CHEF and blogger Paul James writes for our paper.
I wrote and made this dish for my good friend and fellow chef and author Fiona Collins so she could add it to her new cookbook ‘Dirty Dishes recipes to ignite passion’.
The dish and the book were both a huge success.
I’m lucky enough to have collaborated with so many lovely people, picking each other’s brains for ideas and tips.
Chefs after all are just like magpies – picking and taking away bits here and bits there to transform and create amazing dishes that they can call their own.
This dish is very healthy and full of nutrition, with a little touch of spice, subtly hovering over your tastebuds.
Just beware of the popping mustard seeds though.
Check out recipesfrommytravels.com for more on Paul’s recipes and blog.
Black eyed beans with garlic infused baby spinach served with jasmine rice and a delicately spiced purée
Ingredients
1tbsp vegetable oil
Mustard seeds
Fenugreek seeds
Dried chillies flakes
1 garlic clove sliced finely
4 fresh curry leaves
Baby spinach
1tsp ground coriander
1tsp ground cumin
400g can of black-eyed peas
200g of tinned tomatoes
Peanuts
Cooked Jasmine rice
Method
1. In a hot frying pan add a tbsp of oil.
2. Add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, dried chilli flakes, cook gently until the mustard seeds pop.
3. Add the curry leaves and garlic and gently cook until the garlic is just starting to go slightly golden.
4. Add the cumin and coriander powder, and gently cook for a couple of minutes.
5. Add 100grams of tinned tomatoes and 200 grams of black eyed beans
6. Then a handful of baby spinach. Cook until the spinach has wilted.
7. Leave to go cold and the blitz in a blender, season to taste and return to a small saucepan and gently warm through.
8. Clean out your frying pan, add some more very thin slithers of garlic, sea salt and the rest of the black eyed beans. ( 200grams )
9. Take a handful of spinach, a tablespoon of water and cook until wilted.
10. Present on a warm plate with Thai jasmine rice, peanuts and the delicately spiced puree.
