Zucchini Paruppusili

Paruppusili is a traditional south Indian side dish made with vegetables and lentils. Ever since my first taste of Banana Flower Paruppusili my mom made when I was young, I have been terribly fond of this dish, and still consider it a comfort food.

These days I make paruppusili from various other vegetables, not just banana flowers. I love the concept: fresh seasonal veggie lightly steamed; then sauteed with pan-fried lentils. The lentils are not just cooked and fried, but, they undergo a wonderful procedure that boosts their presence in this dish.

A few of the garden zucchinis needed to be harvested. While thinking of ways to cook them up, paruppusili popped into my head. Along with some carrots, zucchini paruppusili seemed like a good idea.

Typically, I soak some Tuvar dal (split pigeon peas) in warm water along with some fenugreek seeds and dry red chilies. Then, grind into a thick paste that can be shaped into balls. Steam these balls, they will harden a bit but yet have the soft consistency of a meatball. At this point, the lentil balls can be cooled and frozen for later use.

For the paruppusili dish, the steamed  lentil balls are coarsely crumbled and pan-fried in coconut oil till lightly crispy; then the steamed veggies are tossed in with salt to taste. That's it. Served warm or at room temperature, this dish is a complete meal.

Of course, it might be okay to skip the make-into-ball-and-steam routine, and just pan-fry the ground up lentil paste.

If the steamed lentils are going to be crumbled anyway, why bother making them into balls? Well, the lentil balls are used to make another one of my comfort foods - Paruppu Urundai Kozhambu.

Between the Paruppusili and Paruppu urundai sambar, when one is planned the other automatically begs its existence as well.

Banana Flower Paruppusili

Vaazha poo (Banana flower) parupusili is a rare delicacy for me these days. Rare, not because it is hard to find, but because it is so laborious that I rarely undertake the venture.

Cleaning and extracting the edible parts of the florets from the various layers of bracts is the first task. And then, removing the hard stamen and plastic-like petal that is not edible is the next step. Oil the palms before embarking on the procedure. Have a bowl of diluted buttermilk handy to place the edible parts during the procedure.

Many YouTube videos and online instructions clearly show how to do this if this is the first time. Since I've done it a zillion times as a youngster sous-chef in my mom's kitchen, I know that only the thought of the mouth-watering paruppusili  would make me go through the task of getting the edible flowers ready for cooking.

However, this time, since my mom is visiting, she undertook the task all by herself and made this delicious vaazha poo paruppusili!

The recipe for the paruppusili is the usual one with tuvar/toor dal as before. Simply chop the banana flowers and cook them with some salt and turmeric. Then, make it into paruppusili much like tindora paruppusili.

Of course, my mom takes a short-cut sometimes and instead of steaming the lentil balls and then pan frying the crumbs to crispness, she deep fried the balls into vada and then crumbled them instead.

Sweet Potato Paruppusili

I was looking for something mild and complementary to go with Pippali rasam, a favorite rasam of mine that is usually a post-partum meal served with rice and ghee.

Paruppusili being another childhood favorite of mine, I decided to serve a simple meal of pippali rasam, rice and sweet potato paruppusili for the grown-ups one night, kids got some rice and a bowl of steamed veggies after trying a spoonful of the rasam and paruppusili and categorically rejecting them. It takes at least 15 tries before I give up on a food, so, 14 more to go before I back off feeding the paruppusili to the kids...

Same recipe for paruppisili as always - simply soak the toor dal (plus a red chili or two) for a few hours, grind to a fine paste, microwave till it is cooked a bit - not raw anymore and not a hard solid yet. Break it up and pan fry in oil. At this stage, it can be cooled and stored in the freezer to be added to any favorite vegetable.

Cook the sweet potatoes in the microwave till fork tender not mushy. Start the tempering in a pan. Then add the cooked sweet potatoes and paruppusili and saute together till well combined. Serve warm.

Paruppusili: Warm Vegetable Salad with Lentils

Growing up on staple South Indian vegetarian cuisine - vegetables and legumes and grams along with rice and yogurt and a variety of pickles - I find that these still offer the comfort of sumptuous yet quick-fix meals.

Over the last decade, rather than white rice, I opt for quinoa or brown Basmati rice, sometimes millet or barley, with barley being more of a soup additive by preference than a rice alternative.

Combining vegetables with lentils for the protein boost is one of my favorite side dish or starter, if not the main course. The classic example is the Paruppusili dishes I make on and off and can't have enough of.

Just about any vegetable lends itself to this method of presentation, except the squashes (summer and winter) and  bittergourd and beets and greens, according to my mom. And, Kovakkai/Tindora Paruppusili used to be a very special treat during season.

Of course, I beg to differ... Beets+Potatoes Paruppusili is quite delicious with a unique combination of textures and tastes. And there is nothing like the crunch and nutrition of Kale Paruppusili.

