Phalli Aloo is a great classic side dish to eat alongside meat or other gravy based curry or, if you prefer it can be eaten as a main. It's free of dairy and is fully vegan and even by Indian food standards and this takes an amazingly short amount of time to prepare.
Green beans are an amazing source of protein, folate and iron. They also have good amounts of fibre and soluble fibre which can help lower blood cholesterol. I tend to eat Phalli Aloo with chapattis and a gravy based curry with it or my favourite is chapattis, phalli aloo and a bowl of natural yoghurt. In this recipe, I've used measurements of approximately 200 grammes of green beans (or French beans) as you may know them and 400 white potatoes . The potatoes can be any sort of potatoes whatever you would cook for day to day cooking. So the ingredients are:
400 grammes of potatoes (diced)
250 grammes of green beans (sliced)
one teaspoon of cumin seeds (jeera)
1/3 teaspoon of turmeric powder (haldi)
Half teaspoon of red chilli powder
Half teaspoon of coriander powder
Half teaspoon of garam masala
Half teaspoon of salt
One tablespoon of olive oil (or other oil of choice)
Heat the oil in a heavy based pan or wok, ideally one that has a fitted lid. I have a great saute pan that I tend to use for dishes like this as it has a tight fitting lid with it and with a steam vent it just cooks the food really nicely.
So let’s start cooking…add your cumin seeds to the pan and fry until they start to pop and splutter. You'll also get a great aroma as the cumin begins to cook. Alongside the cumin, I also add a pinch of red chilli powder - whilst the remainder of the chilli powder will go into the cumin, adding a pinch with the cumin at this stage really infuses the oil.
Now add your diced potatoes to the pan and fry them roughly for about five minutes mixing quite regularly until they begin to brown very slightly. A little tip about cooking with potatoes in Indian food, the traditional way of cutting the potatoes is diagonally – almost like a roast potato but half the size of a roasted potato. Do remember, the larger you cut the potato, the longer it will take to cook.
So back to cooking. Now that your potatoes are slightly brown, add in the chopped green beans to the pan mixing well and add in all your spices. Turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder and salt and mix everything well. Then cover the pan with the lid and cook full about 20 minutes until the potatoes and beans are cooked. When the vegetables are cooked, add half a teaspoon of garam masala and put the lid back on, switch the heat off and leave it to become tender with the steam in the pan.
After about 5-10 minutes, take the lid off and hey presto your dairy free, vegan, healthy option meal is ready to eat. Bon appetite! xox
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