We've had an abundance of activity this year. So far, we’ve been blessed to host more than 50 students in Yoga teacher trainings and retreats. And while our guests at Hale Pule enjoy three delicious Ayurvedic meals a day cooked by our staff, a common theme we hear is how challenging it can be to find the time to cook in a busy day at home.
Enter the two-in-one meal.
This technique is a big time saver, and because it helps you avoid running to the take-out menus, we like to think of it as a “health saver” too. Just build in time once in your day to make this meal for lunch (use the opportunity to wake up before sunrise – a surprising way to have more energy all day) and all the work is done for dinner.
We’ve put together a meal that starts as a simple barley and split pea bowl and quickly transforms into split pea soup. This is an ideal springtime meal: the barley is easy to digest when chewed thoroughly and the heaviness of the split peas is countered by cooking them more "soupy." But try this with any grain, legume and augmenting/extractive vegetable combination. You’ll be surprised how easy it can be to pull together one – make that two – easy and delicious Ayurvedic meals.
Split Peas of Mind
Serves 4
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Augmenting and extractive
You'll need
1 cup barley (soak overnight for faster cooking)
1/2 cup split peas
2 cups chopped carrots
1 ½ cups chopped broccoli
1 tbsp. ghee
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1 tsp. fresh grated ginger
½ tsp. mustard seed, black or brown
1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
Here's how
LUNCH
In a pot with a tightly fitted lid, bring 2 cups water, barley, 1/4 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. ghee to a boil. Reduce heat and cover. Cook until the liquid has absorbed, about 40-50 minutes. If you have soaked the barley, cook about 20-30 minutes. You can also use a rice cooker.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tsp. ghee in a pressure cooker on medium heat. Add 1/8 tsp. salt and cumin and simmer until fragrant. Add 5 cups of water and split peas. Cover and bring to pressure, reduce heat and cook for 18 minutes. You can also simmer in a pot for 30-45 minutes.
When barley and peas are done, warm ½ tsp. ghee in a pan over medium heat. Add fresh ginger, 1/8 tsp. salt and black pepper and cook until fragrant, then add carrots. Add water to ¼ inch the height of the carrots, cover and simmer until carrots are slightly tender.
In a separate pan, heat ½ tsp. ghee and cook ¼ tsp. salt and mustard seed until the aroma comes up. Add turmeric powder and let simmer another minute. Add the broccoli and gently cook until tender.
Serve one half of this meal for lunch.
DINNER
Place the other half of the meal in a soup pot. Add water to desired thickness for soup and warm lightly to enjoy this lovely variation.
Visit our Ayurveda Lifestyle page for kitchen essentials