover the potatoes and chickpeas, about 1¼ cups. Bring to a boil. Turn the heat to low, cover, and simmer gently for 30 minutes. Stir in the amchar masala and cook another 5 minutes. Serve hot.
SERVES 4 TO 6
INDIA
Chickpeas and Chana Dal Cooked Together in a Mint Sauce
Paraati Chana
Here is a perfect stewlike dish for large gatherings or a family get-together. This Punjabi specialty is sold in the streets of North India and people stop to buy a plate as Americans might stop for a hot dog. It is served from a large round, high-sided tray known as a paraat—
hence it is known as paraati chana.
Decorating the edges are whole green chiles and wedges of limes and onions. The chana dal
in the dish melts, providing the larger chickpeas with a lovely, spicy sauce that is best sopped up with Indian breads or Middle Eastern flatbreads such as pita. If you cannot easily get the exquisitely flavored Indian yellow split chickpea known as chana dal,
use ordinary yellow split peas.
This is generally eaten as a snack but it could easily be served at a meal with breads, vegetables, and a yogurt dish.
1½ cups dried chickpeas, picked over, washed, and drained
¾ cup chana dal or yellow split peas, picked over, washed, and drained
1 tablespoon peeled and finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger
3 fresh hot green chiles, finely chopped
1 cup mint leaves, packed, washed, and coarsely chopped
¼ cup peanut or canola oil
2 medium onions, finely chopped
½ pound very ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped
2½ teaspoons salt
1½ teaspoons ground coriander
1½ teaspoons ground cumin
Soak the chickpeas overnight in cold water to cover by about 5 inches. Alternatively, you may use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid.
In a large pot, bring the chickpeas and 7 cups of water to a boil. Cover, lower the heat, and simmer for 1 hour. Skim off any chickpea skins that may be floating on the top. Add the chana dal or split peas to the pot, cover, and continue simmering for 1½ to 2 hours, or until the chickpeas and chana dal are tender. Set aside.
Meanwhile, combine the garlic, ginger, green chiles, and mint leaves in the container of a blender. Add 6 to 8 tablespoons of water as needed and blend, pushing down the mixture with a rubber spatula several times, until pureed. Set the minty mixture aside.
Heat the oil in a wide, medium pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions and stir and fry until they are a rich, reddish brown. Add the tomatoes. Stir and cook until the tomatoes reduce and darken and the oil begins to show at the sides of the pan. Add the green spice paste and stir over medium-high heat for 5 minutes. Add the chickpeas and their cooking liquid, then stir in the salt, coriander, cumin, garam masala, and tamarind paste, mixing thoroughly. Cover, lower the heat, and simmer gently for ½ hour. Serve hot.
SERVES 6 TO 8
Draupadiji’s
Vegetable Stew with Chickpea Flour Sauce
Karhi
This karhi is a soupy stew made with a chickpea flour base that comes from India’s western region of Sindh. It is nearly always served with plain basmati rice and requires nothing more than perhaps some pickles and chutneys.
Other vegetables may be used either in place of or in addition to those suggested below, such as diced potatoes and small okra pods that have been fried first.
If curry leaves are unavailable, substitute fresh basil. The flavors are totally different, but have a similar freshness and intensity.
¼ cup peanut or canola oil
¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds
20 fresh curry leaves
¾ cup chickpea flour
1 large tomato, finely chopped
1 (1½-inch) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated to a pulp
½ to 1 fresh hot green chile, finely chopped
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
¼ to ½ teaspoon cayenne
1¾ teaspoons salt
1 medium carrot, cut into 1½-inch-long sticks
1 scant cup fresh green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 loosely packed cups medium cauliflower florets
Put a kettle of water on to boil. You will need 5 cups of boiling water.
Put the oil in a large pot and place over medium-high heat. When hot, add the fenugreek seeds and a second later the curry leaves. Stir once and quickly put in the chickpea flour. Turn the heat down to low and stir and fry for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the chickpea flour is a shade darker. Add the boiling water, a little at a time, while you stir vigorously with a whisk. When all the water has been added and the sauce looks smooth, stir in the tomato, ginger, chile, turmeric, cayenne, salt, and tamarind paste and bring to a simmer. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook gently for 15 minutes. Uncover and add all the vegetables. Stir to mix and bring to a simmer again. Cover, turn the heat down to low, and cook very gently for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.
SERVES 4
INDIA
Basic Recipe for Plain Chickpea Flour Pancakes
Poora/Pudla
These are best made in a 5½- to 6-inch nonstick frying pan. While they should really be eaten as soon as they are made for optimal flavor and texture, you may wrap them up in a foil bundle and reheat the whole bundle in a medium oven for 15 minutes. You may also reheat them, one at a time for 1 minute, in a microwave oven.
In the West Indian state of Gujarat, where chickpea pancakes are very popular, they are served rather as the West serves omelets, either plain, as in this recipe, or mixed with flavorings, as in the variations that follow. The flavorings do not, of course, have to be Indian. You might want to use fresh herbs or a mixture of chopped bell peppers or grated cauliflower or even leftover lightly crushed green peas.
Serve these at breakfast or as a snack with yogurt relishes, sweet or savory chutneys, and pickles. You may also serve them with a meal in place of bread. Almost anything may be wrapped inside them, such as potato or cauliflower stews, beans, even grated cheese and salsas.
2 cups chickpea flour
1 teaspoon ground cumin seeds
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
¼ to ½ teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon salt
6 to 7 tablespoons peanut or canola oil for cooking the pancakes
Sift the chickpea flour, cumin, turmeric, cayenne, and salt into a medium mixing bowl. Very slowly, stir in 2 cups of water with a wooden spoon, stopping while the batter is still pastelike to get rid of all lumps, then slowly adding the rest of the water. (For more on adding liquid to chickpea flour, see
here.) Set the batter aside for 30 minutes. Strain it through a sieve if it is still lumpy.
Put 1 teaspoon oil in a 5½- to 6-inch nonstick frying pan and place over medium-high heat. When hot, stir the batter from the bottom and ladle about ¼ cup into the frying pan. Tilt the frying pan around to spread out the batter. Dribble another teaspoon of oil over the top. Cook the pancake for about 2 minutes, or until the bottom has golden-red spots. Turn the pancake over and cook the second side for a minute, or until it too has golden-red spots. Remove to a plate and keep covered with an overturned plate. Continue making pancakes until all the batter is used. Serve immediately.
MAKES ABOUT 10 PANCAKES
Chickpea Flour Pancakes with Sesame Seeds
Follow the preceding master recipe for Plain
Chickpea Flour Pancakes but with this difference: As soon as you pour the batter into the frying pan, sprinkle the top with about ½ teaspoon of sesame seeds. When you turn the pancake over, the seeds will toast slightly. (Use either beige or black sesame seeds.)
