Vegan Tart Whole Pigeon Peas

Tart Whole Pigeon Peas next to photo on p.58
in The Indian Slow Cooker

"Khata Sabut Toor Dal" is in the crock-pot tonight and I can't believe how amazing it smells!!  This is the first recipe that I have used from Anupy's book, that uses fresh curry leaves.  The Indian grocers should have these in stock.  Ours had them in the "cooler" by the produce for 99 cents a small plastic bag.  They seem to have a decent shelf life and they are beautiful!

Fresh Curry Leaves
Look for them at your Indian Grocer.

Fresh Curry Leaves

It only takes 4 hours on high. You cook the pigeon peas/whole toor dal first, and then you saute the other ingredients and add it to cooker.  It was also my virgin experience with "popping" black mustard seeds on the stove.  It was somewhat frightening since I don't really cook ANYTHING on the stove anymore (except hot water in the tea kettle).  So you put the black mustard seeds in first, followed by the curry leaves, seasonings, etc....The curry leaves smell very exotic.  This is a "dry" dish.  Not soupy or full of broth.  Today's lunch consisted of leftovers: Saucy Punjabi Potatoes, Amla Chickpeas, and Goan Black Eyed Beans.

"Swad" brand Whole Pigeon Peas
(Toor Whole)

Pretty?

Black Mustard Seeds.

The Mega Size of "Earth Balance".  Not usually a staple but
husband is addicted to Ezekiel bread and Earth Balance so we stocked up!

I used a cast iron skillet with "Earth Balance" vegan butter to
"pop" my mustard seeds!

Frying up the curry leaves with mustard seeds, onions, etc....

All of the ingredients in the Slow Cooker.



Mixed all together before cooking.

So the Pigeon Peas turned out well.  They are on the "drier" side of dished.  The peas almost seem like they could have used a bit more water or cooked a bit longer.  This could be due to my preference for very well cooked beans or just that every slow cooker is slightly different and dried chickpeas also vary, so maybe I  should have added a touch more water.  I remember reading that the age of the dried legumes would affect the cooking time.  If the beans have been sitting there forever they will probably need more time.  Some places sell you very fresh dried beans and these apparently cook more quickly and have a better flavor.  I thought this dish was very attractive with it's chilies!

Pigeon Peas

Indian Fest with "Saucy Punjabi Potatoes" with a dollop of Coconut Yogurt (vegan),
Amla Chickpeas,  Goan Black Eyed Peas, and Organic Brown Basmati Rice.
We ate this while the Toor Dal was cooking.
Our own "Indian Buffet" vegan style.