Photo courtesy Jenny Chandler

Ingredients

• 200g / 7oz  yellow split peas, rinsed and drained
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• juice of 1 lemon
• freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tbsp capers, rinsed
• 1 tbsp roughly chopped parsley
• A few very finely sliced pieces of red onion.

Method

1. Place the split peas, bay leaves, the onion and enough cold water to cover everything by a couple of cm in a saucepan. Bring the water up to the boil skimming away any scum or froth.
2. Now simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring from time to time and, if necessary, adding a little extra water to keep the peas just covered.
3. Add the salt and continue to simmer until the beans are very tender and almost dry.
4. Remove the bay leaves and allow the split peas to cool for a few minutes before you puree them with a hand held blender or in a food processor.
5. Don’t worry, the peas will taste bland and flabby, they will be screaming for seasoning. Add the garlic, extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, freshly ground black pepper and more salt, if required, until you have a wonderfully balanced puree.
6. Spoon into a bowl and allow to cool completely, letting the flavours get to know each other.
7. Serve with a sprinkling of capers, the parsley, red onion and a splash of extra virgin oil.

Try topping the fava with any combination of the following:

• Chopped fresh oregano, coriander or parsley
• A few chopped Kalamata olives,
• Diced tomato and a handful of rocket.
• A sprinkling of roasted cumin seeds and sweet Aleppo or Urfi chilli flakes

This recipe was originally published by Jenny Chandler on her blog I’ve Mostly Been Eating and demonstrated at our 2018 Grand Dal Finale.

Despite the name this dish from the Greek island of Santorini is made not with fava beans but with split yellow peas – or more traditionally with a local variety of grass pea, an entirely different species of pulse. Either way it makes a simple but delicious dip and, in our book, counts as a dal by another name.

This recipe has been been shared with us by Hodmedod – it’s a great use for their split yellow peas.

Ingredients

• 200g Split Yellow Peas – or Greek Fava (Lathyrus clymenum) if available – soaked for 4 hours
• ½ Red Onion, sliced into rings
• 1 Red Onion, diced
• 1 tsp Flaked Sea Salt
• ½ Lemon
• 2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Water as required
• Olive Oil, Capers and sliced Onion Rings to finish

Method

1. Rinse the split peas well and place in a large saucepan, cover with water, bring to the boil and then simmer on a moderate heat for 20 to 40 minutes until the peas are tender but still intact (the cooking will vary according to the peas and your water hardness), checking that the water does not evaporate and topping up with extra water if necessary.
2. Add one diced red onion and two tablespoons olive oil and continue to cook for a further 10 minutes until the peas are cooked but not too mushy.
3. Roughly mash the mixture and leave to cool.
4. Before serving, stir in more olive oil, lemon, salt and pepper to taste and drizzle with extra oil, top with the sliced onion rings and capers.
5. Serve cold or warm with vegetable croutons, toasted pitta bread or even fava flatbreads!

This recipe was contributed by Hodmedod from their collection of recipes for British-grown pulses.