75 Min

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Black Eyed Pea Soup

Ever since I tasted it upon arriving from India and discovering the health benefits, I embraced cooking with olive oil. Over the years, I continued experimenting with what spices work best with it. When my son Virag spent a semester in Spain, he brought back a freshly harvested bottle by his host mother’s family’s olive groves. It forever changed the way I look at the green elixir. As with all food, knowing the source makes all the difference.

Early this year, I was introduced to a local impassioned olive-oil aficionado from Tuscany who spends every fall traveling through parts of Europe to bring back the best-tasting oils. I finally understood how to taste olive oil (swish it in a tiny glass and drink it straight up), the subtleties of single origin and how much high-heat cooking or terroir affect the flavor, whether whisked into a salad dressing or drizzled on stews and pilafs.

Drizzled on this good-luck black-eyed pea soup, a single-origin olive oil with strong notes of fruitiness, bitterness and pungency beautifully complements the sweetness of the cardamom, cinnamon and carrots. Here’s to ending a memorable yet forgettable year and lessons learned. May we all emerge stronger and more enlightened.

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Cook Time

75 Minutes

Serves

6

Directions

Step 1

Soak the black-eyed peas in 3 to 4 cups of water for 3 to 4 hours or preferably overnight. Drain.

Step 2

Combine with 4 to 6 cups of water and salt and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and let the beans simmer covered for 45 minutes to an hour or until the beans are tender.

Step 3

In a separate pan, heat the olive oil and pop the cardamom seeds. Immediately add the onions.

Step 4

Cook the onions on high heat for 3 to 5 minutes, they should be wilted and slightly brown. Then, add the minced garlic, carrots, and potatoes. Cook on high for 5 to 7 minutes, then add the turmeric, cumin, and chile powder. Within a minute or two, add this masala to the beans.

Step 5

Bring the mixture to a boil and add the tomatoes, coconut milk, 3 to 4 cups of water and bring the entire mixture to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer the mixture for 20 to 30 minutes. The consistency should be soupy yet chunky.

Step 6

Add the rosemary and cinnamon and taste the soup – add salt if needed. Turn off the heat. Mince the greens and herbs and add to the soup. Drizzle with finishing olive oil just before serving.

Notes & Variations

Here are the two oils I have been cooking with for quite some time — at home and at the restaurant. Entimio Italiano imports award-winning, unique extra-virgin oils from Tuscany that work great as finishing oils for salads and roasted meats. Roots olive oil is a brand brought in by a Greek enthusiast from the Messenia province of Greece that works well as a cooking oil.
Serve the soup on its own or with a side of warm crusty bread or rice.
The soup is best eaten the day it is prepared.

Ingredients

1 cup dried black-eyed peas

2 teaspoons sea salt

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon cardamom seeds, slightly crushed

1 cup minced onions

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 large potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon chile powder

One 14-ounce can chopped tomatoes

1/2 cup coconut milk

1 tablespoon chopped rosemary

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Salt or to taste

1 large bunch of greens such as kale, chard, or watercress

Small handful of herbs

Finishing olive oil

Step 1

Soak the black-eyed peas in 3 to 4 cups of water for 3 to 4 hours or preferably overnight. Drain.

Step 2

Combine with 4 to 6 cups of water and salt and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and let the beans simmer covered for 45 minutes to an hour or until the beans are tender.

Step 3

In a separate pan, heat the olive oil and pop the cardamom seeds. Immediately add the onions.

Step 4

Step 5

Step 6

Add the rosemary and cinnamon and taste the soup – add salt if needed. Turn off the heat. Mince the greens and herbs and add to the soup. Drizzle with finishing olive oil just before serving.

1 cup dried black-eyed peas

2 teaspoons sea salt

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon cardamom seeds, slightly crushed

1 cup minced onions

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 large potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon chile powder

One 14-ounce can chopped tomatoes

1/2 cup coconut milk

1 tablespoon chopped rosemary

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Salt or to taste

1 large bunch of greens such as kale, chard, or watercress

Small handful of herbs

Finishing olive oil

Notes & Variations

Here are the two oils I have been cooking with for quite some time — at home and at the restaurant. Entimio Italiano imports award-winning, unique extra-virgin oils from Tuscany that work great as finishing oils for salads and roasted meats. Roots olive oil is a brand brought in by a Greek enthusiast from the Messenia province of Greece that works well as a cooking oil.
Serve the soup on its own or with a side of warm crusty bread or rice.
The soup is best eaten the day it is prepared.

Tags:

75 Min

Stock Your Pantry

Aromatic Masala Dabba

$250

A handmade spice box containing chai masala, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, whole black peppercorns, whole green cardamom pods with a few black cardamom pods, garam masala, mace pods and nutmeg.

Essential Masala Dabba

$235

A handmade spice box containing red chile, turmeric, black pepper, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, amchur and garam masala.

Tags:

75 Min

Stock Your Pantry

Aromatic Masala Dabba

$250

A handmade spice box containing chai masala, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, whole black peppercorns, whole green cardamom pods with a few black cardamom pods, garam masala, mace pods and nutmeg.

Essential Masala Dabba

$235

A handmade spice box containing red chile, turmeric, black pepper, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, amchur and garam masala.

OOH, WHAT'S THAT SMELL?

Uncommon in Indian cooking, however versatile rosemary can be an interesting addition to cakes & cookies with its slightly acidic flavor & strong piney & oily fragrance. Check it out in the recipes below!

YOU WON'T REGRET IT

Celery Rosemary Pilaf

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