Beans poriyal is an Indian green beans preparation where the chopped greens are coated in a ground shredded coconut and curry leaf paste and roasted until the spices and beans caramelize into a spicy and rich side dish that has enough flavor to act as the main star.
Beans poriyal is a vegetable side dish that pairs so well with thayir sadam (yogurt rice) or lemon rice. It is a spicy stir fried Indian vegetable side dish that uses green beans, also known as French beans. The green beans get a nutty depth from shredded coconut and curry leaves that are ground into a wet masala and caramelized until the beans and masala are one. You can pack these green beans as a side dish for lunch or to round out an Indian-inspired Thanksgiving menu.
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Special ingredients
Most of the ingredients in this recipe are ones that you can find in your pantry or at your local grocery store. However, there are two ingredients in particular that you are likely to get at your local Indian store:
- Curry leaves. Fresh curry leaves give this dish a deep aromatic flavor and aroma that can't be mimicked by any other herbs. It gives this dish its iconic South Indian flare.
- Grated coconut. Grated coconut can be found in the freezer section of the Indian grocery store. It is the inner white flesh of the coconut and its delicious oils that are frozen and packed for ease of use. This is crucial in this recipe as this is what adds a rich caramelized nuttiness to the whole dish.
It's important to cut the green beans
It is important to cut the green beans into ¼ to ½ inch thick pieces. This allows each bit of green beans to be seasoned and coated in the flavorful masala. When purchasing green beans or French beans from the grocery store, make sure to cut off and discard the end which has a tough stringy texture.
Tips for making beans poriyal
- Be patient and wait for the masala to caramelize and darken. The trickiest part of this recipe is waiting for the masala to caramelize which can take ~15 minutes.
- Use a non stick or cast iron skillet. The masala for the beans poriyal has a tendency to stick to the bottom of the pan. It helps to have a nonstick pan to easily get that masala back onto the beans.
- Scrape the brown bits on the bottom of the pan frequently. Use a wooden spoon to scrape down the brown bits of spices and coconut that stick to the bottom of the pan. Those brown bits are flavor; don't leave them on the pan.
- Add 1 teaspoon of oil at a time to the beans if the masala sticks to the pan too much. The oil will not only help roast the beans to get them extra roast-y but can also help you scrape up the delicious brown bits on the bottom of the pan.
- You can prep the masala, cut the beans, and cut the onions up to 2 days in advance.
Beans Poriyal (Indian Green Beans)
Product Reccs
Ingredients
Green Beans Ingredients
- 1 pound green beans French beans
- 1.5 (225 g) medium yellow onions
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt plus more to taste
- 3 tablespoons oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 10 curry leaves
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt plus more to taste
- Optional lemon rice for serving
Masala Paste Ingredients
- ⅓ cup (40 g) frozen grated coconut thawed
- 8 cloves garlic
- 10 curry leaves
- 1.5 teaspoons coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup water
Instructions
- Gather 4-5 beans at a time, chop the stringy ends and discard. Chop the beans between ¼ to ½ inch in thickness and set aside in a bowl.
- Next, finely chop the 1.5 (225 g) medium yellow onions and set them aside in another bowl.
- In a small food processor, add all masala paste ingredients (⅓ cup (40 g) frozen grated coconut8 cloves garlic, 10 curry leaves, 1.5 teaspoons coriander powder, 1 teaspoon Kashmiri chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin powder, ½ teaspoon sugar, ½ teaspoon salt¼ cup water) and blend to form a thick dry masala paste. The paste shouldn’t have large bits of garlic; if the food processor is struggling, add an additional tablespoon of water until the paste is formed.
- Add 3 tablespoons oil and 1 teaspoon cumin seeds to a large pan on medium heat. Allow the oil to heat and the cumin seeds to dance or pop in the oil.
- Add 10 curry leaves into the hot oil and allow them to sizzle in the oil for ~30 seconds. If the curry leaves contain a lot of water, they will sputter and pop in the oil. If the popping is too vigorous, simply turn the heat down.
- Add the chopped onions and half of the 1 teaspoon fine sea salt and saute until the onions start to turn brown on the edges.
- Add the green beans and the remaining half of the salt. Saute for 1 minute.
- Add the thick reddish orange masala paste to the green beans. Mix to combine the beans with the paste. Slowly roast the beans and masala on medium for ~15 minutes, taking care to saute the beans and scrape the masala off the bottom of the pan every 5 minutes or so until the masala paste darkens.
- Taste the beans for salt and add more as needed. The beans taste delicious served with plain rice, lemon rice, or yogurt rice.
Frequently Asked Questions
The best place to buy curry leaves is at your local Indian or Asian grocery store.
Grated coconut can be found in the freezer section of an Indian grocery store.
Kashmiri chili powder is a bright red chili powder that is mild. You can read more about it and its substitutes in this blog post.
Beans poriyal tastes amazing on its own or with plain rice, lemon rice, and yogurt rice.
It is normal for the masala to stick to the bottom of the pan and caramelize. Simply scrape it with a wooden spatula or add a bit of oil to help scrape the bottom and prevent it from further sticking.
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