This is typically eaten in Kerala, India for lunch or dinner with rice and a light gravy dish. Leave the beans crunchy to eat as a salad or cooked through a little more to eat with bread or rice.

French Bean Stir Fry

INGREDIENTS

rench beans - 250 gm chopped into 1” long pieces (cut at an angle for extra panache)
Onion – 1 sliced
Green chillies – 1 sliced
Coconut – grated, about 1 tbsp (optional)
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp (optional)
Garlic – 4-5 pearls sliced (optional)
Salt – To taste
Coconut oil - 2 tsp (or any vegetable or olive oil) for tempering
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Dry red chillies – 2 torn into 2-3 parts
Curry leaves - A few stalks- these can be chewed and eaten. They have many medicinal benefits.

PREPARATION

Heat oil in a round bottomed pan, wok or kadai (actually flat bottomed non stick pan works just fine too). Add mustard seeds and once they start to splutter, add red chillies and curry leaves. Keep stirring so they don’t burn. If using turmeric or garlic, add now.

Add sliced onions and fry till translucent. Add green chilli, chopped beans, coconut, sprinkle with a little water and cover to cook, stirring occasionally. This should not take more than 5-7 minutes. Let the beans retain some crunch. Add salt to taste.

This recipe can be adapted to many vegetables including any other kind of beans, carrot, beetroot, yam, gourd or pumpkin.

Eat as a salad, or with roti, rice or any kind of bread.

Bonus: Spiced Buttermilk

Since you’ll rarely be able to buy just one stalk, you can use curry leaves roughly torn or chopped or even ground with cumin seeds (dry roasted are more flavorful), green chilli (if you can handle it), finely chopped ginger, salt (rock salt or chaat masala), coriander or mint leaves (any or all of these ingredients) – added to yogurt beaten with some water. This creates a cooling and refreshing buttermilk drink and you can measure out the yogurt according to your dairy portions (those who have milk in their diets can substitute yogurt). You can use non/low fat or skim milk yogurt.

ABOUT SANDHYA

Sandhya describes herself as a reformed Doritos and peanut addict thanks to Kenzai not least because her skin was turning orange from all the artificial flavoring. She has two boys, aged 12 and 10, who she’d never just ‘allowed’ to win at races and arm wrestling, but they now allow her- much to her chagrin. Her family loves diving, farming, dancing and laughing (often for no discernible reason).