Mirchi Ki Sabji ( with Banana Peppers)
Beans Paruppu Usli
Paruppu Usli is a South Indian(Tamilian) dish made by crumbling dal. The crumbled dal is then added to cooked vegetables. A wide variety of vegetables like Banana flowers, Cabbage, Capsicum, Radish greens, and Beans can be added to the Usli.
This is a dry(without gravy)side dish which can be served to go with Rasam rice, Vatha Kozhambu rice, More Kozhambu(Kadi)rice, and other varieties.
There are many versions of making the Usli. Some use just a single dal to make the Usli(dal crumble) and some use a combination of dals. I prefer Chana dal(split peas) to make the Usili. It is very easy to crumble this dal and is tastier than the other dals.
The Usli tastes amazing just by itself too. Here’s the recipe of Beans Paruppu Usli.
PREP TIME: 20 Mins COOK TIME: 20 Mins
TOTAL TIME: 40 Mins COURSE: MAIN
CUISINE: SOUTH INDIAN SERVINGS: 4
AUTHOR: Rajni Ram
Ingredients:
French Beans 250 gms chopped fine.
Carrot 1 (just for colour)
Chana dal 1cup soaked for 1/2 an hour
Cumin seeds 1 tsp
Dry red chillies 3
Asafoetida 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder
Curry leaves a few finely chopped
Oil(refined) for crumbling the dal 2tbsp
Directions:
Chop the French Beans, and carrot and add some salt and turmeric powder and cook them in sufficient water. When you can crush the Beans-carrot between your index and thumb finger, stop cooking. Drain the water and cool. Now put the soaked Chana dal after draining out the water in a blender, add the dry red chillies, cumin seeds, turmeric powder, salt and asafoetida and grind to a coarse paste. Add very little water to grind. Now take oil in a heavy-bottomed Karahi(preferably NOT nonstick) and heat. Add the finely chopped curry leaves and pour the dal mixture into karahi immediately. Start scrambling the dal. A Dosa flipper works best for this while you are scrambling the dal, keep breaking the bigger lumps for them to crumble further. The finer you are able to crumble the better. This takes between 10 to 15 minutes. Once you have fully crumbled the dal it should look like a coarse powder. Transfer the crumbled dal to another vessel from the karahi. Now add the cooked Beans-Carrot to the Karahi and start evaporating any remaining moisture in it, by sautéing it well. When there is no more moisture in the Beans add the crumbled dal mixture to the Beans-Carrot and mix well. Check for salt and adjust if required. The yummy Beans Usli is now ready to serve. Serve it with some Vatha Kuzhambu rice, Rasam rice or More Kozhambu rice. I love it with Rotis too. Enjoy. Bon Appetit.
STEPWISE RECIPE FOLLOWS:
1. Assemble all ingredients. Chop and cook the Beans and Carrot( take care, not to overcook)and soak the Chana dal for 1/2 an hour.
2. Now in a blender put the soaked Chana dal after draining the water, the cumin seeds, dry red chillies, turmeric and asafoetida and grind to a coarse paste. Add as little water as possible.
3. Take a Karahi and pour in oil around 2 tablespoons and heat. Add the chopped curry leaves to the oil and add the ground Chana dal mixture.
4. Start scrambling the mixture using a Dosa flipper( makes the process easier). Keep breaking the bigger lumps into smaller ones and crumble the mixture. It should start becoming dry. By the end of the crumbling procedure, the dal should look like a coarse powder. This takes 10 to 15 minutes and some patience. Flame to be medium to low throughout.
A quick video to show you how to crumble the dal????
5. Once the dal is crumbled, transfer it from the Karahi to another vessel. In the same karahi put in the cooked Beans and Carrot and evaporate any remaining moisture.
6. Once the vegetables become dry add the crumbled dal to them and stir. Mix them nicely so that the vegetables and dal are well combined. The Beans Paruppu Usli is now ready to serve.
NOTES:
1. The dal has to soak at least for half an hour.
2. I have not tempered the Usli while or after making it, anyway no harm in tempering too.
3. The vegetable should be nicely stir-fried and all water evaporated before adding the dal crumble because if there is any moisture it will all turn lumpy.
4. Instead of Beans, any other vegetable given above can also be used. The crumble procedure will be the same.
If you tried this recipe and liked it then please comment below. I would love to hear from you.
Flavoured Rice
A very simple yet flavourful rice. You can make it on the days when you want no masalas. Since there are no pungent spices this Rice goes well with a lot of accompaniments like dal fry, raita, Rajma, Choley and more. Flavoured rice and simple dal fry make for soul food. Let’s get to the recipe right away.
PREP TIME: 15Mins COOK TIME: 20 Mins
TOTAL TIME: 35 Mins COURSE: MAIN
CUISINE: NORTH INDIAN SERVINGS: 4
Ingredients:
Basmathi rice 1 cup
Raisins( preferably black) around 10
Cashewnuts around 6 to 8
Walnuts( broken)around 6 to 8
Almonds around 5
Cloves 5
Cinnamon 1 inch stick
Milk 1/4 cup
Saffron 2 pinches
Ghee 2 tbsp
Onion 1 medium cut to thin slices
Directions:
Soak the rice for 15 minutes, drain water and set aside. In a Karahi take ghee and heat. Add the dry nuts and raisins and fry until the nuts are light brown. Remove the nuts from the oil and add in the onion slices and fry until nicely browned. Remove them and set aside. Add little oil to the karahi and put in the whole masalas, fry until aromatic. Add 2 cups water and the milk along with saffron, add some salt and the dry fruits and boil. When it starts boiling transfer the soaked rice, cover and cook, keep stirring every now and then and cover and cook again until the rice is done. Takes about 15 minutes on low fire. Once done, put off the stove, add in the browned onions and mix well. Flavoured rice is ready to serve. Enjoy. Bone Appetite.
STEPWISE RECIPE FOLLOWS:
1. Assemble all ingredients. Soak the Basmathi rice for 15 minutes and drain water.
2. Heat the ghee in a karahi and add the nuts and raisins and fry. Remove when lightly browned. Add in the onion to the same ghee and fry them until they are well browned. Remove onions and set aside.
3. Add a little oil to the karahi and drop the whole masalas into it when hot. Fry until aromatic, add two cups water, the saffron soaked milk, fried nuts and salt and bring the water to a boil,
4. As it boils, transfer the soaked rice and mix well. Cover and cook for few minutes, stir in between and cover and cook again until done. Takes about 15 minutes for the rice to cook on low fire. The water should have evaporated completely.
5. Once done, put off the stove and add the browned onions, mix nicely and the flavoured rice is ready to serve.
NOTES:
1. Other whole masalas like cardamom, peppercorns, fennel, cumin etc have not been added on purpose, as then the Pulav taste will come in. This rice has a very subtle flavour.
2. Saffron is optional, but if added gives a good flavour to the dish.
3. Cook rice on low fire, as high heat cooking will evaporate the water fast and the rice won’t cook well and may remain raw.
4. Water to cook rice can be adjusted as per your preference, but rice must be grainy and not mushy.
5. I have numbered a few pictures to avoid confusion in steps.
If you made this recipe and liked it, please do comment below. I would love to hear from you.
