Any Bean Curry

 

I thought I should include a ‛generic’ curry, which is fairly authentic and this recipe is for when you really want a good-tasting curry, but are feeling a bit lazy. Like so much of the Indian food in this blog, it was inspired by, and adapted from, one of Richa Hingle's delicious recipes. (I have to confess that I am less keen on her non-Indian creations.) As the title suggests, you can use any whole beans for this, adjusting the time in the pressure cooker accordingly. I think the smaller ones, such as lentils and mung beans tend to get a bit lost, although whole black gram keeps its shape more readily. Personally, I particularly like this curry with dried whole peas.

 

I recommend spooning all the spices into a small bowl or egg cup before starting, following the professional cooks’ principle of mise en place. It avoids everything starting to burn before you’re halfway through getting out spice containers, unscrewing them and spooning out what you need.

 

Serves 2

 

1/2 cup dried whole beans, soaked in 1 cup water, as usual

1 tbsp coconut or other oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 green chilli, chopped (see Notes)

1-inch knob of ginger diced, or 1 tbsp ginger paste

3 cloves garlic, diced or 1 tbsp garlic paste

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp ground turmeric

1/8 to 1/4 tsp cayenne

pinch of asafoetida

2 tsp garam masala

2 medium tomatoes, chopped

1/2 tsp lemon juice (see Notes)

1/2 tsp salt, to taste

1 tbsp chopped coriander, for garnish

 

Method:

• Heat the oil in the pressure cooker over a medium heat. Add the onion and green chilli, and cook until translucent. 
• Add the ginger and garlic, mix well and cook for 1 minute.
• Add the cumin, turmeric, cayenne, asafoetida, and garam masala. Stir everything in and cook until it smells fragrant, about 1 minute.
• Add the tomatoes, lemon juice, and salt to taste. Mix well and partially cover, cooking until there is a nice, rich sauce. If it looks too dry, add a little more water.
• Now add the beans and their water. (Drain them, if you prefer and add a cup of fresh water). Put on the lid, and bring up to pressure. Cook for about 10 to 15 minutes, depending on your pressure cooker and the type of bean.  
• Reduce the pressure naturally and sample a couple of beans. They should be tender enough to mash easily. If not, bring them back to pressure and cook for a few more minutes and reduce pressure at room temperature. If you like slightly thicker sauce, mash some of the beans. If it seems too thick, add some more water, or perhaps some coconut milk.
• Taste, and adjust the flavours. Curry sometimes benefits from a bit more salt than you might normally use (and unless you have high blood pressure, it will do you no harm! Indeed, vegans should consume 1/2 tsp iodised salt per day.) You might want to add a little more garam masala or, my favourite methi – dried fenugreek leaves.
• Garnish with coriander, if you like it, and serve hot with brown basmati rice or flatbread.

Notes:

• If you don’t have a fresh, green chilli, use one pickled in brine. They’re rarely very hot, but you can remove the seeds if you find that yours are.
• If you don’t have any lemon juice, add some lemon in brine, but go easy on the salt.
• As this is a ‛generic’ curry, you might enjoy playing around with it, using coconut milk or methi, as suggested at the end of the recipe.
• You can also include some vegetables in this curry, to add to the nutrition, in which case, you might want to fry them with the onion. If you don’t want them overcooked, either cook separately and add to the curry after the beans are cooked, or cook the beans for less time, reduce pressure, add the vegetables and then bring back up to pressure for a couple of minutes.

 

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