Peas Stew | Mancare de Mazare

Ingredients:

 - 1 bell pepper

 - 2 carrots

 - 1 parsnip

 - 1 onion

 - 1 pound of pork meat

 - 3 cans of peas (14.5 ounces each)

 - 1 can of diced tomatoes (14.5 ounces)

 - 1 cup chopped dill or parsley

 - Spices: salt, pepper, chili pepper, thyme, bay leaves

 - Cooking oil

Preparation:

 - Dice the onion and the bell pepper.  Shred the carrots and the parsnip.  Put all of them in a pan that's large enough to fit the whole recipe.  Add a tiny bit of cooking oil, and fry them for about 5-10 minutes (until the onion and bell pepper become softer and start to change color).

 - Dice the pork meat, and add to the flying pan.  Cook until the meat becomes white.

 - Add the peas (discard the water first) and the diced tomatoes.  Sprinkle salt, pepper, chili pepper, and thyme, to taste.  Also, add 2-3 bay leaves, and 3 cups of water.

 - Cover, and cook on medium heat for 1 hour.  Stir occasionally.

 - Remove from heat, and add the chopped dill or parsley.

Presentation:

 - We chose a black plate to help draw all the attention to the main dish.  The colors of the ingredients look so much more vivid when nothing else distracts the eye.

 - We sprinkled extra chopped dill on top.

 - A slightly opened pea pod further garnished the dish - a visually strong green reminder of the origin of the main ingredient in the recipe.