This spicy potato and green beans curry is one incredibly tasty and satisfying dish. It's a vegan gravy that is cooked in a roasted peanut and Indian spices sauce.
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I say this not just because I am an Indian by birth, I actually mean it when I say that Indian cuisine is extremely versatile and one of the best cuisines we have. Every city/state has its own version of a dish using different veggies, spices, and other ingredients. Even the array of spices available in this country is abundant. Whenever I am traveling around the country, I always check out the local spice market of that place. While I do come across many common spices, I also always discover a new spice and end up purchasing it instantly. Love the tantalizing mixed aroma of spices that fills up these markets. Aah! Here is a travel tip for all you foodies out there - Always check if there is a local farmer's market or a spice bazaar in the country/city you are visiting. Trust me, you will thank me later for this tip because it's totally worth the trip. You will discover some hidden gems plus you will have a great photo opp for your Instagram family. You also get a chance to try out the local authentic street food in such places which we enjoy the most when we travel. The food at such places is more closer to the local cuisine than the ones you will taste at any fancy restaurant there. And yes, please go with a backpack or a bag to store all your purchases.
The other thing I enjoy doing is browsing through their local TV channels. Once, when I and my brother were on a holiday in Bangkok, I put on a local channel and there was a daily soap going on. I actually got hooked on it despite it being in Thai (a language I don't know at all) and was caught crying over a scene by my brother. He, of course, had a shocked look on his face and to date, he teases me about it. But I still do this whenever I am in a new country. I even enjoy watching their local cooking shows. The dish that I tried today is something that I saw on one such regional cooking show. I found it interesting as it was different from the dishes I have tried and therefore decided to make it. Green beans have rather been a mundane vegetable for me all through my childhood years. It is in fact an important vegetable used in South Indian cuisine. Growing up, all I had was Poricha Kootu (Vegetable and Lentils gravy) made with green beans or simple beans and coconut poriyal similar to Beetroot Carrot Poriyal/Curry. While I liked these two dishes, beans didn't top my list of favorite veggies. Blogging about food made me experiment with this vegetable and one of my first attempts was Bihari Green Beans Masala Curry which was great. Then I also recently tried Air Fried Green Beans and we loved it! You can also make Beans Poriyal with green beans.
How to make it
Indian Style Vegan Green Beans & Potato Gravy Recipe has now become a regular in my kitchen because we all love it. The recipe is super easy to make, so let's get started. First, we need to dry roast all the masala. Heat a pan and add peanuts, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, and poppy seeds. Dry roast them for 2 minutes. Be careful to not burn them. Take it off the pan and allow it to cool. Then transfer to a mixer grinder and blitz to a smooth paste along with an onion. Now heat the oil in the same pan. Temper mustard seeds and once they crackle, add urad dal and chana dal. Fry for 30 seconds. Then add dried red chillies, minced garlic, ginger paste, curry leaves, and slit green chillies. Saute them for a minute and then add chopped potatoes with salt. Cook till the potatoes are done. Then add turmeric powder and tomatoes to the mix. Continue to saute covered till the tomatoes are cooked. Then add the ground paste and fry for a minute or two. Lastly, add parboiled green beans, mix them all together, adjust the salt, and add little water to get the desired consistency. Cook covered for 2-3 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and serve with any Indian bread. This peanut-based gravy tastes delicious when combined with green beans and potatoes. Try this lip-smacking dish today!
Some other Indian gravies that you can try for dinner are Thai Mutter Paneer, Vegan Mushroom Korma, Vegan Cauliflower Tikka Masala, Methi Matar Malai | Fenugreek Green Peas Gravy, Achari Dahi Bhindi | Pickled Okra in Yogurt Gravy, Indian Bharli Vaangi/Stuffed Eggplants, Khoya Mutter | Green Peas Masala, Lasooni Tendli/Ivy Gourd Garlic Masala and Moroccon Eggplant Zaalouk.
How to steam beans? Add more water if needed to get the desired consistency.
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Recipe 📖
Indian Style Vegan Green Beans & Potato Gravy Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
To prepare the masala paste
- 1 tablespoon oil
- ½ cup peanuts
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 1 tablespoon poppy seeds/khus khus
- 5-6 curry leaves
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 onion
- ⅓ cup water
To prepare the curry
- 1 teaspoon oil
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- ½ tablespoon urad dal
- ½ tablespoon chana dal
- 2 dried red chillies
- 1 tablespoon ginger paste
- 1 green chilly
- 2 potatoes
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 2 tomatoes
- 11 oz green beans
- salt
- 1 cup water
- ¼ cup cilantro
Instructions
To prepare the masala paste
- Heat oil in a pan. Fry the peanuts, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, garlic and onion, and poppy seeds. Roast them for 2 minutes. Be careful to not burn them. Take it off the pan and allow it to cool.
- Then transfer to a mixer grinder and blitz to a smooth paste by adding water. Transfer this paste to a bowl and keep it aside for now.
To prepare the curry
- Now heat oil in the same pan. Do not wash the pan. Temper mustard seeds and once the crackle, add urad dal and chana dal. Fry for 30 seconds.
- Then add dried red chillies, ginger paste, and slit green chillies. Saute them for a minute.
- Now add the chopped potatoes with salt. Cover and cook till the potatoes are done. This could take 5-6 minutes. Add 2-3 tablespoons of water to help cook the potatoes faster.
- Then add turmeric powder and tomatoes to the pan. Continue to saute covered till the tomatoes are cooked. Add 2-3 tablespoons of water to help cook the tomatoes faster.
- Now add the ground paste along with one forth cup of water and cook for a minute or two.
- Lastly add parboiled or thawed frozen green beans, mix it all together.
- Adjust salt as needed and mix. The consistency should be thick and creamy. Add water to achieve that consistency. Cook covered for 8-10 minutes on medium flame or till the beans are cooked.
- Garnish with cilantro, mix, and serve take it off the flame.
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Lekha Chellani says
This is such a unique and delicious recipe! Thank you.. loved it!!
Priya says
Thank you so much. We too love this dish. Glad you liked it too.
Prashanthi says
Hi Priya
This recipe is amazing , really yummy . Made it for dinner today and it’s all wiped out clean . I never tried a beans masala curry , this is a winner ! Thank you for posting such a tasty one
Paddy says
Am so proud of you Priya .. tried this recipe and wanted to send a feedback on the yummy dish and I saw it’s my school batch mate ❤️❤️ Way to go gal…Rgds Paddy
Priya says
OMG thank you so much. It means a lot. 🙂 I am so glad you liked this recipe. Hope you are doing well.
Sheena says
Just tried this recipe and loved it. My son & hubby usually don’t like green beans but this was hit with them. I am glad I found a way to get them eat more veggies! Thank you so much
Priya says
I am so glad you all liked it. 🙂 This recipe does present green beans very differently, making it flavorful.
Lakshmi says
Hello Priya,
Firstly I relate to your back story on the string beans - Kootu and ]Poriyals... 😂😂
For a while now I have been browsing websites and blogs looking for a dish using this vegetable that is something different ..... and Lo !! I found it here !!!!
The very way you have written this article along with the recipe has tempted me to try this recipe 👍😊
I am going to try it this weekend.
Thank you so much for this new variation using string beans.
Priya says
Hi Lakshmi, nice to meet you here. Glad you liked this recipe and do let me know how it turned out. 🙂
Lisa says
This dish looks so flavorful and delicious! I absolutely love Indian food and always willing to try new things. Can't wait to give this a try! 🙂