Chickpea Flour Pancakes with Crushed Green Peas and Cilantro
Make the batter as in the master recipe, adding 1 teaspoon very finely grated fresh peeled ginger, 1 teaspoon very finely chopped fresh green chile, 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh cilantro, and 1 cup fresh or frozen green peas that have been cooked, drained, and then lightly mashed. Mix well and set the batter aside for 30 minutes. Do not strain before making the pancakes. Remember to stir well before ladling out the batter for every single pancake.
Chickpea Flour Pancakes with Fresh Green Herbs
Follow the master recipe but leave out the cumin, turmeric, and cayenne. Set it aside for 30 minutes. Strain, if necessary. Just before making the pancakes, stir in 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh chives, 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme, 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh tarragon, and 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley. Do not forget to stir well before making each pancake.
INDIA
Pallavi Shah’s
Chickpea Flour Pancakes with Tomato and Onion
Tameta Kanda Na Poora
A few of these pancakes served with a green salad make a wonderful light meal. Because the tomato and onion release juices of their own, this recipe uses a little less liquid than the preceding ones.
1 teaspoon salt
¼ to ½ teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
¼ cup peeled, seeded, and finely diced tomato (see
instructions, if needed)
¼ cup finely chopped onion or finely sliced scallions
6 to 7 tablespoons peanut or canola oil, for cooking the pancakes
Sift the chickpea flour, salt, and cayenne into a mixing bowl. Very slowly stir in 1¼ cups of water with a wooden spoon, stopping while the batter is still pastelike to get rid of all lumps, then slowly adding the rest of the water. (For more on adding liquid to chickpea flour, see
here.) Add the cumin seeds, tomato, and onion. Mix well. Set the batter aside for 30 minutes.
Put 1 teaspoon oil in a 5½- to 6-inch nonstick frying pan and set over medium-high heat. When hot, stir the batter from the bottom and ladle about ¼ cup into the frying pan. Tilt the frying pan around to spread out the batter. Dribble another teaspoon of oil over the top. Cook the pancake for about 2 minutes, or until the bottom has golden-red spots. Turn the pancake over and cook the second side for a minute, or until it too has golden-red spots. Remove to a plate and keep covered with an overturned plate. Repeat with the remaining batter. Serve immediately.
MAKES 9 TO 10 PANCAKES; SERVES 3 TO 4
FRANCE/ITALY
Basic Recipe for Plain Chickpea Flour Pizza
Socca/Farinata
This traditional morning snack for workmen in both Nice and Genoa is baked in brick ovens in large, round trays similar to those used for pizzas. The hot pizza is generally torn into strips with the fingers, but you may, if you wish, cut the pizza into wedges with a knife.
Since most of us do not have brick ovens at home, I have developed an alternate method that uses both the top of the stove and the broiler. The best utensil for this method is a sturdy, nonstick, 12-inch sauté pan or frying pan with a metal handle that can stand the heat of a broiler. If your pan is just a bit smaller or bigger, it should not matter much.
As with the chickpea flour pancakes, the pizza may be made plain or you may add herbs and olives. I also make one with herbs and grated Parmesan cheese, which is quite spectacular.
⅓ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
Sift the chickpea flour and salt into a bowl. Very slowly, stir in 1 cup of water with a wooden spoon, stopping while the batter is still pastelike to beat out all lumps, then slowly adding the rest of the water. (For more on adding liquid to chickpea flour, see
here.) Set the batter aside for 30 minutes. Strain it through a sieve if it is still lumpy.
Preheat the broiler.
Put 1 tablespoon of oil in a 12-inch nonstick frying pan and set it over medium-high heat. When hot, stir the batter from the bottom and pour it into the frying pan. Pour 2 tablespoons of oil over the top of the pizza, sprinkle lightly with black pepper, and cook on top of the stove for about 4 minutes. During this time, big bubbles will rise from the bottom; you may burst them with the tip of a knife. When the pizza batter looks as if it has set, put the frying pan under the broiler about 5 inches from the source of heat for 4 to 5 minutes, or until it is golden all over and has some nicely browned patches. You may need to turn the pan around to achieve evenness. Serve hot.
MAKES 1 PIZZA; SERVES 2 TO 4
Chickpea Flour Pizza with Thyme and Sage
Make the batter as in the master recipe for Plain Chickpea Flour Pizza but with this difference: When the batter has sat for 30 minutes, add to it 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme or ½ teaspoon dried thyme. Stir and pour the batter into the pan as in the master recipe and arrange 5 to 6 fresh sage leaves over the top. Proceed to cook as in the master recipe.
Chickpea Flour Pizza with Rosemary, Tomato, and Parmesan Cheese
Make the pizza as in the master recipe for Plain
Chickpea Flour Pizza but with this difference: When the batter has sat for 30 minutes, add ½ teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary or ¼ teaspoon dried crumbled rosemary. Stir and pour the batter into the pan and cook as in the master recipe. After 2 to 3 minutes, when the batter has just barely set, sprinkle 2 tablespoons peeled, seeded, and chopped tomatoes, 1 tablespoon finely chopped onion, 3 tablespoons coarsely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, and lots of black pepper over the top. Proceed to put the pizza under the broiler as in the master recipe.
Victoria Salvy’s
Chickpea Flour “French Fries”
Panisses
If you have never had this polenta-like specialty from the south of France, I urge you to try it immediately. To make it, the chickpea flour batter is first cooked until thick and then allowed to set in shallow plates. When firm, it is cut into “fries,” dipped in flour, and shallow-fried. These crisp “fries,” or panisses,
may be eaten plain with a sprinkling of salt and pepper or served with a tomato-enriched vegetable, such as Stuffed Baby Eggplants or Stir-Fried Eggplants with Tomato and Parmesan Cheese. You may also serve them with Simple Tomato Sauce on the side and a green salad.
The panisses may also be served sweet with a generous dusting of confectioners’ sugar.
To set the batter: You need old-fashioned dinner plates or side plates with a wide rim for this recipe. The batter is poured into the center section and quickly spread to a depth of about ⅛ inch. I use 2 medium dinner plates that have a diameter of 6½ to 7 inches in the central section. If you use smaller side plates, you will need 3 of them with a diameter of about 4½ inches in the central section. Remember that this chickpea flour batter, once cooked, sets in seconds, so work with great speed to get the batter from the pan into the plates and spread to the rim.
For the shallow-frying, you may use a combination of peanut and olive oil or just olive oil.
Olive oil for oiling the plates plus 1 teaspoon for the batter
1¼ cups chickpea flour
Salt
½ cup unbleached all-purpose white flour
An equal combination of olive and peanut oil for shallow-frying
Freshly ground black pepper
Oil the plates you will be using to set the batter. Place a bowl of cold water nearby.
Sift the chickpea flour onto a sheet of wax paper or into a small bowl.
In a heavy saucepan, bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Add ½ teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon olive oil and turn the heat to medium. Pour in the sifted chickpea flour in a steady stream, stirring all the while with a wooden spoon. Keep stirring vigorously with the wooden spoon for 10 minutes, or until the batter is thick and begins to come off the sides of the pan. Working very quickly now, divide the batter between the plates. Quickly wet your hands in the bowl of cold water and spread the batter evenly on each plate so it goes out to the rim and forms a thick pancake. It will begin to firm up in seconds and set completely within minutes.
