Navigation

Green peas gravy

Green peas gravy

Published on December 30, 2020 | In | By
0 Comments
    • Prep Time
    • Minutes
    • Cook Time
    • Minutes

It’s funny how COVID 19 taught some of us Indians to manage our home chores without the indispensable helping hands of our domestic workers. Family members were pitching in and splitting the house work among each other. i am not ashamed to admit that we are a country where women do all the house work. It is what it is. There’s no point in making excuses for it. It comes from mindsets which have existed since archaic times  which balks at the mere mention of ‘boys’ doing household chores and ‘girls’ dreaming of anything but !

It is changing but the process is slow. Thankfully where I come from, such things aren’t set in stone to a great extent but it is there, in the background. For those of us who enjoy keeping a home in a particular manner ,it is fine but society expects all women to be house proud which is (putting it mildly) unfair.

So while simplifying the work (minus the extra hands), we resorted to one pot meals and “easy peasy” dishes. I enjoyed experimenting with vegan gravies and understood the importance of Indian nuts in our diet. In the past, a cashew nut gravy would have been thought of as merely being calorie heavy, not taking into account the health benefits. I am thankful that time at home has allowed me to understand the wholesomeness of our Indian ingredients.

Soaked cashew nuts when blended to a fine paste make for a delicious gravy base. Also when it comes to our spices, a lot of people say they can’t digest the ‘garam masala’. That’s because we’re aren’t meant to eat it the whole year round. There’s a science to it. It can’t just be unceremoniously plonked into any dish or sprinkled as a garnish. The spices must be prudently used according to the season. Green peas again are a wonderful winter produce which really need not be eaten throughout the year. They taste the most sweetest now because this is the time the natural sugars develop and the plant absorbs what it needs to from the soil.

December is a great time of year to hero the cinnamon, star anise, clove, cardamom, bay leaf and nutmeg. This recipe contains a delicious blend of all. Added to that is the delicious pairing of green peas and fresh mint. Do try.

For a vegan version, use any oil of choice instead of ghee and a squeeze of lime instead of the curd.

Recipe Rating

  • (0 /5)
  • 0 ratings

, ,

Recipe
    Text size

Ingredients

  • Green peas- 3 C shelled and boiled
  • tomatoes- 3 cubed
  • Green chillies- 4
  • Ginger and garlic paste-1/2 tsp
  • Cashew nuts- 12 - soaked in warm water for 20 minutes
  • Ghee-1 Tbsp
  • Red chilli powder-1 tsp
  • Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp
  • Garam masala-1/2 tsp
  • Curd- 2 Tbsp
  • Cinnamon-1
  • Cloves-2
  • Star anise-1
  • Cardamom-1
  • Mint leaves- 12- 15 (torn)
  • Water from cooking the peas- 1/2 C
  • Water for cooking-2 C
  • Black pepper powder-1/2 tsp

Instructions

  1. Drain the soaked cashews and add it to a mixer jar. Add the tomatoes, salt, 3 green chillies ,a tsp of water and blend to a smooth paste. don't add too much water as it will prevent the nuts from blending well.
  2. In a medium sized deep bottom pan add the ghee or oil. Set on low heat.
  3. Add the cinnamon, star anise, cloves and cardamom. Once the aromas waft, add one slit green chilli
  4. Add the ginger and garlic paste and saute'
  5. Add the water from the cooked peas and mix in so that the ginger garlic paste doesn't burn. Keep stirring.
  6. Add the cashew tomato paste and mix in well.
  7. Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder and pepper and mix. Add 1 C of water and let it simmer on low heat.
  8. As it thickens, check seasoning and add salt or spice if necessary.
  9. Add the green peas and mix.
  10. Add another cup of water and keep stirring. Let it cook until it is slightly thick and fragrant. If it becomes too thick add some more water and let it simmer for a few seconds.
  11. It should be a nice creamy ,pouring consistency.
  12. Take off the fire. Stir in the mint leaves, curd and garam masala. Serve hot with chappathi or a pulao. For a vegan option use any oil of choice in place of the ghee and a squeeze of lemon instead of the curd or a vegan curd too.

Rate this recipe

  • 0 People Rated This Recipe

  • Average Rating

  • (0 / 5)
No comments yet.

Post a Comment