Alasandalu kura ~ Black-eyed peas curry

Alasandalu kura ~ Black-eyed peas curry

Alasandalu ~ Black-eyed peas or cow peas in English, also known as Bobbarlu in Telugu, Karamani in Tamil, Lobia in Hindi, Chavli in Marathi and Alasande in Kannada. Cow peas are a good source of Calcium, Folate and Vitamin A apart from protein and fiber, hence it is very useful to kids and, pregnant women also.


Preparation, uses, and tips: Before cooking dried peas, soak them for four hours, then pressure cook for ten minutes, or simmer on the stove for one hour or till tender. 1 cup dried black-eyed peas yields approximately 2 1/2 cups of cooked peas. Cooked black-eyed peas can be puréed into a delicious spread for sandwiches or crackers. There are varieties of dishes in India, made by using black-eyed peas as main ingredient. One such simple recipe is the curry which goes well with any bread, rice and nans, phulkas, rotis/indian flat bread. For more on the nutritional value of black-eyed peas click here

Alasandalu Kura

Source: Myself
Cuisine: South Indian, Andhra
Prep time: 7 mins
Cooking time: 20 mins
Soaking time: 4 hrs or overnight
Makes: 4-5 people
Ingredients:
1 C alasandalu/black-eyed peas,raw
2 C water for boiling the peas
1 medium onion white or red, finely chopped
1 large tomato, finely chopped
2 green chillies, halve them n chop finely
3-4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 T tamarind pulp/chintapandu pulupu
6-7 curry leaves
1 T fresh cilantro, chopped
1 T cayenne pepper, chilli powder (adjust accordingly)
a pinch of turmeric powder
1 t each of cumin/jeera and mustard/rai seeds
1T any cooking oil
salt as per taste
1/2 C water

Method:

• Soak alasandalu/black-eyed peas overnight or minimum for four hours. Wash them thoroughly and pressure cook them with two cups of water and a pinch of salt. Drain and keep aside.
• In a large pot or kadai, heat oil and add the seasoning: cumin and mustard seeds. Let it fry for a min and then add curry leaves and chopped garlic. Fry till the aroma of garlic fills the room.
• Add onions and salt to sweat them. Fry till the onions are translucent or turn pink for about 3 mins then add chopped tomatoes, green chillies and let them cook for 6-7 mins or till the tomatoes turn mushy mushy and starts to leave the oil. Lastly add the cooked black eyes peas/ alasandalu and stir well till as the ingredients are mixed well.
  
• Add turmeric and chilli powder and tamarind pulp/chintapandu pulupu to it. Check for salt, add half cup water and let it simmer on low flame till all flavors blend well.
  
• Garnish with cilantro and serve with rice or rotis/indian flat bread or any bread. We had ours with Jonna rotti~ Bhakri

I am sending this to Cooking 4 all seasons for Curry Mela hosted by Srivalli. Hope this qualifies!

Other peas/beans curries from my kitchen:

Chole
Avarekaalu Usli