Black eyed beans - Full of good proteins - Simple Goan style

Hello readers,

Image by talented son, Daniel Mathias 

If you are stuck with vegetarian options (and I know we all are sometimes), this is something that I love to cook. 

What is lobia. Well its a bean with a black dot in the centre. Its easily available in the market. Stores well and is full of good protein. 

All it takes is a few basic ingredients. Most of the time I scout for recipes online. Make them my own. I often ask my sisters, aunts and have some recipes tucked away. At Ab:original we share.

Lobia or black eyed bean is made in various ways.

Ingredients:
Black eyed beans or peas (called lobia in Hindi) – 1 cup
Green chillies – 2
Turmeric powder – 1/4 teaspoon
Mustard seeds – 1/4 tsp
Oil – 2 tsp (I used coconut oil)
Salt – to taste
Hing – asafoetida - a pinch
Medium sized tomato

How to Make Abigail’s Black Eyed Beans

1. Soak the beans overnight or at least for 5-6 hours. Keep it covered in the kitchen. Magically the beans seem to double in the morning.

2. In a pan use coconut oil and add slit green chilly. Saute for a minute or so.  

3. Remove chillies. Add a pinch of hing (asafoetida) and, mustard and cumin to the hot oil. This is the tadka stage. Its where all the masalas fuse. Music to my ears. 

4. Make a little paste of the masalas in a glass bowl. (This is with ginger, red chilly powder, garam masala and a little water). It is done in a seperate bowl so the masalas don't burn while cooking. Clever right!

5. Add to the vessel cook for a minute and add the beans. Add about 3 cups of water. 

6. Pressure cook for about 8 minutes or so. Once the steam has left the pressure cooker open the dish slowly and your beans should be nice and soft. (You can smash a few with a wooden spoon inside the vessel to thicken the gravy). Add a finely chopped tomato and let it cook in the vessel’s heat.

Garnish with chopped coriander, lemon wedges and serve with fresh rice or roti.

So there you go. Add more spice if you prefer. Some also add grated coconut. (I don't).
Let me know how yours turns out.