Green Plantain Oven Fries

Green Plantain, a member of the Banana family, is one of my favorites, although I cannot handle much of it thanks to its high starchiness and its tendency to cause digestive discomfort. Plantains are not usually eaten raw, they need to be cooked.

Botanically Banana plant is an herb, its fruit is considered a berry. Which is a fun trivia I never tire of sharing. Every part of banana plant is used in India, including its pseudo stem which can grow over 20 feet tall. Banana leaf is used as a dinner plate and a food wrapper; stem can be used to make a savory dish, called Koottu, with lentils; banana flower can be made into an incredibly delicious banana flower paruppusili; and of course, the berry/fruit itself can be cooked up in many ways, either raw green or ripe.

Plantain cooks up much like potatoes in many Indian dishes and is enjoyed as chips in many parts of south India. Riper plantains, not the raw green ones, are much relished in dessert form with a touch of brown sugar.

Green plantain fries in this recipe is baked in the oven at 400 °F for about 30 minutes or till desired crispness.

Skin and cut the plantain into thin sticks, toss with some olive oil and salt, and bake, stirring once or twice to get all the sides evenly crisped.

To keep up the Indian theme, I served it with some mint chutney for the adults, but the kdis prefer it with the ubiquitous ketchup.

Plaintain, Carrot, Potato, Zucchini Coconut Poduthuval

Plantain and coconut featured in my meals quite frequently during my formative years. Coconut and green chilies ground together to a powdery mix, with no water added, is a favorite spicing additive to many vegetable dishes in my kitchen.

Nothing extra special about this dish, except that I made it one evening and got to enjoy it over three subsequent meals since none of the others at home really care for this dish. Along with my favorite garlic black pepper rasam and plain brown rice, this vegetable medley was quite the comfort food I was craving for.

Plantain, when green and not too ripe, is wonderful as a vegetable in savory dishes. Peel the thick skin before using.

Simply dice the veggies: I used one each of plantain, carrot, potatoes, zucchini.

Coconut+chili Spice Mix: Chop about 4 mild green chilies and add it to quarter cup of dry grated coconut and blend to a powdery spice mix

Heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, when they pop add cumin seeds and when they plump up, add the veggies (all but zucchini, which cooks faster than plantains), splash about half cup of water, some salt, cover and allow to cook; when par-cooked, add the zucchini and stir well; check often for doneness and add a bit more water as needed till veggies are cooked to your liking. Off heat, stir in the coconut+chili mix and adjust salt to taste.

Pan-fried Plantain Wedges and Plantain Chips

Unlike Bananas which are enjoyed as-is ripe and sweet, Plantains are best for cooking when raw/unripe and firm. I grew up with a variety of bananas and plantains, some of which still stir happy memories - like ripe Rasthali and Nendran - and thanks to my mom, we had quite an array of dishes made with green plantains - mezhukuvaratti, podimaas, varuval and so on during my childhood which established a liking for this vegetable/fruit.

For this recipe, it is best for the plantains to be firm but almost ripe, not too raw and green, else it doesn't cook through well before the outside is crisped. To adjust for this, I par-cook the plantain wedges in the microwave, then pan-fry.



The flavoring spices can be varied - sometimes I prefer simple salt and chili powder, or black pepper; sometimes, smoked paprika, cumin, coriander; can even toss it around with some brown sugar and pan-fry to caramelize for a mildly sweet snack.

Plantain chips are just deep fried in canola oil and sprinkled with salt.



Ingredients
2 plantains, cut into wedges or rounds
salt and spices as needed
a few teaspoons of oil for pan-frying

Preparation

1. Toss the par-cooked plantain wedges with salt and spices and some oil
2. Heat a teaspoon or two of oil in a pan, add the coated wedges, allow to develop a crisp skin on each side, turning only to get all sides browned, not too often

Plantain Podimaas (Grated Green Plantain Pan-fried)

 

 

 Plantain Mor-kozhambu, plantain mezhukkuvaratti, plantain pulikari and, of course, plantain podimaas, are a few of the ways in which I grew up relishing green plantains aka vazhakka. Plantain podimaas recipe is very simple in concept - just peel and steam the green plantains making sure it is just cooked but not mushy, then grate it, and pan sauté with some salt, tempering and grated-coconut-chillies. 

