Simmered Fresh Black-Eyed Peas

A favorite summertime appetizer or a side dish. While in season, fresh black-eyed peas in the pod (also known as cowpeas) are cooked almost every day, to be devoured before the meal or with it. The best loubya grows on the small islands (jazra) that come into existence as the water level of the river Tigris drops in the summer. It has been growing in the region ever since antiquity. In Akkadian, it was known as ‘lubu’. The best substitutes are asparagus beans or string beans,