It’s so great that pulses – beans and lentils – are finally becoming accepted and celebrated in the UK. I’ve been a bean keenie for 15 years, delighting in growing different varieties at my allotment and in community projects, and since before then understanding how to use dhals through cooking in ashrams. Not only are pulses really great for health, fantastic for soils and the environment, but they are also key in a compassionate diet.
In 2016 the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organisation, part of the UN) launched this global pulse awareness day, and we have so much to learn from cultures around the world about spicing to make delicious food that is easy to digest. I provide some basic principles in the Eat for Your Dosha workshop here, and every week students share souper soulfood soup after classes.
Here are some of the pulsey recipes here at VG. What will you cook on World Pulse Day?
Beetroot soup with tahini chickpeas
Golden cauliflower dhal with parsley mash
Moroccan-inspired squash and black-eyed pea soup
Gingery aduki bean and sweet potato soup
Parsnip and apple soup with herby chickpea topping
Butternut soup with bayleaf barley
Parsley-tastic buckwheat tabouleh