The set “pancakes” may be held for several hours, covered with overturned plates of the same size, but don’t fry the
panisses until just before serving.
When ready to eat, spread the flour on a board. Lay the “pancakes” on the floured board and cut them into ¾-inch-wide strips. Cut the strips in half crosswise. Roll each piece in the all-purpose flour until it is well coated.
Pour the oil into a large frying pan to a depth of ⅛ inch and set on medium-high heat. When hot, put in the panisses and fry them for about 5 minutes on each side, or until golden-red. Use a slotted spatula to transfer the panisses to a plate lined with paper towels. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve immediately.
SERVES 2 TO 4
INDIA
Chickpea Flour “French Fries,” the Indian Way
Saank
My mother made a dish very similar to the panisses of southern France, only she mixed the chickpea flour batter first, adding to it ginger, green chiles, and fresh cilantro before cooking it in a pan. This was generally eaten as a snack with tea or served for Sunday breakfasts. Chutneys were served on the side.
Follow the general directions for setting the batter in the preceding recipe.
Peanut or canola oil, enough for oiling the plates and shallow-frying
1¼ cups chickpea flour
Salt
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon very finely grated peeled fresh ginger
1 to 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh hot green chile
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
½ teaspoon whole cumin seeds
½ cup unbleached all-purpose white flour
Freshly ground black pepper
Oil the plates you will be using to
set the batter. Place a bowl of cold water nearby.
Sift the chickpea flour, ½ teaspoon salt, turmeric, and ground cumin into a bowl. Slowly add 2 cups of water (see
here if you need directions on how to add water to chickpea flour). If there are still any lumps, strain the batter through a sieve.
Now add the ginger, chile, and cilantro. Stir to mix and set aside for 10 minutes.
Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. When hot, add the whole cumin seeds. Ten seconds later, pour in the batter in a steady stream, stirring all the while with a wooden spoon. Keep stirring vigorously until the batter comes to a boil. Stir vigorously for another 10 minutes, or until the batter is thick and begins to come off the sides of the pan. Working very quickly now, divide the batter between the plates. Quickly wet your hands in the bowl of cold water and spread the batter evenly over each plate so it extends to the rim and forms a thick pancake. It will begin to firm up in seconds and set completely within minutes.
The set “pancakes” may be held for several hours, covered with inverted plates of the same size, but the “fries” should be prepared just before you are ready to eat them.
Just before serving, spread the all-purpose flour on a board. Lift the “pancakes” off the plates gently and lay them on the floured board. Cut them into ¾-inch-wide strips. Cut the strips in half, crosswise. Roll each piece in the flour until it is well coated.
Pour oil into a large frying pan to a depth of ⅛ inch and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the strips and fry them for about 5 minutes on each side, or until golden-red. Use a slotted spatula to transfer the “fries” to a plate lined with paper towels to drain. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve immediately.
SERVES 2 TO 4
Fresh fava beans have been appearing more and more often in a scattered fashion on the well-designed plates of American master chefs, but the general public, on the whole, is still quite unfamiliar with them (see
fresh fava beans).
Americans seem to have even less knowledge of the dried bean, which, when cooked, has a delicious chestnutlike texture and a dark, earthy taste. This old bean, which was known in ancient Persia, in prehistoric Switzerland, all around the early Mediterranean sea routes, and has even been found in the tombs of Egyptian pharaohs, has yet to gain a foothold in America.
Of course, it could be that the Americas offered incoming Europeans such a kaleidoscopic plethora of new, mild-flavored beans, such as the haricot, that the large, slightly bitter, dried fava retreated into the background. Strangely enough, fava beans did travel to China sometime in antiquity and took root in the western part of that country. Today, not only are they stir-fried in their fresh form but most of the bean pastes in Sichuan are made, not with dried soybeans as might be
expected, but with dried and fermented
fava beans. They are also sprouted, with superb results.
Two
types of dried fava beans are available in the market: those that have been skinned and split, and those that are whole with their leathery, inedible skins still on them. For making the kind of purees that are very popular in the Middle East and North Africa, it is easier to use the skinned and split fava beans. However, if you wish to sprout them or cook them whole, you will need the beans with skins.
Pick over and wash the beans. Drain them. Now put them in a pan with roughly double the amount of water and cook gently for 40 to 60 minutes. The beans can now be mashed and seasoned to get a thick puree.
This puree forms an excellent bed for sautéed green vegetables, such as broccoli rabe or even stir-fried broccoli.
Pick over and wash the beans; drain. Soak them overnight in water to cover by 5 inches or use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain. Place the soaked beans in a pot with 4 cups of water for every cup of soaked beans and bring to a boil. Cover partially, turn the heat down to low, and cook gently for 30 to 50 minutes, or until the beans are just tender. Drain. Cool slightly and peel.
Pick over and wash 1 pound of whole, unskinned, dried fava beans. Spread them on a large rimmed platter or metal tray in a single layer and cover them with 1 inch of water. Soak for 24 hours. Drain, rinse gently, cover with water again, and leave for another 24 hours. The third day, tiny sprouts should begin to appear. Leave a little water in the bottom of the pan and cover the beans with a double thickness of wet paper towels. Put the platter or tray in a dark place, such as an unused oven. Keep the towels lightly dampened. By the fourth day, the shoots will be about ½ inch long. Rinse gently and drain. You can keep these sprouts for a week in a plastic bag in the refrigerator; sprinkle them now and then with a little water. One pound of beans yields about 6 cups of sprouts.
Unlike some sprouted beans, these sprouts need to be cooked and the skins are inedible. You almost have to suck the meat out of the skin as you eat.
Melle Derko Samira’s
Fava Bean Puree
Bissara
In Morocco, bissara
or bean purees are made from different beans, including fava beans, chickpeas, and split peas (see the split pea bissara).
They are served in shallow soup plates or shallow bowls sprinkled liberally with cumin and paprika and with a thin layer of good olive oil floating at the top. The film of oil provides lubrication, flavor, and also prevents a skin from forming. To eat, diners break off thick chunks of Everyday Moroccan Bread and dip it into the puree. Lemon juice may be squeezed on top of the puree if one so wishes.
2 cups dried, split, and skinned fava beans
4 garlic cloves, peeled and left whole
9 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
¾ to 1 teaspoon salt
1¼ teaspoons ground cumin
1¼ teaspoons paprika
¾ teaspoon cayenne (optional)
Lemon wedges (optional)
Wash the fava beans in several changes of water. Drain.
Combine the fava beans, garlic, 1 tablespoon olive oil, and 4 cups of water in a medium pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cover the pot, turn the heat down to low, and cook gently for 50 minutes, or until the beans are very tender.
