Karamani/Lobia/Black Eyed Pea Salad

We take our evening snacks a little too serious at my home.  Both husband and I are not much of a breakfast person. We usually go with fruits and smoothies. But we definitely need something to munch in the evenings. As much as I would love to have an extravagant evening snack and keep the dinner simple, time is not being my best of friends these days. So I am forced to keep my snacks simple. Black eyed peas salad is one such snack that is healthy, delicious and can be prepared easily. With no further ado, here is the recipe.

The ingredients mentioned here are just the ones I used and to give you an idea. You can be creative as you want or customize it to suit your taste and availability of the ingredient.

Ingredients:

Black eyed peas - 1 cup

Onion - 1 medium, chopped

Carrot - 1 large or 2 medium, chopped

Cherry tomatoes - 2 or 3, chopped

Salt - as needed

Pepper/Red chilli powder - as required (optional)

Lemon Juice - as needed

Preparation:

1. You just need 5 minutes of your morning time to remember to soak the black eyed peas in water. You need to have it soaked for at least good 4 to 5 hrs.

Quick Tip: If you have forgotten to soak them 5 hrs in advance. Here is a little trick. But I warn you, you may need at least 2 hours in hand for this. Boil water enough to soak the black eyed peas and turn it off. Soak the peas in the boiled water and close the container with lid. In couple of hours, you will get to the same stage as it would have been if you had soaked overnight or 5 hrs in advance.

Method:

1. Drain the water from the soaked black eyed peas and pressure cook them until soft with enough water. I used a little more than 2 cups of water for 1 cup of peas.

2. Drain the water from the cooked peas.

3. Mix all the ingredients mentioned except the lemon juice and give it a good toss.

4. Squeeze some lemon juice to give it more flavor and mix.

Your salad is ready to be served.

Tips:

1. Add some cucumber to make it even more refreshing.

2. Red chili powder is totally optional. We like it little spicy and so it has made its appearance.

3. It will also make a great breakfast.