Here is a dish that, as far as I know, was only served in India by my own family. My mother made it; my grandmother made it. It was made only when peas were young and fresh. Even Indians (from other families and from other parts of India) who have dined with us in the pea season are surprised by it. It requires whole, fresh peas in their pods. I grow my own peas, and this is the first dish I make with them when they are ready for picking. You have to eat the peas rather like artichoke leaves: you put the whole pea pod in your mouth, holding on to it by its stem end, clench your teeth, and pull. What you get to eat are not just the peas themselves but also the softened outsides of the shells. You discard the fibrous bits after getting all the goodness out of them. We ate this as a snack or at teatime, but I have taken to serving it as a first course.

Ingredients

　　2 tablespoons olive or canola oil

　　1/8 teaspoon ground asafetida

　　1/2 teaspoon whole cumin seeds

　　1 1/4 pounds fresh whole peas in their pods, washed, but with their little stems attached

　　1/4 teaspoon salt

　　1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

　　1 teaspoon lemon juice

　　Put the oil in a wok, karhai, or large sauté pan and set on medium-high heat. When hot, put in the asafetida and cumin seeds. Let the cumin seeds sizzle for 5 seconds. Put in the peas, salt, and cayenne. Stir for a minute and add 4 tablespoons water. Cover, turn heat to low, and cook about 10 minutes or until peas are cooked through. Remove cover, add the lemon juice, and stir until all liquid is absorbed. Serve hot or at room temperature.

　　Excerpted from At Home with Madhur Jaffrey: Simple, Delectable Dishes from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka by Madhur Jaffrey. Copyright © 2010 by Random House. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.Buy the full book from Amazon.