Add the salt. Mash the beans and garlic with a potato masher until you have a coarse puree. Add ¼ teaspoon of the cumin, ¼ teaspoon of the paprika, and ⅛ teaspoon of the cayenne, if using. Stir to mix. The puree should be thick enough to pick up with a piece of bread but not so thick that it feels solid. If it is too thick, the puree can be thinned with a few tablespoons of water.
To serve, heat the fava beans over medium-low heat, stirring as you do so. Ladle the fava beans into 4 old-fashioned soup plates. Sprinkle each serving with ¼ teaspoon cumin, ¼ teaspoon paprika, and ⅛ teaspoon cayenne, if desired. Drizzle enough olive oil to form a film over each serving. Garnish with lemon wedges and serve hot or warm. (Diners should squeeze as much lemon juice over the puree as they like.)
Note: The puree will get fairly solid when refrigerated. Add a little water to it slowly and stir as you reheat gently.
SERVES 4
Stir-Fried Fava Bean Sprouts
Ching Chow Tsan Do Meow
Serve these as a snack or as a nibble with beer, or even as a first course. Just suck the meat out of the skins when eating. The Chinese would pick these up with chopsticks but you can use your fingers.
2 tablespoons peanut oil
2 thin slices of ginger
1 garlic clove, lightly crushed and peeled but left whole
2 cups fava bean sprouts
¾ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons Chinese Shao Hsing wine or dry sherry
2 teaspoons oriental sesame oil
Put the oil in a wok or large frying pan and set over medium-high heat. When hot, add the ginger and garlic. Stir and fry for 20 seconds, pressing down on the seasonings. Put in the sprouts. Stir for 10 seconds. Now add the salt, sugar, wine, and 1¼ cups of water and bring to a boil. Cover, turn the heat to medium-low, and simmer 30 minutes. Remove the lid, add the sesame oil, and cook until all the liquid has boiled away, stirring gently as you do so. Remove the ginger and garlic and serve hot or chilled.
SERVES 2
These originated in Central and South America in ancient times and belong to the large family of common American beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) that includes the haricot. While they remain very popular in the lands of their origin, today they are grown and eaten around the world, sometimes in salads, sometimes in the Tex-Mex and now international favorite, chili, and sometimes in stews and soups.
In India, kidney beans seem to have found a permanent niche in the northwest region of Punjab, where they are a staple. In this region they, as well as flat corn breads, are a staple food. In the cold winter months both are lubricated with mounds of homemade white butter and consumed with great relish. Punjabis call the small, indigenous Indian black bean
“ma” (see
urad). They call the large red kidney bean
“rajma,” or the “royal
ma,” perhaps because of its size and startling color. Often, the larger beans are combined with smaller red or black beans.
Actually, “red kidney bean” is rather a loose name for a bean that can be small or large and ranges in color from pinkish-red to a dark, winy maroon. Any of
these beans may be used in the recipes that follow, though small beans take less time (and less water) to cook, so you will need to make adjustments accordingly. The recipes that follow were all made using the large bean.
Pinto beans, which cook exactly like red
kidney beans, can be
substituted.
Even though these beans are not soaked overnight in the lands of their origin, I find it advisable to do so.
Now, for each 1½ cups of beans (the quantity called for in most of my recipes), add 6 cups of water and bring to a boil. Cover partially, turn the heat down to low, and cook gently for 2 to 2½ hours, or until the beans are tender.
About 1½ teaspoons of salt may be added during the last 10 minutes unless further cooking is called for, in which case it can be added later, as directed.
If you wish to use canned beans, note that 1½ cups of dried red kidney beans yield 4 cups of cooked drained beans. The liquid from canned beans should be discarded.
Soak the beans as suggested above. Drain.
Put the beans, 4 cups of water, and 1½ teaspoons peanut or corn oil into a pressure cooker and bring up to pressure. Cook 10 to 12 minutes and let the pressure drop by itself. Uncover and add 1½ teaspoons salt if no more salt is called for in the recipe, and cook gently, uncovered, for 5 minutes.
INDIA
Spicy Punjabi Red Kidney Bean Stew
Rajma
My family likes to eat this bean stew at least once a week. If I am serving it for lunch, it is often the main dish, offered in old-fashioned soup plates with a dollop of thick creamy yogurt in the center. Sometimes I sprinkle a little finely chopped cilantro or parsley over the yogurt.
In the Punjab, where this dish is a staple, two types of kidney beans, a very dark red one and a lighter red one, are often combined in equal proportions. You may do the same if you can find the lighter beans, often available at Indian groceries.
I like to serve thick, crusty whole wheat bread on the side but you may, if you prefer, eat the beans with rice or a bulgur pilaf. A salad and/or vegetable dish, such as the Homemade Indian Cheese with Spinach, may also be served on the side.
1½ cups dried
red kidney beans, preferably a mix of light and dark
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
3 tablespoons peanut or canola oil
1 cup finely chopped onions
1 tablespoon peeled and finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger
1¼ cups peeled and chopped ripe tomatoes
2 teaspoons ground coriander
¼ teaspoon cayenne
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 fresh hot green chile, finely chopped
1 tablespoon
amchoor or 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
Soak and cook the beans according to
general directions. Add the salt to the beans and stir to mix.
Put the oil in a wide, medium pot and set over medium-high heat. Add the onions. Stir and fry until the onions are a rich, reddish-brown color. Add the garlic and stir a few times, then add the ginger and stir once or twice. Add the tomatoes, coriander, cayenne, cumin, and chile. Stir and cook over medium heat for 5 to 6 minutes, or until the tomatoes are slightly reduced. Stir in the cooked beans and their liquid as well as the amchoor. Turn the heat to low and simmer gently for 10 minutes to marry all the flavors. Serve hot.
SERVES 4 TO 6
JAMAICA
Red Kidney Beans for Jamaican “Peas and Rice”
In Jamaica, the red kidney beans and rice are cooked together. I prefer to cook the beans separately and then serve them over plain rice. The Scotch bonnet chile gives its own very tropically citric aroma to the dish, but make sure that you do not allow the chile to puncture during cooking, as it is very fiery, and remove it before serving.
For this recipe you may use small, large, or a combination of small and large red kidney beans.
1½ cups dried red kidney beans
2 cups canned coconut milk, well-stirred
1 Scotch bonnet or other habanero-type chile
4 tablespoons finely chopped chives or 6 tablespoons finely sliced scallions, both green and white sections
3 to 4 fresh thyme sprigs or ¾ teaspoon dried thyme
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
¾ teaspoon ground allspice
1½ to 2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
Freshly ground black pepper
Soak and cook the beans overnight in water to cover by at least 5 inches. Alternatively, you may use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid.
In a large pot, bring the beans and 4 cups of water to a boil. Cover, turn the heat down to low, and simmer gently for 1 hour. Add the coconut milk, habanero, chives, thyme, garlic, onion, and allspice. Stir and simmer for 30 minutes. Add the salt and pepper, stir, and simmer another 30 minutes, or until the beans are tender. Taste for the balance of seasonings. Remove the habanero and the thyme sprigs before serving.
