Matar Nimona

Most of us have fond memories of food from our childhood. Food has this magical ability to bring back wonderful memories. Matar Nimona reminds me of winters and fresh sweet green peas [green peas=matar in Hindi]. When we were kids, me and my sister would go to grandma’s village every year. Whenever we went there during winters, we would eat lot of matar ka nimona. It is a dish made out of green peas and it’s made in the states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar in India during winter months. The reason why it’s made only during winters  is because that’s the only time we get fresh green peas. We would go to the farm, pick the peas, bring it to grandma and she would make us nimona with rice for dinner. Needless to say, that was the best dinner ever!

Nimona is a very simple dish. Most of the flavor in this dish comes from fresh peas and that’s why it’s so important to use fresh peas in this recipe. The frozen ones can never match up to the taste. We usually don’t get fresh peas here in grocery stores. Few weeks back, we went to a Farmer’s Market nearby and I was excited to see fresh peas. I tasted some and they were sweet enough to make nimona. I immediately picked a bag and decided to make nimona. You know sometimes the heart craves for that authentic food? So yeah it was that kind of a day.

Nimona is quite thin in consistency, almost like a soup. At least that’s how it was prepared in my home and I have kept it the same way. You can definitely adjust the consistency to preference. So next time you get your hands on some fresh green peas, give this curry a try. I promise it will be different than anything you have ever eaten. And we always use to put a teaspoon full of ghee (clarified butter) on top of nimona before eating it. That made the dish extra-special!

Method

Grind together green peas and green chili, adding approx 1/4 cup water to a fine paste. Set aside.

Grind onion with ginger and garlic, adding approx 2 tablespoons of water. Set aside. Also make fresh tomato puree by grinding the tomatoes.

In a pan heat 2 tablespoons of oil on medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add cumin seeds, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, black cardamom, peppercorns and saute till fragrant.

Add the prepared onion-ginger-garlic paste to the pan.

Cook for 3-4 minutes or till raw smell goes away.

Add tomato paste, cover the pan and cook for 5-6 minutes or till raw smell goes away completely .

Add coriander powder, turmeric powder, red chili powder and mix. Also add salt and cook the spices for 1 minute.

Now add the prepared green peas paste to the pan and mix. Cook for 2-3 minutes.

Add cubed potatoes and mix.

Cover the pan and cook for 5-6 minutes or till potatoes are almost cooked.

Now add water, stir and simmer the curry for 8-10 minutes or till you see oil on top.

Sprinkle garam masala and serve immediately. Also squeeze in some fresh lemon juice!

Tip: Add ghee to nimona just before serving. This recipe is vegan but if you add ghee to it than it wouldn’t remain one. But if you are not a vegan, I highly recommend adding ghee!

Matar Nimona

Manali

Matar Nimona is a green peas curry widely eaten in the state of Uttar Pradesh during winters! Tastes best with plain rice.

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 20 mins

Cook Time 25 mins

Total Time 45 mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Indian

Servings 4

Calories 144 kcal

Ingredients

To Grind

• ▢ 1 cup + ⅛ cup fresh peas
• ▢ 1 green chili or adjust to taste
• ▢ ¼ cup water to grind

To Grind

• ▢ 1 onion medium
• ▢ ½ inch ginger
• ▢ 3-4 garlic cloves
• ▢ 2 tablespoons water

Other ingredients

• ▢ 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• ▢ 1 bay leaf
• ▢ 2 black cardamom
• ▢ 5-6 black peppercorns
• ▢ ½ inch cinnamon stick
• ▢ ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
• ▢ 2 to matoes medium
• ▢ 1 potato medium
• ▢ 2 teaspoons coriander powder
• ▢ ⅓ teaspoon turmeric powder
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon red chili powder
• ▢ garam masala to sprinkle
• ▢ 3-4 cups water
• ▢ salt to taste
• ▢ lemon juice optional

Instructions

 

• Grind together green peas and green chili, adding approx 1/4 cup water to a fine paste. Set aside.
• Grind onion with ginger and garlic, adding approx 2 tablespoons of water. Set aside.
• Also make fresh tomato puree by grinding the tomatoes.
• In a pan heat 2 tablespoons of oil on medium heat.
• Once the oil is hot, add cumin seeds, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, black cardamom, peppercorns and saute till fragrant.
• Add the prepared onion-ginger-garlic paste to the pan. Cook for 3-4 minutes or till raw smell goes away.
• Add tomato paste, cover the pan and cook for 5-6 minutes or till raw smell goes away completely .
• Add coriander powder, turmeric powder, red chili powder and mix. Also add salt and cook the spices for 1 minute.
• Now add the prepared green peas paste to the pan and mix. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
• Add cubed potatoes and mix. Cover the pan and cook for 5-6 minutes or till potatoes are almost cooked.
• Now add water, stir and simmer the curry on medium heat for 8-10 minutes or till you see oil on top.
• Sprinkle garam masala and serve immediately. Also squeeze in some fresh lemon juice!
• Serve matar nimona hot with plain rice.

Nutrition

Calories: 144kcalCarbohydrates: 17gProtein: 4gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 5gSodium: 59mgPotassium: 368mgFiber: 4gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 315IUVitamin C: 25.2mgCalcium: 45mgIron: 2.7mg

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