Black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day; it’s what folks from the American South do. This year, I rolled out with a Kenyan recipe called Kunde, which is the Swahili word for…black-eyed peas. Perfect!
Full disclosure: I make this dish a lot; it’s easy, healthy, and delicious. I’ve made a few modifications that you don’t normally see in the traditional recipe: fresh ginger and spinach. Serve over rice, and offer some dry-roasted peanuts on the side for garnish, and you’ve got yourself a very comforting meal.
KUNDE – Kenyan Black-Eyed Peas
Adapted from a recipe at http://www.whats4eats.com/vegetables/kunde-recipe
Ingredients
- Oil — 2 tablespoons
- Onion, minced — 1
- Ginger, grated – 2 teaspoons
- Tomatoes, seeded and diced — 2 cups
- Black-eyed peas, cooked — 2 cups
- Natural peanut butter — 1/4 cup
- Water — 1/4 cup
- Spinach – at least one bunch, washed, trimmed and chopped
- Salt and pepper — to taste
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium flame.
- Add the onion and ginger, sauté until translucent.
- Add the tomatoes and simmer about 5 minutes, until softened.
- Stir in the remaining ingredients, except spinach. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add more water as needed to get a stew-like consistency.
- Add spinach; stir in until wilted.
- Adjust seasoning and serve over rice.
Notes
- You can use roughly ground peanuts instead of peanut butter if you want to go the very traditional route.
- I usually add spinach, but chopped collard greens or kale would be excellent choices as well.