SERVES 4 TO 6
NIGERIA
Anita Harrell’s
Nigerian Red Kidney Bean Stew with a Peanut Sauce
This is an absolutely wonderful and easy-to-make stew that our family loves. The peanut butter flavor just seems to melt away, leaving only an unctuous sense of creaminess. If you like, you may add 1 cup of fresh or frozen corn kernels when you add the cooked tomato mixture.
I serve this stew with rice, though my youngest daughter eats it out of a bowl with crusty bread. I like to serve greens or green beans on the side.
1½ cups dried red kidney beans or pinto beans
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
3 tablespoons peanut or canola oil
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
½ large green pepper, seeds removed and cut into small dice
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 cup canned tomato sauce
¼ teaspoon cayenne
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1½ tablespoons smooth peanut butter
Soak and cook the beans according to
general directions; do not drain. Add the salt to the beans, stir to mix, and leave the beans in their cooking liquid.
Put the oil in a wide, medium pot and set over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and pepper. Stir and fry just until the onion has turned translucent, turning
the heat down as needed. Add the cumin and stir once. Put in the tomato sauce, cayenne, lemon juice, and ½ cup of water. Stir and bring to a simmer. Turn the heat down to low and simmer gently, stirring now and then, for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, put the peanut butter in a small bowl. Slowly add about 6 tablespoons of cooking liquid from the beans, mixing as you go. Stir this mixture back into the pot of beans.
When the tomato mixture has finished cooking, pour it into the pot of beans as well. Stir and bring to a simmer. Cover, turn the heat down to low, and simmer gently for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve hot.
SERVES 4 TO 6
MEXICO
Red Kidney Bean Casserole
Chilaquiles
Mexican chilaquiles is really a meat dish, often made with leftover meat that is layered between crisp pieces of day-old tortillas, doused in a sauce of ancho chiles and tomatoes, and then baked. Here, I have used red kidney beans in place of the meat. You could add corn or other vegetables to the casserole if you like.
If you wish to use canned beans here, you will need about 4 well-drained cups. If you do not have the time to make an ancho chile sauce or cannot find ancho chiles, use 2 cups of store-bought hot salsa.
Serve with a crisp green salad.
1½ cups dried red kidney beans or pinto beans
3 tablespoons canola or olive oil
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
2 tablespoons golden raisins
12 pimiento-stuffed olives
1¼ cups peeled and chopped ripe tomatoes
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons salt
Freshly ground black pepper
4 large ancho chiles
3 tablespoons peanut or canola oil
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
½ teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup canned tomato sauce
¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste
2½ cups crushed tortilla chips, preferably baked (see Note)
5 ounces grated sharp Cheddar cheese
Put the oil in a large frying pan and set over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic. Stir and fry until the onion turns translucent, reducing the heat as needed. Now add the golden raisins and olives. Stir once and add the tomatoes. Stir and cook on medium heat for 5 to 6 minutes, or until the tomatoes are slightly reduced. Add the cooked beans and their liquid, the lime juice, sugar, salt, and pepper to taste. Stir and bring to a simmer and cook gently for 10 minutes. Taste for the balance of seasonings and adjust, if needed.
Meanwhile, make the sauce. Combine the ancho chiles and 1½ cups of water in a small pot and bring to a boil. Cover, turn the heat down to low, and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the pot sit, covered, until the anchos are cool enough to handle. Lift them out of the liquid; save the liquid. Remove the stems and seeds. Put the anchos in a coarse sieve set over a bowl and press to push out as much pulp as you can. Stir the reserved cooking liquid into the pulp and set aside.
Put the oil for the sauce in a frying pan and set over medium heat. When hot, add the onion and garlic and stir and sauté until the onion is soft and translucent, turning the heat down as needed. Add the allspice, sugar, tomato sauce, salt, and 1 cup of water. Bring to a simmer, cover, and simmer gently for 10 minutes, stirring now and then.
Combine the tomato mixture and the ancho paste and blend until you have a coarse puree. Taste for the balance of flavors.
Preheat the oven to 350° F.
Lightly oil a 9 × 9-inch casserole dish and scatter half the crushed tortillas on the bottom. Top with the beans. Scatter the remaining tortillas over the beans. Pour the ancho sauce over all, then top it all with the grated cheese. Bake for 35 minutes, or until the cheese is lightly browned. Serve hot.
Note: If you have day-old tortillas lying around, use them for the tortilla-chip topping; crisp them in a low oven and then break them up. Otherwise, use purchased tortilla chips, preferably the baked variety. If baked chips are unavailable, use low-salt fried ones. You’ll need only part of a 7-ounce bag.
SERVES 4 TO 6
I have, rather loosely, combined several varieties of white and semiwhite beans into this section, from the large “giant” white kidney beans and the smaller cannellini, navy, and Great Northern beans of the common American variety (Phaseolus vulgaris) to the lima beans of Central American origin (Phaseolus lunatus), which are distinguished by the fine ridges that radiate from their central “eye.”
The sizes and shapes of these “white” beans go from very large and kidney-shaped to small and spherical or elongated specimens. They are cooked in more or less the same way, with the larger ones taking a bit longer than the smaller ones.
All these beans turn buttery when cooked until just done and then baked gently in a slow oven. You will find exquisite “casseroles” from areas as disparate as Greece and Cuba in this section.
Cover the beans with about 3 times their volume of water (this varies a bit according to the recipe) and bring to a boil. Remove the scum that rises to the top. Cover partially, turn the heat down to low, and cook anywhere from 40 minutes to 2 hours, or until the beans are tender, adding 1 teaspoon salt for every cup of dried beans in the last 10 minutes of cooking.
More specifically, allow 1 to 1½ hours for cannellini beans, navy beans, Great Northern beans, and large limas; 40 minutes to 1 hour for small limas; and 1½ to 2 hours for large white kidney beans.
One cup of dried beans should yield about 3 cups of cooked drained beans.
If you wish to use canned beans, note that 1½ cups of dried white kidney beans yield 4 cups of cooked drained beans. If the liquid from cooking the beans is required in the recipe, you will have to use water or a light stock, as the liquid from canned beans should be discarded.
Put the beans in a pressure cooker. Add enough water to cover them by an inch. Cover and bring up to pressure. Cook cannellini, navy, Great Northern, and large lima beans for 8 minutes, smaller limas for 4 minutes, and large white kidney beans for 10 minutes, allowing the pressure to drop by itself. Salt should ideally be added in the next stage of cooking.
From the nuns at the Ormylia Monastery in Macedonia
Baked Lima Beans or Large White Beans
Fassoulia Fourno
You may make this dish with large white beans or large lima beans. The nuns serve it as a main course, with bread, salad, fruit, and olives—a simple repast that is both nourishing and healthy.
