Sunday, January 8, 2012

Avarekalu Bas Saaru

Its the AvareKalu season here and its considered a sin in my family if a single day passes without an AvareKalu dish being cooked.
Although I was not used to eating AvareKalu (Mocha Kottai) before marriage, I have learnt to give AvareKalu its space in my life after seeing how crazy the Kannadigas are about it.
Yesterday it was the turn of AvareKalu Bas Saaru to make its way into our home.
The recipe is quite simple. The end product is in 2 parts:

  1. Saaru, a tangy thin soup somewhat like Rasam which is mixed with rice or eaten with Ragi Mudde.
  2. Husili, which is a savoury dry side-dish made of the beans, somewhat like Sundal, to be eaten along with the above

Ingredients:

  1. Tender AvareKalu (Hyacinth Beans) seeds - 2-3 cups
  2. Onions - 3 or 4 medium sized. ( One smoked, others chopped finely)
  3. Green chillies - 3 or 4 slit length-wise.
  4. Garlic pods - 5-6
  5. Curry leaves - 2 sprigs
  6. Coriander leaves - a handful
  7. Asafoetida powder - 1/2 tsp.
  8. Grated coconut - 1 tbsp.
  9. Thick tamarind extract - 1/2 cup
  10. Sambhar powder - 2 tsp.
  11. Salt  - to taste
  12. Oil - as needed

Procedure:
  1. Cook AvareKalu with water and salt in a pressure cooker till tender. You can do it using separators while cooking rice.
  2. Drain the water (stock of AvareKalu) into a vessel ( to be used for Saaru) and keep the AvareKalu aside ( to be used for the Husili)
  3. For the masala for Saaru: Grind  together one smoked onion, 5-6 pods of garlic, a sprig of curry leaves, 2-3 strands of coriander leaves and a handful of the boiled AvareKalu.
  4. To make the Husili: In a Kadai, heat oil, season with mustard seeds. Add slit green chillies, asafoetida powder, chopped onions, few curry leaves and saute till onions turn translucent. Add the AvareKalu and saute again for 2-3 minutes. Add grated coconut and garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves.
  5.  To make the Saaru: To the stock of AvareKalu, add tamarind extract, sambhar powder and the ground masala. Let it boil. Lower the flame and boil for 5 more minutes. Temper with mustard seeds spluttered in oil.
Note: Since the AvareKalu has salt added to it while being pressure cooked, we need not add salt explicitly to the Husili or Saaru. Add more salt if required after tasting.