 

 Ingredients 

2-3 medium green plantains, peeled 

1 Tbsp canola oil 

¼ cup dry grated coconut 

1-2 green chilies 

salt to taste 

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

Preparation

1. combine the grated coconut and chilies in a blender or food-processor and grind it to a powdery paste, set aside
2. If the plantains are too long cut them in half and steam them either on stove-top or, I prefer just immersing it in some water and microwaving it in "Baked Potato" setting but removing and checking it part-way to make sure it doesn't get too mushy
3. Allow the steamed plantain to cool a bit and grate - I use the regular cheese grater
4. Heat oil in a pan and do the tempering: when oil shimmers add the urad dal, when it turns golden brown add the mustard seeds and when they pop add the cumin seeds and curry leaves
5. Add the grated plantain and stir well, then add the coconut-chili paste, adjust salt to taste

Serve by itself as a snack, or with sambar or rasam, or even with roti and naan.

Plantain Squash Koottu

Green Plantain, with its potato-like meaty starchy texture, along with watery squash like opo squash or chayote squash is an interesting combination for me.

This koottu is like most other koottus I make usually, only, I used a combination of toor dal and chana dal in this one. Toor dal cooked well and mashed gives some body and the chana dal cooked just enough gives the nutty texture in every bite.

Serve with rice or roti, or enjoy it as-is - a nutritious bowlful to counter the cold winter blues :)

Koottu ingredients that I usually use are pictured here:

grated coconut
urad dal
par-boiled rice (optional)
dry red chilies
cumin seeds

Dry roast them and grind them with just enough water to form a smooth paste, and add to the dals and veggies that make up the koottu.

Ingredients:
Koottu paste
1 plaintain
1 chayote squash
1-2 Tbsp canola oil
2 Tbsp fresh grated ginger
1 tsp turmeric powder (optional)
salt to taste
curry leaves or cilantro, slit green chilies - for garnish

Tempering: 1 Tbsp canola oil, 1 tsp urad dal, 1 tsp mustard seeds
Preparation:

1. Dry roast and grind the koottu ingredients, keep handy
2. Dice the plantain and chayote squash (peel them first, of course) to bite size chunks
3. Cook the toor dal in a pressure cooker or saucepan till mushy, mush it a bit and keep handy
4. Heat the oil in a pan and add the turmeric powder, sauté a bit, then add the vegetables and chana dal, some salt and just enough water, allow to cook
5. add the koottu paste and fresh grated ginger, simmer for a few minutes more till flavors meld
6. Tempering: heat oil in a small pan, when it shimmers, add the urad dal, when it turns golden brown add the mustard seeds, and when they pop, turn off heat and add the tempering to the finished dal; stir well before serving
7. Garnish with curry leaves or cilantro and slit green chilies

Vazhakkai Mezhukku Varatti

Vazhakkai is the Tamil word for Plantain. Green unripe plantain is something I grew up with - it was pretty much year round item and very common in Palakkad (Palghat) cuisine. It is usually cooked as a vegetable in mor-kozhambu and south Indian style curries.

One of my favorite curries is mezhukku varatti or upperi that my mom makes with plantain. The others include vazhakkai podimas (which is streamed and grated with coconut), vazhakkai pulikari (with tamarind), and as a prominent ingredient in avial (vegetable medley).

This recipe here is an adaptation of the mezhukku varatti and pulikari.

The specialty about this recipe that gives the texture i like is powdered par-boiled rice that has been lightly toasted first before powdering. And of course, the tang from the tamarind. Plus, I like to add coarse crumbled toasted peanuts, and some dry grated coconut...

Ingredients:
2 plantains
2 Tbsp tamarind concentrate (adjust to taste)
2 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 Tbsp brown sugar
3 Tbsp dry grated coconut
3 Tbsp coarsely ground toasted peanuts
2 Tbsp par-boiled rice (or jasmine rice), dry toasted and coarsely ground
water as needed
salt to taste

Tempering: 1 tsp coconut oil or canola oil, 1 tsp mustard seeds, 1 tsp cumin seeds, 1 tsp urad dal, 1 tsp chana dal, 4-6 curry leaves (optional)

Preparation:

peel the plantain with a vegetable peeler, and dice it; keep it in a bowl of water till ready to throw in the pan for cooking

mix the coarsely ground dry roasted rice, dry grated coconut and coarsely ground toasted peanuts and keep handy

tempering: heat oil in a pan, when shimmering add the chana dal, when it turns golden brown add the urad dal, when it turns golden brown add the mustard seeds, and when they pop add the cumin seeds and curry leaves

then add the plantain some salt, turmeric, chili powder, tamarind concentrate, brown sugar, some water, stir well, cover and cook till plantain is tender and cooked; adjust flavors to taste

stir in the rice+peanuts+coconut powder mix and stir it in; the cool thing about this is it absorbs any extra water and makes the dish come together with a wonderful texture - not too dry, not too runny

I had some spring onions in the garden that I used for garnish, but, curry leaves, or cilantro leaves or even sliced green chilies is a good garnish for this recipe.

