Green Beans with Lentil Crumbles - Paruppu Usli

The Journey

If you ever attended a South Indian (particularly a TamBram) wedding or special occasion, chances are that paruppu usli (lentil crumbles) with a vegetable such as green beans or banana flowers or cabbage  is on the menu. The appearance of this vegetable on a banana leaf plate is something I love. For many years, in my parent's home, this was one vegetable curry that was always reserved for special occasions. Another very popular South Indian recipe is a buttermilk stew called Mor Kozhambu  (recipe coming soon) and this Paruppu Usli is a match made in heaven with Mor Kozhambu. My sister in law makes a wonderful variation with broccoli instead of the green beans in this recipe. About 15 years ago, when I first attempted to make this recipe, I was daunted by the thought of making it because it was always deemed complicated and made by experienced cooks like my mom and mother in law. My mother in law gave me some tricks to really cut back on the multiple steps involved in cooking the lentil crumbles.  Armed with her technique, a non stick sauté pan and a good food processor, I mustered the confidence to prepare this dish. Then once I was done, it tasted amazing and my friends absolutely loved it. I also realized making paruppu usli was really simple..it dawned on me that it was my fear that daunted me... I fondly remembered Gandhi who said this.."Fear has its phantoms more fearsome than reality itself"..so true and applicable for all situations in life including my journey to make this highly nutritious recipe. So try this recipe and double your protein, your kids will love it too!

The ingredients (serves 6 - 8)

For the lentil crumbles

1 cup red gram dhal or Toor dhal or tuvaram paruppu
4-5 red chillies

For the vegetable

1/2 pound diced fresh green beans. Frozen is OK, but I usually do not find them diced. Diced looks nicer and seamlessly blends with the lentil crumbles, but there is no kitchen police to stop a shredded green bean paruppu usli. 

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp turmeric

For the tempering or tadka

2 tablespoons oil - canola or grape seed or something very neutral 
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp bengal gram lentils or Chana dhal or Kadala paruppu
1 tsp black gram lentils or Urad Dhal or Uluttham paruppu
2 dried red chillies halved
1 stem full of curry leaves

Now let's get cooking..

Soak the ingredients for the lentil Crumbles or Paruppu Usli - the red gram lentil and the dried red chillies in a bowl with water for 1 hour. 

Drain well and grind by pulsing in a food processor with 1/4 tsp of salt. Do not add any water. This is where a food processor really helps since you can easily pulse without water. You are looking for a coarse but well ground mixture. The base for your lentil crumbles or paruppu usli is ready.

Tadka or tempering steps (yes the order is important) 

Heat the sauté pan (non stick will make your life easy) on medium heat for the tadka or seasoning. Now, add the oil. Give it a few seconds on medium heat till you see mini bubbles forming along the circumference of the pan. 

  

Add the mustard seeds. Once they crackle and mess up your counter top (just kidding), add the chana dhal and the urad dhal. 

Once that is slightly browned, add the asafetida, red chillies and finally the curry leaves. When you add the curry leaves, step back a little since it will splutter and you don't want oil splatters on your manicured (yeah right!) hands.

Add the base for the lentil crumbles to this tempered mixture.
 

Stir and spread the lentil base to coat the sauté pan.


It is important to keep sautéing  every minute during the cooking process. It is also a good idea to keep the heat on medium during the cooking process. 

After 5-7 mins, the lentil base will be fully cooked and you can start to crumble this with a wooden spatula.
 

Once the lentil base is golden brown, crispy and fully crumbled,your paruppu usli is ready for the vegetable.

Traditional recipes call for steaming the base and then crumbling with hand in order to avoid too much oil. This is where having a non stick helps as it allows you to skip the steaming process and still use very little oil. This is a trick I learnt from my mother in law. 

Add the diced beans to a microwave safe dish with turmeric and sprinkle a little water. Then microwave on high for 4-5 mins. That's all it takes for steaming green beans if you have a microwave. If you are anti microwave or don't have one, you can steam the green beans in a traditional steamer on the stove top. You can definitely do this during the preparation of the lentil crumbles. It is important that the water is well drained. 

Add the cooked green beans to the crumbles.

Sauté this mixture for 2-3 minutes.

Yummy, nutritious Green Beans with Lentil Crumbles - Paruppu Usli is ready! Enjoy this with Rice or quinoa! 

The good in this recipe

Green Beans are rich in Carotenoid and Flavanoids which have known benefits such as their anti inflammatory properties and their cardiovascular benefits. The nutritional array of benefits with eating green beans make this an absolute must in the regular diet, particularly for children. They are rich in Vitamins A, C and K. It is no wonder touted as one of the healthiest vegetables. Canned beans lose about 1/3 of the nutrition in the canning process and so fresh beans are best. Now supermarkets sell trimmed,  fresh beans in bags making it very simple to use them.

Black Gram Lentils, in addition to the protein, also help with increased energy and iron levels. They are rich in fiber that naturally aids digestion. The rich magnesium and folate levels in the black grams also help boost cardiovascular strength. 

Red Gram Lentils are a rich source of protein. The biological value improves greatly, when rice is combined with Red gram because of the complementary relationship of the essential amino acids. No wonder dhal chawal is so famous in India!  It is particularly rich in lysine, riboflavin, thiamine, niacin and iron.

Bengal Gram Lentils are also a rich source of protein and have a super low glycemic index. This makes it a great lentil if you are worried about blood sugar spikes after a meal. They are low in fat (most of that is poly unsaturated) and some recent studies show that they help lower cholesterol in the blood stream. They are also a good source of zinc, folate and phosphorous. 

Asafetida is used to stimulate appetite and digestion. It helps neutralize flatulence caused by beans and other legumes. Though there is very little published research in the West about asafetida, it has been used as a digestive aid, an anti-inflammatory herb and a bone builder for centuries in Indian and Iranian cooking. It also has been shown to contain natural blood thinners and reduce blood pressure. Certain strict vegetarian diets of India forbid the use of onions and garlic (like Tam Brams), and asafetida is used in their place for its distinct aroma.

Curry leaf is an essential ingredient in Indian cooking especially in South India. However, it's customary for most of us to simply remove and throw the leaf from our food and not consume it. Well, we shouldn't be doing that! Curry leaf has many medicinal properties. It stimulates digestive enzymes and helps break down food more easily, especially when combined with asafetida. There is research that proves that when consumed regularly help with healthy hair growth, premature graying of hair and prevents hair fall. Curry leaves are also highly regarded for the fact that they have high quantities of iron, phosphorous, vitamin C and nicotinic present. Curry leaves are a good source of vitamin A and it is one of the most important components for maintaining good eyesight. Studies on curry leaves have shown that they can help in controlling the blood glucose levels. Years ago, thanks to a gift from my sister in law in Chicago, I started growing this at home. It is so much more aromatic and flavorful than the store bought or dried kinds.

My Curry leaf plant at home