Cluster Beans, a very interesting vegetable when I did some research on them. They are known by various names in different states in India and surprisingly in many of them, they are an integral part of their meals. In Kerala, this is not the case and I see it on our table only when we have visitors like my aunt or sis from Tamil Nadu.
Cluster beans, known as Mattikaya in Telugu and Kothavarakkai in Tamil is popular in the north as Guar. In Malayalam, we just call it Kothavarakka, a slight variation in pronunciation from what its called in Tamil. I am a little confused about what Chitkaya/Chikkadikaya is? Is it another name for the vegetable in Telugu?
Anyway, I got a pack of it in the Indian store and immediately grabbed it, thinking I will try what my mom normally makes with it - an aviyal or a in a tangy gravy with ground coconut and tomatoes.
In the end, I ended up making a quick stir fry of it with elephant yam (chena). The combination turned out to be a winner and we loved it!
What I Used:
Serves 4
Cluster beans - 2 cups, cut into 1" pieces
Yam - 1 cup, cubed
Coconut - 4 tbsp, grated (optional)
Chopped garlic - 2 tsp
Shallots - 4
Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp
Jeera powder - 1/2 tsp
Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt - to taste
Coconut oil - 2 tspHow I Made It:
Serve hot with rice and gravy.
1. Cook the cluster beans and yam separately in water till they are tender. Cooking them together will make the yam bitter. The water used to cook the cluster beans should not be used since it will be bitter.
2. Heat oil in a pan and lightly fry the garlic and shallots. Then add the coriander, chilly and jeera powders and fry for another 30 seconds.
3. Mix in the coconut, yam and beans with some salt and leave it on sim for 4-5 minutes.
Related Posts:
Broad Beans with Lentils
Beans Carrot Thoran
Mochakottai Sundal
Beans Usili
Aviyal
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Cluster Beans With Yam
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28 People Said..:
The second pic is too appetizing!
hi nags,,,in our hometown...we call cluster beans boro,..thnks for the info on different names,,,recipe looks interesting.:-)
That looks so amazing!
I could so have that for lunch NOW!
boro.. now that's another interesting name for the vegetable :)
hi Naga, lovely combo. Great pics:-) I wish I could taste it now! We make it a lot at home, either just this veg or combined with paccha kaya (plantain, raw banana? i'm still confused!). In Telugu, this is called chikkadakaya, and long yard beans, which is payar in malayalam, is called borabatti.
I like the combo of yam and kothavarakka....nice pics....
Nags, and Shreya, in Telugu this is called goruchikkudukaya - I've come across the name Mattikaya only in the blogs and I'm guessing the name changes by region.
Chikkudukaya is what is known as avaraikkai in Tamil - the difference is that in TN, you don't seem to get the variety nice and plump with well-formed beans, you get more of the flattish, subdued ones with not too many beans in the pod.
Sra - ohhh now I get it! No wonder even I was more familiar with chikkudukaya than I was with Mattikaya. I think I saw the term Mattikaya used in Srivalli's blog.
Love the first pic...because i love cluster beans very much...but this combo is completely new for me, will try very soon naaga! thanks for sharing and very informative post too...
I haven't cooked with this in ages.. my mom only makes paruppu usli with this and I simply use beans as a substitute. This with yams is an unusual combination but looks very tempting.
we make this at home....the recipe is a lil different tho...delicious!
Hey nags, the pictures are divine and i feel like eatign some right now! Like sra said this is called Gorichikudukai in Telugu in most Rayalseema regions and I think in Hyderabad and some other Telangana regions of Andhra and Andhra region as well it is called Mattikaya - whats in a name right? I love this veggie :-)
I have never tried yam and beans together. That sounds like a good combination. Nice picture.
Like chena a lot. Use it mainly for mezhukuparati.:D
that is one good combo! the veg looks very appetising :)
We make kottavarankai poriyal but ur curry sounds delicous :)
very luring pics dear....luved ur recipe...recently I make this curry too
The pic is beautiful. I love kothorangai stir fry :) Not eaten Yam much. Mebbe, I should try it no?
I love cluster beans but avoid yam.
But your combination of the two looks really good, Nags.
This preparation looks quite healthy and yummy! Plz check my blog...have got something for you:)
Sis from T.N is not a fan of this veg..but you make me drool over over wonderful pictures and recipe!..
Everything abt your blog rocks!!!Keep it up..
cluster beans is my grandpa's fav veggie, although I dont cook this much...nice one
Hi This is my first visit to your blog,you have a very nice one,I have never tried kothavarangai with yam,normally we make usili with this :)
It is so hard to make Thoran look good, but you have succesfully accomplished that! :)
We would like to feature this recipe on our blog. Please email sophiekiblogger@gmail.com if interested. Thanks :)
Sig - yeah! I know what you mean. i just got lucky with the lighting for this one :)
this is an unusual combination. we call cluster beans kothamarakkya and make the usual thoran, aviyal and sambhar with it. I also make a maharashtrian version with peanuts! in marathi cluster beans are called gavar phali, i think.
I tried this and it came out good... Thanks...i used a little bit of khus khus and it came out crunchy....Karpore
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