The typical method is to soak the toor dal with some cumin and  dry red chilies and then grind it into a coarse paste, steam it, then pan fry it before tossing it with the cooked vegetables. Seems elaborate, but after arriving at some short-cuts and alternatives over the years, this is something I enjoy making on and off.

An alternative to the typical paruppusili is to roast and coarse-grind lentils and stir it into to finish the cooking vegetables:

Simply toast some Urad dal and chana dal till golden brown, along with some dry red chilies, asafoetida and cumin seeds and grind it in a spice-grinder to a coarse powder. Toss in some roasted peanuts, if preferred, while grinding.

I start with tempering for these dishes first - heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan, when it is shimmering add mustard seeds and when they pop add some curry leaves if available, then add the chopped vegetable, a pinch of salt and water as needed to cook the vegetables. Finish off the dish by stirring in the ground dal mixture. And for want of a better word, since 'paruppu' means lentils/dals, I still call this style of dish as Paruppusili.

Chayote Squash, Carrots and Cabbage Paruppusili

Bittergourd Paruppusili

Since D and I like bitter gourd, I try to cook it up in a few different favorite ways to enjoy. Bitter gourd paruppusili is not very different from other paruppusilis, except the flavoring: tamarind paste, with some brown sugar and chilli powder. The hot-sour-sweet combination goes well with the bitterness.

Ingredients:
1 or 2 medium Foo Gwa or Bitter gourd, cleaned and diced

½ tsp tamarind paste
½ tsp hot chilli powder
1 Tbsp brown sugar
salt, as needed
water, as needed

oil, as needed

tempering: 2 Tbsp oil, 1 tsp mustard seeds, 1tsp cumin seeds (optional)

garnish: curry leaves and cilantro (optional)

steamed and pan fried lentils as in the Kovakkai Paruppisili

Preparation

1. Heat the oil in a pan, add the diced bitter gourd, some water, tamarind, chili powder and brown sugar, salt, cover and simmer till the bitter gourd is cooked though but not mushy
2. Sit in the pan fried lentils, garnish with curry leaves, serve warm with rice and sambar

Cabbage with Mock Kibbeh

I had a couple of patties left over from Mock Kibbeh with Ras al Hanout and thought it would make a good substitute for paruppusili, which is one of my favorites. I had cabbange handy, so I made a cabbage parruppusili-of-sorts using the crumbled mock kibbeh.

1. Simply steam the cabbage so it still retains its crunch
2. Crumble the leftover patties and add to the cabbage
3. Pan sauté till well combined and serve with rice, or enjoy it as-is, as a snack

Capsicum Paruppusili

Last year, when my mom visited us, our garden was bursting with peppers, squash, eggplant and tomatoes. My mom was frantically trying to find different ways to cook up these veggies. That's how capsicum paruppusili came about.

And since this qualifies as the JFI ingredient this time around, I am dedicating this post to the same. JFI:Chilli Peppers event is hosted this month by my dear pal, the lovely and talented Nandita of SaffronTrail

Capsicum is a genus of plants from the nightshade family (Solanaceae), native to Mexico, and now cultivated worldwide. Some of the members of Capsicum are used as spices, vegetables, and medicines. The fruit of Capsicum plants have a variety of names depending on place and type. They are commonly called chili pepper, red or green pepper, or just pepper in Britain and the US; the large mild form is called bell pepper in the US, capsicum in Australian English and Indian English...
...
The chili pepper, or more simply just "chili", is the fruit of species of the plant Capsicum from the nightshade family, Solanaceae.
The name, which is spelled differently in many regions (chili, chile or chilli), comes from Nahuatl via the Spanish word chile. The term chili in most of the world refers exclusively to the smaller, hot types of capsicum. The mild larger types are called bell pepper in the USA, simply pepper in Britain and Ireland, capsicum in Australasia and paprika in many European countries. -- Wikipedia

Paruppusili is basically, red gram lentils soaked with some dry red chilies, ground into a paste, steam-cooked and then pan fried and added to vegetable of choice, which in this recipe happens to be Capsicum. The procedure is the same as my Kovakkai Paruppusili. The only difference is, instead of Tindora/Kovakkai, substitute your favorite chilli peppers - in this case, it happens to be mild and sweet green and yellow bell peppers.

Navy Beans poduthuval

Navy beans is versatile. I usually soak and cook up a large batch, freeze them, and conveniently forget about them :)

A handful in soups and stews, a cup or two mixed in with vegetable pulao, or cooked as in this poduthuval recipe here to be eaten as a snack, salad or a side, navy beans feels wholesome.

I like the navy beans to be cooked through, soft, but not mushy - still holds shape.