1 cup dried lima beans or any large white beans, picked over and washed
¼ cup olive oil
1 medium onion, peeled, halved lengthwise, and cut into thin half moons
1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into ⅓-inch-thick slices
2 good-sized (6–7 ounce) tomatoes, finely chopped
1¼ teaspoons salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 to 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
3 tablespoons fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried oregano
Soak the beans overnight in water to cover by 5 inches or use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid.
Put the beans in a pot with 3 cups of fresh water and bring to a boil. Remove the scum that rises to the top. Cover, turn the heat down to low, and simmer gently for 40 to 60 minutes, or until the beans are just tender.
Meanwhile, put the oil in a flame- and ovenproof casserole-type dish and set over medium-high heat. When hot, add the onion. Stir and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the onion has just wilted. Put in the carrot and cook another minute, stirring now and then. Now put in the tomatoes and cook 7 to 10 minutes, or until the tomatoes have softened. Turn off the heat.
Preheat the oven to 325° F.
When the beans have finished cooking, add them and their cooking liquid to the dish with the onion, carrot, and tomatoes. Add the salt, lots of black pepper, the parsley, and oregano. Stir to mix. Put the casserole dish into the oven and bake, uncovered, for 2 hours. Serve hot.
SERVES 4
White Beans with Rosemary
I adapted this dish from a fashionable Paris bistro, making it completely vegetarian. You can make it with large white beans or large lima beans.
Here is my favorite way of serving it: I put it in the center of a large plate, grate some Parmesan cheese over it, and then top it all with some garlicky greens such as broccoli rabe, spinach, or Stir-Fried Beet Greens with Ginger and Green Chiles. All you need then is some crusty bread on the side.
1½ cups dried lima beans or any large white beans, picked over and washed
¼ cup olive oil
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary or ½ teaspoon very finely crushed dried rosemary
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
1 medium tomato, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
1¼ teaspoons salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Soak the beans overnight in water to cover by 5 inches or use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid.
Put the oil in a wide, medium pot and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the rosemary, onion, and garlic. Stir and fry for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the onion just starts to brown. Add the tomato and bay leaf and stir for a minute, then add the drained beans, 3½ cups of water, salt, and pepper to taste. Stir and bring to a boil. Cover, turn the heat down to low, and simmer gently for 1½ hours, or until the beans are quite tender.
SERVES 4
CUBA
Mirta Carbonell’s
Aromatic Cuban White Bean and Pumpkin Stew
Potaje de Freijoles Blanco
Here is a wonderful stew for a crowd. You may easily halve the recipe if you like, but remember that it lasts well in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days and may also be frozen. I sometimes serve it with rice or crusty French or Italian bread, vegetables, salads, and cheeses but often, for an informal buffet, I pile a stack of freshly steamed corn tortillas or heated pita breads on the side in a large napkin and also put out lots of grated cheese (Monterey Jack or Cheddar), some hot sauces (such as Trinidadian Pepper Sauce), some roasted and lightly dressed red peppers, and a green salad. People can then roll some of the food—such as the beans, pepper sauce, and cheese—in the tortillas or stuff pita pockets with it and have the rest on the side. It is not very Cuban but it is very good.
You may use any dried white beans, from the larger kidney beans to the smaller cannellini, navy, or Great Northern beans. The cooking times will vary slightly according to the size and age of the beans.
The two Cuban seasonings used here, culantro leaves and cachucha chiles, are both highly aromatic and, alas, not so easy to find. The long serrated leaves of the former are similar in taste to fresh cilantro and are sold in Caribbean and some Thai markets. (It is called shadow beni in Trinidad, pak chee farang or “foreign cilantro” in Thai shops, and recao in some Hispanic shops.) If you cannot get them, fresh cilantro makes a reasonable substitute.
Cachucha chiles are another matter. Of the Scotch bonnet family, they are small, green, and squat, with an amazing, tropical citrus perfume. What is more, they are not in the least bit hot so the somewhat similar habanero chiles—which have the perfume but a lot of heat—cannot be substituted. Cachucha chiles are sold only in Cuban shops. My suggestion would be to use a mild green pepper, such as the light green Italian or Greek pepper or even a green bell pepper when you are preparing the sofrito, or sautéed mixture, and then throw in some lemongrass or grated lemon rind as well as some grated orange rind when you add the cooked beans to it.
1 pound white kidney beans, cannellini beans, navy beans, or Great Northern beans, picked over and washed
12 ounces pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into ¾-inch dice (about 2 cups)
5 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
8 to 10 cachucha chiles, seeds removed and finely chopped (or 3 tablespoons any other mild green pepper, seeded and finely chopped—see Note)
¼ cup finely chopped culantro leaves or fresh cilantro, packed
½ teaspoon ground cumin
1 cup canned tomato sauce
1¾ teaspoons salt, or to taste
Soak the beans overnight in water to cover by 5 inches or use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid.
In a large pot, bring the beans, pumpkin, and 5 cups of water to a boil. Partially cover the pot, leaving it just slightly ajar, turn the heat down to low, and simmer gently for 40 to 80 minutes, or until the beans are tender. Older and larger beans will take longer to cook.
While the beans are cooking, prepare the
sofrito. Put the oil in a large frying pan and set it on medium-high heat. When hot, put in the onion and garlic and stir and fry for a minute. Now put in the chiles and the culantro or fresh cilantro leaves, turn the heat to medium, and stir for a minute. Put in the cumin and stir once, then add the tomato sauce and bring to a simmer. Turn the heat to low and simmer very gently, stirring now and then, for 10 minutes.
When the beans are tender, add the salt and the sofrito to the pot. (If you used plain peppers, this would be the time to add the lemongrass, etc.) Stir and bring to a simmer. Simmer very gently for 10 to 15 minutes, or until all the flavors are blended, stirring now and then.
Note: If using green peppers, add the bottom 6 inches of a lemongrass stalk, with the bulbous end lightly mashed or 1 teaspoon grated lemon rind as well as 2 teaspoons grated orange rind. Remove the lemongrass before serving.
SERVES 8
CYPRUS
Marios Mourtezis’
Cypriot Lima Bean Stew
Fassoulia Yakhni
This is a simple everyday stew eaten in Cyprus with crusty bread, olives, cucumbers, grapes, and cheese. After all the stew ingredients have boiled, a traditional tiganissi or final flavoring of red chile, onion, garlic, and tomatoes, all sautéed quickly in olive oil, is added to the mixture.
1 large celery stalk, cut into ½-inch dice
1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into ½-inch rounds or dice
1 smallish potato, peeled and cut into ½-inch dice
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
Freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 whole dried hot red chile
1 smallish onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
3 fresh or canned plum tomatoes, chopped
1 teaspoon tomato paste
Soak the beans overnight in water to cover by 5 inches or use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid.
