So, what is al-Andalus? I wrote a whole chapter in Flavors of al-Andalus to explain just that. But when Dara Bunjon asked me the question during our video chat, I was hard-pressed to reply. I needed to condense 800 years of Spanish history into a soundbite in order to set the scene for the recipes that I have collected for this book.
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| If you would like to listen in to our talk, here is the link: The Food Enthusiast. It was recorded live, me in my kitchen in Spain, Dara from Baltimore. Dara’s show, The Food Enthusiast, goes out weekly on JmoreLiving.com. Dara included a recipe from Flavors of al-Andalus on the JmoreLiving web site. Since I haven’t got a new recipe prepared for this week’s blog, I’ll share that recipe here as well. |
Al-Andalus was Moorish Spain. Muslim Spain. Medieval Spain (711 to 1492). It was both a place of shape-shifting borders that, at its most extensive, reached all the way from the rock of Gibraltar to as far north as neighboring France, and a cultural melting-pot made up of Arabs, Berbers, Sephardic Jews, and Mozarabic Christians. Al-Andalus was for several centuries a caliphate, a glittering center of culture and learning whose capital was Córdoba. The caliphate broke up into many separate kingdoms. The last to persist against the pushback of Christian armies was Granada and its emblematic fortress-palace, the Alhambra. During the nearly eight centuries that the kingdoms of al-Andalus existed, the interweaving of cultures embedded the foodways of al-Andalus deeply in Spanish life.
Black-eyed Peas
Potaje de Carillas
Here’s a recipe from Flavors of al-Andalus that's perfect for these chilly fall days. In keeping with the heritage theme of the book, the recipe is vegetarian, as neither Muslims nor Jews consumed pork. But it must be noted that the dish as prepared in this day and age usually contains pork sausage such as chorizo plus a spoonful of pimentón (paprika), a spice unknown in Moorish times.
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There were no beans in medieval Spanish cooking. No green beans, no pinto beans, no cannellini beans. These legumes were discovered by Columbus’s explorations in the New World, but did not become known in Spain until the mid-16th century.
Nevertheless, legumes were an important part of the diet in Moorish times. Chickpeas (garbanzos), lentils (lentejas), and black-eyed peas (carillas, figüelos, judías de carete, or chícharos) were cultivated and were an important part of the diet.
Interestingly, two of the words for “bean” in Spanish, alubia and judía, come from Moorish times. The Arabic name for the black-eyed pea, lubia, came to be used for all beans when they eventually became available in Spain. The word judía actually means “Jewish,” possibly because the Sephardic people favored the “beans” of the day, black-eyed peas.
For this recipe, soak dried black-eyed peas overnight before cooking. If using fresh or frozen black-eyed peas, you will need about 2 ½ cups. They do not need soaking and should cook in about 40 minutes.
Crush the whole spices, garlic and herbs in a mortar or substitute ground spices, if preferred.
Serve black-eyed peas hot as a main or side dish or cold as a salad.
Serves 6 to 8 as a vegetable side dish.
2 cups dried black-eyed peas (1 pound)
3 carrots, peeled
1 leek, white part only
1 stalk celery
1 to 2 bay leaves
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1/3 cup olive oil + more for drizzling
1 cup chopped onions
½ teaspoon coarse salt
10 peppercorns
2 cloves
2 coriander seeds
1/8 teaspoon cumin seeds
½ teaspoon oregano
4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
4 cups chopped leaves and stems of chard
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Pomegranate arils, to garnish (optional)
Place the black-eyed peas in a bowl or pan and cover them with water. Leave them to soak for 8 hours.
Drain the black-eyed peas. Place them in a pan and add 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil and skim off the froth that rises to the top. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and cook the beans 15 minutes. Add the carrots, a quarter of the leek, celery, bay leaves, and 1 ½ teaspoons salt. Cover and cook the beans 30 minutes.
While black-eyed peas are cooking, heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onions until they are very soft but not browned, 6 to 8 minutes. If they start to brown, add a few drops of water and continue frying. Slice the remaining leek, add it to the skillet and continue frying.
Place the coarse salt in a mortar with the peppercorns, cloves, coriander, cumin and oregano. Crush the spices and herbs to a powder. Add the garlic and continue crushing to make a paste. Remove the carrots from the pan of black-eyed peas. Cut one carrot in half. Add one half to the mortar mixture and mash it with the spices. (Reserve the remaining carrots.) Dilute the paste with a spoonful of the black-eyed peas cooking liquid.
Stir the paste from the mortar into the sautéed onions in the skillet and fry for 2 minutes more. Stir the contents of the pan into the black-eyed peas. Add the chard and ½ cup of cold water. Continue cooking the beans until they are very tender, about 20 minutes.
Remove and discard the bay leaves, whole piece of leek, and celery. Slice the reserved cooked carrots and return them to the pan. Stir in the lemon juice. Allow the black-eyed peas to sit 10 minutes before serving.
Serve the black-eyed peas in bowls with their liquid or, to serve as a vegetable side dish, remove them from the pan with a slotted spoon. Drizzle olive oil over the top. Garnish with pomegranate arils, if desired.
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FLAVORS OF AL-ANDALUS
The Culinary Legacy of Spain
Ask for Flavors of al-Andalus from your favorite bookseller or click below to order.
This cookbook explores the fascinating story of the deep and lasting influences that Islamic culture has left on modern Spanish cooking.
Author and Spanish cooking expert Janet Mendel tells the story of the Moorish influence on Spanish cooking through 120 recipes and photographs for modern-day dishes, from salads and vegetables to fish, poultry and meat to sweets and pastries, that trace their heritage to foods served in medieval times. Dishes from this era include exotic spices such as saffron, the use of fruits and almonds with savory dishes, and honeyed sweets and pastries. The flavors of al-Andalus live on in modern Spanish cooking and are what makes Spain’s cuisine distinctive from the rest of Europe. (Hippocrene Books)
Use PROMO CODE HIPPOCRENE40 for 40% off on all Hippocrene titles at IndiePubs online bookstore.
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