This simple, fresh and tasty dip featuring green peas, coriander and almonds can be on the table in under 10 minutes.
Who doesn't have a bag of frozen peas lurking in the freezer? There's a good chance you do, and that you'll also have all the other ingredients on hand to get this dip on the table in under 10 minutes.
Blanch the peas for a minute or two to thaw them out, cool them under the tap then throw them into a food processor with almonds, plenty of coriander (cilantro), garlic, ginger, lime juice and green chilli if you like a little heat. Like magic you'll have something totally packed with flavour and nutrition, made with an incredibly cheap and simple ingredient.
This green pea dip is a great light lunch served on wholegrain toast, or serve it with chips or crackers for a snack or nibble with drinks. The flavour combination is almost Thai, except that I've never encountered a green pea in a Thai dish before! Go with it. The sweetness of the peas balances out the other flavours beautifully and I found myself wanting to pile my toast up high with more, more, more!
I picked some pretty edible flowers (nasturtiums) from my Mum's garden and they were such a pretty and peppery accompaniment. I'm feeling really inspired to get planting other edible flowers like violas and pansies in my own garden so that I can enjoy pretty lunches and salads whenever I feel like it.
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups frozen green peas
- ¼ cup almonds
- 1 cup coriander (cilantro, roughly chopped)
- 1 clove garlic crushed or finely grated
- 1 teaspoon ginger finely grated
- 2 tablespoon lime juice
- ½ to 1 green chilli (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
INSTRUCTIONS
- Blanch green peas by adding them to rapidly boiling water for no more than 1-2 minutes. Drain in a colander then run under a cold tap to cool.
- Add everything except for the peas to a food processor and pulse until almonds are roughly chopped (this avoids over-processing the dip if the soft peas were added at the same time as the crunchy nuts).
- Add the peas and blend until a well combined but rustic consistency with some chunky bits. Or blend until really smooth if you prefer it that way. Add a little water (1-2 tablespoon at a time) if you'd like a looser consistency.
- Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt, chilli or lime juice as required.
- Garnish with more coriander, and edible flowers if you're feeling fancy.
- Makes approximately 1 ½ cups of dip.
