I don't make a lot of money, and I'm not that great at budgeting what I do make. Inevitably, by the end of each month, I've exhausted my grocery budget and resort to cooking out of my pantry. This means the ingredients I have on hand dictate my meals rather than the whims and cravings that rule the first half of the month - which is probably the way more practical people live all month long, but, well...I'm not them.
It's the 29th of June, and even my pantry is anxiously awaiting my next paycheck. The cornmeal and dried legumes hanging out in there are getting a little lonely. Even so, the following is one of my favorite easy meals month-round.
This recipe yields 4 servings and takes about one hour to make (most of which is waiting time!).
Ingredients:
1 medium onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1.75 cups split peas, rinsed
1 Tablespoon curry powder
5 cups vegetable broth
2 Tablespoons butter (or olive oil)
Steps:
1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over low heat.
2. Add the diced onion and a pinch of salt. The salt isn't added at this stage for flavor; it's added to help breakdown the onion and draw out its flavors and milk. Stir the onion around for a minute or two, then
3. Add the minced garlic. Make sure you don't let the garlic burn or brown (this means stir with a watchful eye, ensuring that the garlic is always involved with the oil/butter).
Is there any smell quite as auspicious as that of
onion and garlic being sautéed in butter?
4. Add the veggie broth (chicken broth is fine, but I prefer to keep the dish vegetarian). Of course it would be fine to use liquid stock here (I don't like canned; I prefer Pacific or other boxed brands. This preference is probably irrational, but I don't care), but since this a cheap, end-of-the-month version and I don't have any liquid stock on hand, I use bouillon cubes reconstituted with water.
5. Add the rinsed split peas. 1.75 cups is approximately 12 ounces. Yeah, yeah, I know that generally one cup = 8 ounces - but most dried legumes (for whatever reason) weigh a little light.
6. Add the curry powder. The given measurement is a pretty "average" curry flavor. You can definitely adjust down or up according to your tastes.
8. Stir everything together, and bring to a boil.
9. Once your pot's come to a boil, turn the heat to low-low-low and cover (you want things cooking at a simmer). Leave it for about 50 minutes (even if you've halved the recipe). You want your split peas to hydrate and then break down.
10. Your soup is done when the peas are tender and no longer holding their shape.
11. Blend! You can do this with an immersion blender (ohh, I want one), an actual blender, or a food processor. Alternately, if you lack any of these appliance and want to cut back on time and clean up, you can use a fork or potato masher to mash up the peas (just be sure to stir well periodically if you use this last option).
This isn't a pretty-looking dish. As with most split-pea soups, it looks kind of like baby food - and this one doesn't have the advantage of carrot or ham chunks to break up the unappealing green goop. But don't count it out just because it looks bleghhh! If you've cooked it alright and don't hate the flavor profile (peas and curry tend to be polarizing), then it's a sure-fire hit.
Good sides would be a tomato or cucumber salad (or a tomato-cucumber salad! Go crazy!) and a nice, crusty, grainy bread. I keep thinking of this Zuni Indian bread that my friend Aaron makes. It would be perfect.
Zuni Goodness.
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