Serve warm with rice and rasam or sambar. I like it better with hot rotis :-)

This Vazhakkai mezhukku varatti style recipe is my 'V' dish for lovely Nupur's A to Z of Indian Vegetables event.

Idi Chakkai

Idi Chakkai is a comfort food for me, with pepper rasam and pain hot rice. Idi Chakkai feels wholesome, yet simple. It is made with young green jackfruit. My mom only made it a few times a year, around The Jackfruit Season, as it was labor-intensive to chop, clean and pound the green jackfruit.

(probably where the name of this dish comes from: Idi is to pound, and Chakkai is jackfruit => pounded jackfruit)

But now that canned young green jackfruit is readily available year-round, this recipe takes less than 10 minutes to put together, and uses just 4 ingredients in its simplest form - green jackfruit, coconut, chilies, salt.

Tempering is optional, and adds a nice touch to this simple dish.

Nendran Pazham is a variety of plantain/banana that happens to be my favorite. I haven't found it here yet. But, Burro Bananas, when ripe, get a similar texture, smell and color like nendran, even though they taste a little different and are much smaller in size compared to the nendrans I used to relish.

To add a simple dessert, boil the burro bananas (skin on), in some water mixed with brown sugar, till it is soft but not mushy; then, peel the cooked banana and enjoy as a dessert. This is basically the same procedure my mom used to cook nendran pazham and serve it up as snack or dessert for us when we were little.

Ingredients:
2 cans young green jackfruit, (comes packed in water), drained
¼ cup dry grated coconut
1 jalapeño, chopped
salt to taste
6-8 curry leaves (optional)
tempering: 1 Tbsp canola oil, 1 tsp urad dal, 1 tsp mustard seeds, 1 tsp cumin seeds

Preparation

combine the young green jackfruit chunks and jalapeño in a blender or food processor and pulse a little - just to break them down a little, not too fine

tempering: heat oil in a pan, add the urad dal, when it turns golden brown add the mustard seeds and when they pop add the cumin seeds and let them plump up a little; turn down heat so as not to burn the urad dal; add the curry leaves

add the green jackfruit and jalapeño mixture, dry grated coconut, some salt to taste and stir well; cook over medium heat, stirring on and off till well-combined

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


Even though this dish leaves very little room for variations, this recipe here is just a tad different from the last time I made it about 3 months ago. This is my 'I' dish for Nupur's A to Z of Indian Vegetables event.

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p.s: Following a note from Nupur, I just wanted to add that canned young green jackfruit I use is available at most Asian stores in my area - perhaps it is available in Indian stores as well, am not sure.

avial: vegetable medley

Avial is a wonderful south indian dish I like to have just on its own as a meal, or, with rice or roti. A bowlful of avial makes a sumptuous meal for me usually.

This avial recipe is quick and simple to throw together and quite hearty.




Ingredients:
Veggies:
1-2 plantain
1 large opo squash or ash gourd
1 medium butternut squash or acorn squash or pumpkin
2-3 medium carrots
1 head of broccoli
½ head cauliflower
1 large potato
1 cup frozen (cooked) lima beans
½ cup cooked black-eyed-peas (optional)
a handful snake beans or green beans or both
1 rutabaga and 1 turnip, diced (optional)
cilantro for garnish
½ cup sour yogurt (optional)
salt to taste
½ cup coconut milk
2 Tbsp coconut oil

flavoring for the avial:
1 cup fresh or dry grated coconut
2-3 jalapenos or serranos (seeded, if desired)
½ tsp cumin seeds (optional)


Preparation

1. peel and chop the veggies to bite size chunks; cook them, individually if preferred as each has a different cooking time, with some salt
2. alternately, i just throw them all in the pressure cooker so that some of the broccoli and cauliflower get mushy and add to the body
3. grind the avial flavoring ingredients into a fine paste
4. in a pan, throw the paste and the cooked veggies, coconut milk and some water if needed, and let them simmer together; adjust salt to taste
5. off heat, stir in the coconut oil (and yogurt if using), garnish with cilantro, serve hot

Yogurt adds a bit of tanginess and body, but can be omitted if diet forbids dairy :-)