Black-eyed peas, or alasande, are eaten widely in Goa, Portugal as well as Brazil. We decided to make a hummus out of them and added the dish to the snacky part of the menu that we call Quarter Plates. The concept is similar to the Spanish tapas or Portuguese petiscos, which are small meals the Portuguese eat before dinner while drinking. It is a big part of their culture, which we wanted to reflect in our restaurant.

  • Serves

    4

  • Cook Time

    30m

    Plus overnight soaking

Ingredients

  • 1 cup dried alasande beans or black-eyed peas (chawli beans)

For Masala

  • 4 tbsp chopped onions
  • 3 tbsp sunflower oil
  • 2 tbsp fresh grated coconut
  • 2 tsp MDH red chilli powder
  • 1 tsp coriander powder
  • 1 tsp mustard seeds
  • ½ tsp turmeric
  • ¼ tsp black pepper powder
  • ¼ cup olive oil (only to emulsify)
  • 10 curry leaves
  • Lime juice to taste
  • Salt to taste

Preparation

  1. Soak the beans overnight or at least for 4 hours in 8 cups of water in a cool place.
  2. Discard the water and put the beans to simmer in 6 cups of water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan on medium flame. Season with salt.
  3. Once the beans are soft and mushy to the touch – this will take around 15-20 minutes – turn off the flame and let cool in the liquid.
  4. Strain the beans, but save 2 cups of water. We wil use it later to blend the hummus.
  5. In a large sauté pan, heat sunflower oil on medium flame. Add mustard seeds and let them splutter. Next drop in chopped onions and sweat them, stirring occasionally, until translucent.
  6. Follow with curry leaves and all the powdered spices. Let them bloom. Make sure to turn the heat to low or you might risk burning the spices.
  7. Turn the flame off and stir in grated coconut.
  8. Cool the masala and add to cooled beans. Mix completely.
  9. Put all of this in a large blender jar and blitz on high speed. Pour in some of the bean water to aid the blending.
  10. Finally, drizzle in olive oil in a thin stream as the blending is in progress to give the hummus a luscious mouthfeel.
  11. Take the hummus out of the blender, cool it down and then taste. Season with salt and lime juice.
  12. Serve with toasted whole wheat bread, rice crisps or use it as a vegetable dip or sandwich spread.
Hussain Shahzad

Hussain Shahzad

Hussain Shahzad, the Executive Chef at O Pedro, a Goa-inspired restaurant in Mumbai, is Scroll Food’s Chef of the Month for October. He started his career with the Oberoi Group of Hotels in Mumbai, before moving to New York, where he worked at the iconic Eleven Madison Park. His culinary adventures have taken him around the world and included a brief stint as a personal chef to Roger Federer. Before taking the reins at O Pedro, he was a part of the team at the award-winning The Bombay Canteen. A dynamic and bold chef, Hussain’s food philosophy is to showcase local produce using contemporary culinary techniques.

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