My husband Vinodh is a fan of country vegetables. Avarakkai / broad beans is one of his favorites. This Avarakkai Kuzhambu (pronounced Ku-lam-boo) is very hearty and comforting. Vinodh also likes red rice. But I am choosy with red rice. I will eat red rice provided there is a hearty curry like this one. This is an everyday curry or side dish and all you need is some ghee for the meal. Here is our house favorite Avarakkai Paruppu Curry.
Soak the Avarakkai in lots of water for 10 minutes to get rid of the fine dirt. Wash the beans and set aside. Now we need to de-string the beans. This is an important step as the strings are very fibrous and not pleasant to eat. Snap off the tip of one end of the bean with a paring knife and pull the string like below. Snap and pull other end of the bean too. Discard the snapped-off ends and strings. Note that the tender young bean might not have strings. So just snap off the ends alone.
Cut the beans into 2 inch pieces. Boil the beans in 2 cups of water until tender. Set aside. ( I pressure cooked the beans with water for two whistles.) Set aside.
Heat oil in a pan and add in the black pepper, coriander seeds and cumin seeds. Fry in low flame until fragrant. Add in the chopped tomatoes, green chillies, salt and turmeric. We use green chillies for this curry and not red chillies. Fry till the tomatoes are soft. About 3-4 minutes on medium flame. Add in the shredded coconut and fry for a minute more. Remove from heat and let it cool a bit. Grind the mixture to a smooth paste with one cup of water. Set aside.
Soak tamarind in one cup of water for 20 minutes. Squeeze the tamarind to release the juice and discard any hard bits. Set aside the tamarind water. Heat oil in a pan and add in the mustard seeds. Let it splutter. Add in the tamarind water and let the tamarind water come to a boil. Once the mixture boils, add in the ground masala paste and a small piece of jaggery. I have already said in many of my posts that wherever tamarind goes, a small piece of jaggery also goes. Jaggery helps to enhance the taste of the final dish. Cook for 2 minutes on low flame.
Add in the cooked toor dal and the boiled broad beans. Add in the curry leaves and coriander leaves. Simmer for 5 minutes on low flame. Remove from heat. Serve the curry hot with rice.
- 250 grams Avarakkai / Broad Beans
- ½ cup fully cooked Toor Dal
- 1 inch piece tamarind (gooseberry size)
- 1 teaspoon oil
- ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon Jaggery
- 1 sprig curry leaves
- 2 stalks coriander leaves, chopped
- 1 tablespoon sesame / gingely oil
- ½ teaspoon Black Pepper
- 2 tablespoon Coriander Seeds
- 1 teaspoon Cumin Seeds
- 2 Tomatoes, chopped
- 2 Green Chillies
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
- ½ cup fresh shredded coconut
- Boil the cut beans in 2 cups of water until tender. Set aside.
- Heat oil in a pan and add in the black pepper, coriander seeds and cumin seeds. Fry in low flame until fragrant. Add in the chopped tomatoes, green chillies, salt and turmeric. Fry till the tomatoes are soft. About 3-4 minutes on medium flame. Add in the shredded coconut and fry for a minute more. Remove from heat and let it cool a bit. Grind the mixture to a smooth paste with one cup of water. Set aside.
- Soak tamarind in one cup of water for 20 minutes. Squeeze the tamarind with hands and discard any hard bits. Set aside the tamarind water. Heat oil in a pan and add in the mustard seeds. Let it splutter. Add in the tamarind water and let the tamarind water come to a boil. Once the mixture boils, add in the ground masala paste and a small piece of jaggery. Cook for 2 minutes on low flame.
- Add in the cooked toor dal and the boiled broad beans. Add in the curry leaves and coriander leaves. Simmer for 5 minutes on low flame. Remove from heat. Serve the curry hot with rice.
The post Avarakkai Kuzhambu, Avarakkai Paruppu Curry, Broad Beans Curry appeared first on Kannamma Cooks.