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what is pigeon peas

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Seafood

Curry Pigeon Peas With Shrimp.

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With this recipe I’ll be using frozen pigeon peas as it’s readily available where I live. However, should you have access to freshly picked and shelled peas, you’ll get better results. Curry Pigeon Peas on its own is very delicious and while I’ve shared several ways to boost this dish, it’s only today that we are exploring adding some shrimp to the recipe.

You’ll Need…

1 1/2 lb pigeon peas
1 1/2 lb shrimp (small/medium)
1 lemon (juice)
6 medium potatoes (1/4)
3 tablespoon olive oil (divided)
1 tablespoon Caribbean Green Seasoning
1 medium onion (sliced)
1 scotch bonnet pepper (sliced)
6-8 cloves garlic (smashed)
1 tablespoon salt (divided)
1 teaspoon black pepper (divided)
2 tablespoon curry powder
4-6 dried curry leaves (optional)
1/2 cup water (cooking the curry base)
3-4 cups water
1 teaspoon anchar masala
1 teaspoon ground roasted cumin (geera)
2 tablespoon chopped Shado beni (culantro)
5-7 wiri wiri peppers (optional)

Notes! Please follow along with the video below as much more about the recipe is discussed there. I used an entire Scotch Bonnet pepper in the recipe as I enjoy SPICY foods, however you may leave it out or use in the amount you can tolerate.

Devein the shrimp and wash with the juice of the lemon and cool water, drain and season with 1/3 of the salt, 1/2 the black pepper, 1 tablespoon olive oil and the Caribbean Green Seasoning, stir well and let it marinate for about 10 minutes.

May I recommend that you do this step in advance. Place the frozen peas in a pot covered with water and bring to boil. Reduce the heat to a rolling boil and cook for 20 minutes. Repeat this step for another 20 minutes, then drain and set it aside. (explained in the video)

Heat your saucepan on a medium flame, add the shrimp and stir well to quickly cook. All we need is about 2-3 minutes, before you remove them and set them aside for later (we don’t want to over cook the shrimp).

Add the remaining oil to the pan along with the onion, garlic, remaining black pepper and scotch bonnet pepper. Turn the heat down to low and cook for about 3 minutes. At this point add the curry powder and curry leaves (optional) and stir well. Your heat must still be low as you don’t want to burn things.

Four minutes after adding the curry powder, add 1/2 cup of water and turn the heat back up to medium. This step will cook out any rawness from the overall curry dish.

After 5 minutes, crank up the heat to burn off ALL liquid until we can see the oil we started with. Be sure to stir so nothing sticks to the pot. Now add the pre cooked pigeon peas along with the potato to the pan and stir well to coat.

Add the remaining salt and 3 cups of water to the pot and bring to a boil. Then reduce to a simmer and cook for about one hour. Add more water should you need to, during the cooking process.

At this point the peas should be tender and the potatoes falling apart. In goes the Anchar Masala and ground roasted Cumin, stir well and then add the previously cooked shrimp.

Cook for one minute before turning off the stove. Here’s when you’ll add the wiri wiri peppers (whole – DO NOT BREAK) along with the chopped Shado Beni (stir). Should you not be able to source the shando beni, add cilantro (coriander). The whole wiri wiri peppers are for those of you who enjoy that extra KICK with your curry.

Serve with hot rice or with Sada Roti.

Gluten Free Vegetarian

How To Cook Curry Pigeon Peas (from frozen).

2 Comments on How To Cook Curry Pigeon Peas (from frozen).

peas curry (11)

As a kid growing up on the islands you never really understand/appreciate what you have, especially when it comes to our local produce. I remember giving mom a difficult time during ‘peas season’ (usually from Dec to mid-June), as it would make it’s way on the dinner table too often for my liking. We had a kitchen garden so many of the meals prepared came directly from that small plot of land behind our home. Today I’m stuck using the stuff from the can and the occasional time I can find it in the frozen section of the supermarket. Being based in Canada, the options are slim.. rare is the time you’d get fresh pigeon peas.

You’ll Need…

2 1/2 cups pigeon peas (green / from frozen)
(water for boiling the peas)
2 tannia (potato will also work)
3 bird’s eye pepper (bird pepper or any spicy pepper you have/like)
1 small onion
5 cloves garlic
2 tablespoon coconut oil (veg oil works great)
2 – 2 1/2 tablespoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds (geera)
2 tablespoon shado beni (divided – cilantro will also work)
3-4 cups water
3/4 teaspoon salt (adjust)

Note: Shado beni is also known as Culantro. If you cannot get it, feel free to use cilantro. I believe the Tannia is aka coco yam in some parts of the Caribbean.

Important: If doing this recipe gluten free, do go through the full list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs. Especially the curry powder you use, as some may contain flour as a filler.

The first step is to thaw and rinse the pigeon peas, then place them in a deep pot covered with water and bring to a boil. As it comes to a boil, reduce to a gentle boil and cook for 25-30 minutes. This step will help us to remove the sort of ‘”bitter” aftertaste you can sometimes get, plus it will help make the peas a bit more tender. Drain, rinse and set aside.

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Peel the tannia and cube into 1 inch pieces, if you’re using potatoes I’d recommend cutting them large as it will be cooked for an hour and 40 minutes or so. Place the peeled and cubed tannia in cool water as we get to cooking, to prevent discoloration.

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Heat the coconut oil (any oil will work) in a wide pan (one with a lid) on a medium flame, then add the diced onion and garlic. Reduce the heat to as low as it will go and cook for 2-3 minutes. Then add the bird’s eye pepper, black pepper, 1/2 the shado beni (chopped fine) and cumin seeds. Cook another 2-3 minutes. It’s now time to add your favorite curry powder – heat still on very low. Cook the mixture for another 3-4 minutes as to cook off the raw curry taste.

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Turn the heat up to medium and start adding the washed tanni, stir well to coat with the curry base. You can now add the pre-cooked pigeon peas and stir will.

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Top with the water, add the salt and bring to a boil (raise the heat to high).

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When it comes to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover the pot (slightly ajar) and cook until tender. In my case it took about an hour and 40 minutes. Add more water if necessary (during the cooking process). Taste for salt near the end and adjust accordingly… you can now crush some of the tannia with the back of your spoon, to help thicken the gravy. As you turn off the stove, top with the remaining chopped shado beni.

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I love having this curry peas with hot roti, but it’s excellent with rice, ‘bakes’ and any flat bread as well. Be mindful that it will thicken up as it cools. The same sort of method can be employed if you’re using freshly picked/shelled pigeon peas to make this curry dish.

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