Recipes Collection

Beans and greens are a classic combination in many of the world cuisines. When I went shopping for veggies in our fresh supermarket nearby, I saw a lady shelling these huge green beans and what came out were the cutest pink and white smooth beans - and absolutely huge in size. The colours reminded me of a Johnson baby bottle, what else can you expect from the mom of a little one. Here in Hyderabad, Im trying to eat local - trying out stuff that we didnt usually find in Bombay. The southern states usually have a wider variety of greens - and in Chennai the green-vendors usually pop by early morning so that the stuff can be cooked fresh for lunch. I havent yet sourced someone like that here, but I try and get my fix of a variety of greens at least thrice a week.
This time it is Thotakoora or Amaranth greens which is quite a pleasant tasting thing. I have used this in Sambar, along with tomato-onions as a stir fry and this time in a sundal like preparation with cooked double-beans, which I laid my hands on for the first time.

Fresh double beans are the cutest looking - baby pink in colour stippled white, very pretty indeed and tasty too. Im sad I did not take a pic of the shelled beans - next time around I intend to do so and update here.
Since they were fresh, there was no soaking involved - just pressure cooking for five minutes until they were buttery soft with shape intact. These are also called butter-beans I guess. Cooked and mashed, these will make a delicious hummus too - will reserve this experiment for next time.

Serves 3-4

Cooking time - under 30 minutes

1 heaped cup of shelled double beans (fresh or frozen)

2 cups of amaranth leaves (or any other greens)

1 tsp cooking oil

1 tsp udad dal

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

pinch asafoetida

1 dried red chilli - broken into bits

1 sprig curry leaves

salt to taste

1 tbsp fresh scraped coconut

Pressure cook the double beans for 3-4 minutes with 1 cup water. Drain and keep aside. (I cook them directly in a small cooker. After one whistle, left it on sim for 4-5 minutes and then switched off the flame)

In a cup of water,  boil the leaves till tender - drain and keep aside. You can use a bit of this water to moisten the sundal in the end or use it as a stock for soup or sambar.

Heat the oil in a wok. Add the udad dal, once this is golden, add the next four ingredients.

Wait till the seeds splutter and the curry leaves crackle - add the greens and drained beans. Season with salt. Stir well to coat with seasonings. Remove from flame and garnish with fresh coconut.

This can be had as a snack or as an accompaniment to rotis or rice.

This combination was so hearty and filling, and Im sure any other greens and beans combination can be made into a sundal, adding the nutritional benefits of green leafy veggies to the protein-rich beans.