Put the drained beans and 3¼ cups of water in a heavy, medium saucepan. Bring to a boil. Partially cover, leaving the lid very slightly ajar, turn the heat down to low, and simmer gently until the beans are tender, anywhere from 40 to 80 minutes. Add the celery, carrot, potato, and salt and bring to a boil again. Cover, turn the heat down to low, and simmer gently for 30 minutes. Add pepper to taste and stir to mix. Set aside while you make the
tiganissi.Put the oil in a medium frying pan and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the red chile and stir for 5 seconds; the chile should darken. Now add the onion and garlic. Stir and fry for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the onion browns a little. Put in the tomatoes and stir for 2 minutes, or until the tomatoes soften. Add the tomato paste and stir for another 30 seconds. Empty the contents of the frying pan into the pan with the beans. Stir to mix. Check for seasonings, adding a bit more salt if needed.
SERVES 3 TO 4
NIGERIA
Baked Beans with Nigerian Seasonings
In this Nigerian recipe, the beans are baked with the addition of peanut butter and curry powder. It is exceptionally good. Serve this with a crusty bread and a salad or a selection of vegetables. Cheese may also be served on the side.
1 cup dried cannellini beans or other medium white beans
¼ cup peanut or canola oil
1 medium onion (4 ounces), peeled, halved, and thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
1 tablespoon curry powder (hot or mild, as preferred—you may use
My Curry Powder)
2 good-sized (12 to 13 ounces) tomatoes, peeled and finely chopped
1½ tablespoons smooth peanut butter
1¼ teaspoons salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Soak the beans overnight in water to cover by 5 inches or use the
Quick-Soak Method. Drain, discarding the soaking liquid.
Put the beans in a pot with 3½ cups of water and bring to a boil, skimming off the scum that rises to the top. Cover partially, turn the heat down to low, and simmer gently for 40 to 60 minutes, or until the beans are just tender.
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a flame- and ovenproof, casserole-type dish over medium-high heat. Add the onion and stir and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the onion has just wilted. Put in the garlic and cook another 2 minutes, stirring now and then. Add the curry powder and stir once or twice, then stir in the tomatoes. Cook 7 to 10 minutes, or until the tomatoes have softened. Turn off the heat.
Preheat the oven to 325° F.
Put the peanut butter in a small bowl or cup. When the beans have finished cooking, remove about 6 tablespoons of their liquid from the pot and slowly add it to the peanut butter, stirring as you go. Empty the beans with their remaining liquid into the casserole with the onion, garlic, and tomatoes. Stir in the peanut butter mixture, the salt, and lots of black pepper. Bake, uncovered, for 2 hours, until very tender. Serve hot.
SERVES 4
Archaeologists seem to think that lentils may well have been the first cultivated crop, probably in the same Tigris-Euphrates valley where civilization was dawning. The earliest lentils, dating back almost nine thousand years, have been found in Qalat Jarmo, Iraq. Ancient containers for lentils have been unearthed in Turkey; we know that traveling seeds made their way to an island in a Swiss lake when the region was still in the Bronze Age; and a pharaoh’s tomb in Thebes has yielded a lentil puree, delighting us with the thought that not only were lentils enjoyed by the royals of the time (four thousand years ago) but that they were considered ideal food for otherworldly journeys.
The popularity of lentils has now spread to much of the world, although the United States, which began to cultivate them earnestly in this century and does a booming export business, has yet to integrate this protein-rich food into its daily diet. In much of the Middle East, Southern Asia, and the Mediterranean, they are combined with pasta, rice, herbs, and almost every conceivable vegetable to produce hundreds of exquisite dishes.
The lentils available to us today may be divided into three categories: ordinary lentils (either brown or green), small French lentils, and red lentils.
These are the brownish or greenish lentils sold by supermarkets and health food shops. I will, from now on, just call them “lentils,” as that is
how they are labeled most of the time. Sometimes, I do see the “green
lentils” or “brown lentils” label, but the two are interchangeable. On the whole, they cook in exactly the same way, though their final color might be slightly different. These lentils are whole, with their skins or “coats” still on. These are the lentils you need if you are going to sprout them. I find that as new varieties are cultivated, lentils are taking less and less time to cook.
Pick over and wash the lentils. Drain. Combine 1 cup of lentils with 2½ cups of water and bring to a boil. Cover partially, turn the heat down to low, and cook for
about 20 minutes for salads (drain the lentils and use), 30 to 35 minutes for main dishes, and 40 minutes for soups and purees. About 1 teaspoon of salt may be added toward the end of the cooking time.
Lentil sprouts taste wonderful, and are fast cooking and easy to digest. To make them, soak ½ cup whole lentils in lukewarm water for 12 hours, changing the water once (this can be after 8 hours). Drain. Line a tray with several thicknesses of dampened paper towels. Spread the soaked lentils over the top. Cover with another 2 layers of dampened paper towels and set aside in a dark place (I use the oven). Sprinkle with water every 8 hours or so to make sure that the paper remains damp. After 36 hours, you should have small sprouts about ½ inch long. Wash gently, removing the skins that float to the top. Store in a plastic bag or sealed container for up to a week. Sprinkle with water if the sprouts appear dry. One-half cup of lentils will yield 2½ cups of sprouts.
Sprouts cook fast. To stir-fry them, put a little oil in a wok or frying pan set on medium-high heat and when hot, put in the sprouts. Stir-fry for 3 to 4 minutes. Add about ½ teaspoon salt, if you want, and toss. Almost any other seasonings may be added, even a salad dressing. If you wish to avoid the oil, cook the sprouts, covered, in 4 to 5 tablespoons of water for 3 to 4 minutes or steam them for 6 to 8 minutes and then dress them as you like.
French lentils, called
lentilles à la reine when Queen Marie Leszcznska, wife of France’s Louis XV, decided to dine on them, and now known more simply as
lentilles le Puy or
lentilles verte du Puy, are smaller in size, take a bit longer to cook, and hold their shape better. In America’s top restaurants, it is these that have the cachet that counts. There is another lentil from Castelluccio in Umbria, which is similar but harder to find. Cook either of these two varieties in 3 times as much water for 40 to 60 minutes, or until tender.
Even though Indian shops sell whole, unhulled red lentils
(sabut masoor) and split but unhulled red lentils
(chilke wali masoor), it is the hulled and split red lentils (sold in health food shops, specialty shops, Middle Eastern shops, and South Asian shops) that I have used in all the recipes in this book. Known as
masoor dal in India and Pakistan and as Egyptian lentils or
red lentils in the West, these are eaten throughout South Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa. In their raw state, they have a beautiful salmon color. Unfortunately, the color vanishes in the cooking and the lentils turn a dull yellow. Their taste is earthy and their texture slightly grainy.
They are excellent for both soups and stews and may be combined with other grains, lentils, and vegetables to add their own special “meaty” taste. I have known them to be used to great effect as a base for a Turkish stew,
Anatolian Red Lentil Stew with Wheat Berries and Chickpeas. They can also be cooked very simply, with just a
tarka of different spice combinations.
