Palak Lobhive Ke Vade
(Vegetable Dumplings with Spinach and Black-Eyed Peas)
This unusual dish, contributed by my friend Revathy, will have everyone
guessing at the ingredients. Serve these vadas with any chutney of your choice.
They may be fried a few hours ahead of time and warmed in the oven before
serving. For variety, try substituting mustard greens for the spinach.
*We intend to serve these in a green pepper sauce from the Madhur Jaffrey book,
page 79, to appear in this database as a seperate recipe.
Ingredients;
- 1 cup dried black-eyed peas
- 5 oz. chopped spinach-(frozen is fine)
- 2 tbsp. water
- 1 medium onion
- 1 tsp. fresh ginger-(flnely chopped)
- 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper powder
- salt to taste
- frying oil
Soak the black-eyed peas overnight in enough water to cover. Thaw the spinach, squeeze out excess water, and set aside. Drain the peas and grind finely in a blender or food processor with water. Chop the onion finely. in a large bowl, mix the spinach, ground black-eyed peas, chopped onion, ginger, cumin, cayenne, and salt.
Warm the oil for deep-frying over medium-high heat. Wetting your hands lightly whenever necessary, shape balls 1 1/2 inches in diameter from the spinach-pea mixture. Flatten each ball slightly with your palms and drop it gently into the hot oil. Reduce the heat to medium and fry the vadas until golden on all sides. Drain on paper towels and serve hot.