SPICED PEA STEW WITH YOGURT

Here's a vegetarian recipe from NYT Cooking that has a Persian flare!

Ingredients

• ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve

• 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped

• Fine sea salt and black pepper

• 1 lemon

• 5 garlic cloves, lightly crushed with the flat side of a knife, then peeled

• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger

• 2 teaspoons cumin seeds (substitute ground cumin if you don't have the seeds)

• ½ teaspoon ground turmeric

• 2 (1-pound) packages of frozen sweet peas

• 1 large russet potato (or similar), peeled and cut into ½-inch pieces

• 4 cups store-bought or homemade vegetable stock

• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds (black or white)

• 2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro

• ⅓ cup whole-milk yogurt

Prep

1. Add the oil, onion and 2½ teaspoons salt to a large saucepan and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent.

2. While the onion cooks, prepare the lemon: Using a peeler, peel 4 strips of zest then finely chop them. Squeeze out 1 tablespoon of juice then set aside.

3. Add the garlic, ginger, cumin, turmeric, lemon zest and ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until fragrant. Add the peas and cook for 10 minutes, stirring often, until the peas are well cooked but still bright.

4. Remove ½ cup of the pea mixture and set aside in a bowl, then add the potato and stock to the pan. Increase the heat to high and bring to the boil, then cook for 20 minutes more, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened. Use the back of a spoon to lightly crush a few pieces of potato to further thicken the sauce. Remove from the heat and stir through the lemon juice.

5. Meanwhile, lightly crush the sesame seeds using a mortar and pestle, then add the reserved peas and lightly crush them, too; stir through the cilantro.

6. Serve the pea stew straight from the pan or transfer to a serving bowl. Spoon over the yogurt and lightly swirl it into the peas. Scatter the sesame pea mixture over the top and drizzle with some extra olive oil.

   Enjoy!

   Original recipe here.