Poduthuval is a term I have heard my dad and grandpa use. I just use the term "curry" for everything - with gravy or dry as in this recipe :) I am not sure of the origin of the term, but, it fits the characteristics of this navy beans recipe here - dry spice powder (usually with coconut) used to flavor vegetables in Palakkad recipes my mom taught me.

Ingredients
1 cup cooked navy beans
1 cup frozen peas
½ medium onion finely diced
1 Tbsp grated ginger
1 tsp brown sugar
salt to taste

tempering: 1 tsp oil, 1 tsp mustard seeds, 1 tsp cumin seeds, 4-6 curry leaves

for the spice powder:
¼ cup grated coconut
¼ cup coriander seeds
3 Tbsp chana dal
1 Tbsp urad dal
4-5 dry red chilies


Preparation

toast the spice powder ingredients till aromatic, and grind to a fine powder, no water needed

tempering: heat oil in a pan, when shimmering add the mustard seeds and when they pop add the cumin seeds and curry leaves; throw in the onions and ginger, a pinch of salt, and sauté till onion turns translucent

add the navy beans, frozen peas, brown sugar and the spice powder, stir well, cover and cook till peas are soft; adjust salt to taste

Serve warm as a side with rice and sambar, or rice and mor-kozhambu, or just eat it as-is, like a salad, which is what I prefer :)

This Navy beans poduthuval is my 'N' dish for lovely Nupur's A to Z of Indian Vegetables event.

kovakkai paruppusili

Coccinia grandis, Tindora, Kovakkai, Dondakaya, Ivy Gourd... whatever we call it, this is  one of my childhood favorites.

I don't make it often these days - it depends on whether my local Indian stores carry it when I feel like having some, but, as it happened, D bought a pound of Kovakkai recently that I eagerly cooked up into my favorite dish here.



Paruppusili is basically, red gram lentils soaked with some dry red chilies, ground into a paste, steam-cooked and then pan fried and added to vegetable of choice, which in this recipe happens to be Kovakkai. The procedure is the same as my Green Beans Paruppusili recipe.



After soaking and grinding the red gram lentils (toor dal, tuvar dal), I like to shape it into small balls and steam the lentil balls. At this point, the steamed lentil balls can be frozen for future use - just thaw in microwave on low power as needed. The lentil balls can also be used to make a wonderful dish we relish in my family, called Paruppu Urundai Kozhambu.

Ingredients:
4 2"-diameter steamed lentil balls, if handy
OR
(1 cup toor dal, 2 dry red chilies, some water)
------------

1 pound kovakkai*, cut length-wise
salt to taste
* I prefer the green and unripe Kovakkai for this dish, not the ripe ones that are reddish inside

tempering: 2 Tbsp oil, 1 tsp mustard seeds, 1tsp cumin seeds, few curry leaves

Preparation:

to make lentil balls: soak the toor dal and dry red chilies in water for about an hour or two; drain, grind it to a thick paste; shape into 2" diameter balls; steam them and set aside

steam the kovakkai with a pinch of salt till cooked through but not mushy, drain, and set aside

heat oil in a non-stick pan, add the tempering: when mustard seeds pop and die down, add the cumin seeds and curry leaves, crumble the lentil balls and add them to the pan; stir fry till the lentils get slightly crispy and golden

add the steamed kovakkai to the pan, stir till well incorporated; adjust salt to taste

Serve warm with simple roti, or, with basmati rice and pepper rasam

This Kovakkai paruppusili recipe is my 'K' dish for A to Z of Indian Vegetables event hosted by Nupur of One Hot Stove. It takes hard work to do the round-up week after week and I really appreciate all the effort Nupur has been putting into hosting this event.

green beans paruppusili

Paruppusili is a side-dish that has lentils added in a certain specific form to veggies of choice. Green beans paruppusili is the most popular at home, but, I also make capsicum paruppusili, snake beans paruppusili sometimes.

If making paruppurundai kozhambu, save some of the steamed lentil balls for this recipe. I usually make a largish batch of lentil balls, steam them, and freeze some for later use. Thaw in microwave when needed.

Ingredients:
4 2"-diameter steamed lentil balls, if handy
OR
(1 cup toor dal
2 dry red chilies
some water)
------------
salt to taste
1 package french cut frozen green beans (or fresh green beans cut into desired size/shape, or capsicum...)
2 Tbsp oil
tempering: 1 tsp mustard seeds

Preparation:

1. to make lentil balls: soak the toor dal and dry red chilies in water for about an hour; drain, grind it to a thick paste; shape into 2" diameter balls; steam them and set aside


2. steam the green beans till almost done; set aside


3. heat oil in a non-stick pan; add the tempering: when mustard seeds pop and die down, crumble the lentil balls and add them to the pan; stir fry till it gets slightly crispy and golden


4. add the steamed green beans to the pan, stir till well incorporated; adjust salt to taste


5. serve warm with roti, or, rice and rasam