Black Eyed Peas Warm Salad- Asian Style

Happy New Year!

Hello all you wonderful people! Hope your 2020 started off great. It’s a new year, a new decade and we are already half way through January. What is the hurry with this time🤷🏻‍♀️? Anyways, I hope this year  brings you scrumptious food, good health, success, happiness and prosperity in all aspects of your lives.

A New Year’s Bowl of Luck- Black Eyed Peas.

After all the cookies and desserts from the holiday season, it’s best to get back on track and start the year with some healthy nutritive, yet delicious food like this Vegan and Gluten-free black eyed peas warm Asian salad. I know most of you must be thinking how can a salad be warm. Well, I just call it a salad, but it can be a stir fry or simple sautéed black eyed peas with vegetables.

Since black eyed peas are considered to bring luck, they are a very popular legume for the new year’s. Now don’t ask me how they bring luck! I seriously have no idea🙈. But ever since I moved to the states, I keep hearing all about black eyed peas as good luck for new year’s. Hence I thought to post this black eyed peas dish as my first post for 2020. 

All Meal Dish- Black Eyed Peas.

I might call it a salad or a stir fry, but to tell you the truth, this black eyed peas dish is a very popular breakfast dish in my house. Yes, you totally heard it right – breakfast/brunch. During the weekends or off weeks, we tend to eat this with toast. And this also makes my husband’s favorite lunch to carry to work. It’s simple, and easy to eat with no mess.

You can eat this at room temperature or warm it up to your liking. And since it’s all legumes and vegetables, it fills you up for longer. A perfect balanced complete meal. So next time you want to prep a delicious and healthy lunch for work, this black eyed peas salad would be perfect. You can make a big batch, put this in the lunch containers and freeze them. Take out each box a night before work, and next morning you are good to go. Easy, and totally fuss free.

Legume Lifestyle.

I come from the culture where every household consumes different kinds of legumes on a daily or weekly basis. Where a large number of population is vegetarian, we rely on legumes for our protein. For the past few months, I have also tried to make more of vegetarian meals. This has just been for health reasons and personal life changes. My husband and I  decided to focus more on our legumes and vegetables for a balanced diet.

Growing up, I was not a big fan of black eyed peas, but now I totally love them. And making a stir fry in this Asian style salad form and serving with toast for breakfast is something I really enjoy.  Combining with vegetables makes it a whole meal to have in the mornings. Nothing like starting a day with a colorful, nutritious and delicious bowl.

Making Black Eyed Peas.

For vegetables I added carrots and beans. These add such a vibrant color and perfect crunch to the mushy texture of beans. You don’t want to over cook the carrots and beans, but just enough to make them tender and yet retain their crunch.

I also added mushrooms.  If there’s one thing that you will always find in my fridge, it has to be mushrooms. And it can be any kind of mushrooms too, they just make everything tastier. They add a beautiful chewy texture and umami flavor that goes perfect with hearty beans, in this case black eyed peas. 

I rarely use canned beans. So to cook my beans I use a pressure cooker. Best part about black eyed peas is that, you don’t have to soak them at all. Just pressure cook them and leave them on simmer for 3-4 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the pressure release on its own. Meanwhile you can prep all your vegetables. There should be hardly any water left. In case there is, you can use that water to cook your rice or quinoa or use it in your soups.

Simple Sauce.

I used coconut oil to cook with, that gives the dish a mild subtle sweetness. To make it gluten free, I used gluten-free soy sauce. You could use the regular kinds too. Soy sauce adds the perfect saltiness and  lots of flavor. I also added some chili garlic paste. But you could add sriracha as well. It adds tartness and the spiciness that I like in my dishes. I did add Thai green chili and chili flakes for the kick. But you can add as much or as little you like. To finish off the dish, I added sesame oil. It adds the nutty, deep and rich flavor to the dish. And to add a crunchy nuttiness, I added almonds. But you could add peanuts, or any nuts or seeds you like. 

Make it, Enjoy it and Share it.

This vegan and gluten-free black eyed peas warm Asian salad goes perfect with your morning avocado toast, or as a side with your main dish. Add a fried egg on top if you are an egg lover. You could also go crazy with your vegetables. I have made it with edamame too, and it’s a hit. I will be serving with with roasted kale and grilled salmon on top for my dinner this week. You can have endless choices for serving this, so go crazy with it. 

I would love to hear from you if you go ahead and make this black eyed peas warm salad, Asian style. Please share with me on my Facebook page or my Instagram or even tag me once you put it up on your page. If you are looking for another black eyed peas vegetarian recipe, then check out this black eyed peas curry. A hearty, comforting meal, perfect for winters.