I find it very interesting that in India on holy days and fast days red lentils are never eaten by Hindus. It could be that because they came from the Middle East, even now, more than a thousand years later, they have not lost their foreignness in the we-never-forget eyes of Hindus or it could be that they are slightly “heavier” and therefore not considered ideal for times of cleansing and fasting. They are, however, very popular among the Muslims of the subcontinent.
To cook red lentils, see the basic technique in the recipe that follows.
Basic Red Lentils
Red lentils (also known as masoor dal)
are cooked almost exactly like hulled and split mung beans (moong dal).
Once cooked, they can be finished off in any of the ways suggested in Seasoning Legumes. (Do not serve this basic recipe—it still needs finishing off with a tarka
or with the addition of other ingredients or both.)
Turmeric should be added only for Indian dishes. Leave it out for all others.
1 cup red lentils (masoor dal), picked over, washed in several changes of water, and drained
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
1 to 1¼ teaspoons salt
Put the red lentils and 4 cups of water in a heavy-bottomed pot and bring to a boil. Watch carefully to ensure that the contents of the pot do not boil over. Skim off the froth that rises to the top. Add the turmeric and stir once. Partially cover, leaving the lid very slightly ajar, turn the heat down to low, and cook very gently for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the lentils are tender. Add the salt and stir to mix.
You may finish off the dish right away or refrigerate the lentils for up to 3 to 4 days and reheat them. To reheat the lentils, stir well and add just enough water to prevent them from sticking at the bottom of the pot, usually just a few tablespoons. Set over low heat and stir now and then until just bubbling. You may now proceed with your chosen recipe.
SERVES 4 TO 6
MIDDLE EAST
Lentils with Onion and Garlic
A simple dish to be eaten with Moroccan breads, pita bread, or any crusty European loaf. I just love to serve it with a Palestinian dish, Sliced Tomatoes in a Tomato Sauce. Salads and yogurt relishes may be offered on the side.
1 cup dried green lentils
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion (5 ounces), peeled, halved, and finely sliced
1 whole dried hot red chile
3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
Freshly ground black pepper
Lemon wedges
Pick over the lentils and wash them in several changes of water. Drain.
Put the oil into a medium sauté pan and set over medium-high heat. When hot, add the onion. Stir and fry, turning the heat down as needed, until the onion is reddish-brown and crisp. Remove the onion with a slotted spoon and spread out on a paper towel. Put the red chile and garlic into the oil remaining in the pan. Stir for 10 seconds and put in the lentils and 2½ cups of water. Bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low and partially cover the pan. Cook gently for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the lentils are tender. Remove the red chile, if desired. Add the salt and pepper and stir to mix.
To serve, sprinkle crisp onion slices over the top and offer lemon wedges on the side.
SERVES 4
Lentils Topped with Gingery Spinach and Yogurt
An elaboration on the preceding recipe, Lentils with Onion and Garlic, this is really a meal in itself. Prepare the lentils and crispy onions just as for that recipe, keeping the lentils warm in their own pan and reserving the fried onions to one side. (Lemon wedges are not needed.) Then proceed with the recipe below.
For serving, I find old-fashioned soup plates to be ideal. Spread the lentils at the bottom of each soup plate. Spread the spinach over the top of the lentils, bunched up a bit toward the center. Now put a generous dollop of creamy yogurt on top of the spinach. Scatter the browned onions over the top of the yogurt and the spinach. Serve while the lentils and spinach are still hot.
As a variation, you could substitute chard or any other greens of your choice for the spinach. The yogurt may be replaced with sour cream or a generous slice of grilled goat cheese.
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 (¾-inch) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and cut into very thin slices, then into very fine strips
20 ounces fresh spinach, trimmed and washed
½ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon cayenne (optional)
4 generous dollops of creamy plain yogurt (Greek yogurt may be used, if available)
Put the oil in a large wok or sauté pan and set over high heat. When hot, add the ginger slices and stir for 20 to 30 seconds, or until the ginger just starts to brown. Put in the spinach, salt, and cayenne. Stir and cook until the spinach has wilted completely, 4 to 5 minutes. Turn off the heat. Serve as suggested above, with the lentils forming the bottom layer, the spinach next, and a final dollop of yogurt. Scatter the fried onions over the top. Serve hot.
SERVES 4
Androche Markidis’
Lentils with Rice
Moudjendra
This is a hearty, risotto-like dish which, with its tiganissi
or final flavoring of browned onions and its lemony aftertaste, has a distinct Cypriot feel to it—part Greek and part Arab. It is perfect for parties. Leftovers, if there are any, may be used as stuffing for tomatoes and peppers or may be formed into patties and browned in a lightly oiled, nonstick frying pan.
As a variation, this dish may be made with what Greek Cypriots call “fava,” which is really yellow split peas. Instead of water, vegetable stock may be used. Rather than mix the lemon juice with the lentils and rice, Syrians, who have a similar dish, offer lemon wedges on the side. Sometimes I stir grated Parmesan cheese into the lentils before serving.
2 cups lentils
1 cup long-grain rice (I use Thai jasmine rice but any long-grain rice will do)
1½ teaspoons salt
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
7 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely sliced
1 medium onion, peeled, cut in half lengthwise, and then cut into fine half rings
Combine the lentils and 7 cups of water in a wide, nonstick pan. Bring to a boil. Cover, turn the heat down to low, and cook 25 minutes. Add the rice and salt. Stir to mix and bring to a boil again. Cover, turn the heat down to very low, and cook gently for another 25 minutes. Turn off the heat. The lentils and rice should have the slightly loose consistency of a risotto. Add the lemon juice and mix gently. Cover again and keep warm.
Put the oil in a medium frying pan and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the garlic and onion. Stir and fry, turning the heat down as needed, until the onion and garlic are medium brown and crisp. Quickly remove some of the onions and garlic with a slotted spoon and spread out on paper towels. Pour the remaining contents of the pan, oil and seasonings, over the lentils. Gently mix them in. Garnish with the reserved onions when serving.
SERVES 6 TO 8
Lentils in a Sauce
Lentilles en Sauce
If you have access to French lentils, by all means use them because they do have a wonderfully firm texture. However, you may use ordinary supermarket lentils. Keep in mind that the cooking time may be shorter by a good 15 to 20 minutes.
Grating tomatoes is a wonderful way to get a coarse puree and leave the skin behind!
1 cup dried lentils or French lentils (lentilles le Puy, also called lentilles verte du Puy)
1 medium onion, finely chopped or grated
1 medium, very ripe tomato, grated
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
4 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1½ teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Freshly ground black pepper
1¼ to 1½ teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
Pick over the lentils and wash them in several changes of cold water.
Put the lentils, onion, tomato, garlic, parsley, cilantro, paprika, cumin, black pepper to taste, and 3 cups of water in a medium pot and set on medium-high heat. Bring to a boil without allowing it to boil over. Turn the heat down to low and cover partially. Cook gently for 30 minutes. Add the salt and stir well. Cook, partially covered, another 30 to 40 minutes, or until the lentils are tender. Stir in the oil. Serve hot.
SERVES 6
