Green Banana Curry - 5, Batons In A Yoghurt Curry Sauce
Kachchae Kelae Kae Pakorae Ki Dahi Wali Sabji
Sunita Gupta
In the countries where banaas grown, green bananas (not plantains) are often cooked like a vegetable. You will find hundreds of recipes for them on the world wide web. This one comes from sister in-law in Delhi.
3 medium bananas are approximately 500gm. in weight.
Serves 4.
Ingredients
4 green bananas, very green and firm.
4 full tbsp. besan/Bengal gram flour (often called chickpea flour)
1/2 tsp. salt
Oil for deep frying banana batons
For the curry gravy/sauce:
1 tbsp. mustard oil
1/2 tsp. methi/fenugreek seed
1 cup natural, thick yoghurt (dahi) at room temperature. Skimmed milk yoghurt does not work, it is more likely to split ad not a tasty. Yoghurt straight out of the fridge is also more likely to split during cooking.
1/2 tsp. turmeric or huldi powder
1/4 tsp. chilli powder, adjusted to taste
1 1/4 tsp. salt, adjusted to taste
1-2 cloves of garlic, crushed (omit if you don't like garlic)
1/2 cup water
3/4-1 cup of water for the gravy/curry sauce (enough to have a thick�ish gravy. Runny gravy does not work in this dish.
1/2 tsp. Garam Masala
Instructions
Making the banana flaps/batons
Peel the bananas. (Save peel for making Green Banana Skin Bhaji/Sabji. Keep them immersed in water to stop from discolouring)
Cut each banana into approximately 2-3 inch sized piece each. Then slice each piece vertically into thick flaps. Keep aside, soaked in water.
Make a Besan batter, slightly thinner than a Pakora batter, with a little salt.
Dip banana pieces in batter and deep fry gently on medium heat. They should be cooked through and not raw at the end of frying. If the oil is too hot, the batter will brown but bananas will not cook fully.
Keep aside.
The gravy/curry sauce
Mix turmeric, chilli powder, salt, garam masala and crushed garlic with the yoghurt.
Add 1 cup of water and gently stir it in. Keep aside.
Heat oil in a wok or karahi. Add methi seeds and asafoetida powder.
As soon as seeds begin to turn light brown (don't let them turn dark/black, they become bitter), add the yoghurt-water-spice mix. Mix well stir-fry gently. let it come to boil and simmer, allowing spices to cook.
Now add enough water to give a thick?ish curry sauce consistency. Don?t make the sauce too watery, just a bit thinner than custard.
Bring to boil. Add banana batons.
Simmer for a few minutes until bananas become tender. It doesn?t take long, as bananas are already fried.
Sprinkle garam masala, close lid and turn off heat.
After the cooking is over, bananas may absorb liquid if they are left for a while. If this happens, re-heat with a little hot water, just enough to have 'coating/clingy' gravy/sauce when served, as seen in the first picture.
Optional: You can also add a few chopped coriander leaves as a garnish.
Serve hot as part of an Indian meal, with Chapatties or Parathas.
