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Jamaican gungo pea soup
Gungo peas soup: green pigeon peas with coconut milk, pumpkin and dumplings
Gungo peas ripen around December, so this soup belongs to the Christmas season in Jamaica, when the same peas also go into the festive rice and peas. Fresh or frozen green pigeon peas give a nutty, earthy broth that coconut milk, thyme and pumpkin turn rich and golden, and flour dumplings make it a meal. A common mistake is boiling the coconut milk hard for the whole time, which makes it split and oily; add it once the peas are soft and keep the pot at a simmer. Dried pigeon peas work too: soak them overnight and allow an extra 40 minutes. Chef's tip: blitz about a quarter of the soup and stir it back in for body while keeping plenty of whole peas.
- Total time
- 100 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the soup
- 1 ⅓ lb green pigeon peasfresh or frozen
- 2 litres water
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 onionchopped
- 3 cloves garliccrushed
- 3 spring onionschopped
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 10 ½ oz pumpkinpeeled, in 2 cm chunks
- 1 potatopeeled, in 2 cm chunks
- 1 ¾ cups coconut milk
- 1 scotch bonnetwhole
- 1 ½ tsp salt
For the dumplings
- 4 oz plain flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ cup cold waterabout
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Put 1 ⅓ lb green pigeon peas, 2 litres water and 6 allspice berries in a large pot, bring to the boil and simmer for 35–40 minutes until the peas are tender.
40 minStep 2: Meanwhile fry 1 onion, 3 cloves garlic and 3 spring onions in 1 tbsp coconut oil over medium heat for 4 minutes until soft, then add them to the pot.
4 minStep 3: Add 10 ½ oz pumpkin, 1 potato, 4 sprigs fresh thyme, 1 scotch bonnet, 1 ½ tsp salt and 1 ¾ cups coconut milk. Keep the pot at a gentle simmer, not a rolling boil, for 15 minutes.
15 minStep 4: Mix 4 oz plain flour and ¼ tsp salt and add ¼ cup cold water gradually to make a firm dough. Roll small pieces into short spinners or flatten them into small discs and drop them in.
5 minStep 5: Simmer 15 minutes more until the dumplings are firm and the pumpkin has begun to dissolve.
15 minStep 6: Remove the pepper and thyme stalks. Blend about a quarter of the soup, avoiding the dumplings, and stir it back in. Taste for salt and serve hot.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 380 kcal
- Protein
- 13 g
- Carbs
- 52 g
- Fat
- 14 g
- Fibre
- 11 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does jamaican gungo pea soup take?
- About 100 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 80 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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