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Mâncare de mazăre
Stewed green peas
Mâncare de mazăre: Romanian stewed green peas with onion, carrot, tomato and dill
In Romanian homes from Bucharest to the villages of Moldavia, mâncare de mazăre is a weekday lunch all year and a mainstay of the Orthodox fasting days, when the table is meat-free; it is eaten with mămăligă (polenta) or bread and a pickle or two. Peas simmer gently with soft onion and carrot in a light tomato sauce, and a handful of dill goes in at the end. A portion gives about 14 g of protein from the peas, so it isn't a high-protein dish on its own; serve it with polenta and a chunk of bread, or a fried egg on top if you eat eggs. The most common mistake is boiling the peas for too long, which turns them khaki and mushy. Chef's tip: thicken the sauce with a teaspoon of flour fried in the oil before the tomato goes in, as Romanian cooks do, or leave it out to keep the dish gluten free.
- Total time
- 40 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ lb frozen garden peasor fresh podded peas
- 3 tbsp sunflower oil
- 2 onionsfinely chopped
- 2 carrotsdiced
- 2 garlic clovescrushed
- 1 ¼ cups tomato passata
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp sugar
- ½ tsp black pepperfreshly ground
- ⅔ oz fresh dillchopped
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Method
0/4 doneStep 1: Heat 3 tbsp sunflower oil in a wide pan over a medium heat. Add 2 onions and 2 carrots and cook for 10 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and translucent and the carrot is starting to soften.
10 minStep 2: Stir in 2 garlic cloves and 1 tbsp tomato paste and cook for 1 minute until the paste darkens. Add 1 ¼ cups tomato passata and 1 cup water and simmer for 5 minutes.
6 minStep 3: Add 2 ¼ lb frozen garden peas (straight from frozen is fine), 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp sugar and ½ tsp black pepper. Bring back to a gentle simmer and cook uncovered for 10–12 minutes, until the peas are tender and still bright green and the sauce has thickened enough to coat them.
12 minStep 4: Take off the heat, stir in ⅔ oz fresh dill and taste for salt. Rest for 5 minutes so the flavours settle, then serve warm.
5 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 290 kcal
- Protein
- 14 g
- Carbs
- 38 g
- Fat
- 11 g
- Fibre
- 13 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does mâncare de mazăre take?
- About 40 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 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.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of onions?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of carrots?
- Parsnip or sweet potato, same weight.
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