Beetroot Keerai Poriyal
Beetroot Keerai Poriyal is a South Indian side dish prepared with the greens of beetroot - finely chopped and cooked with minimal spices
Ingredients
- 1 bunch Beetroot Keerai
- 1 tsp Sesame Oil (any cooking oil will do)
- ½ tsp Mustard seeds
- ½ tsp Split Urad Dal
- 2-3 Dried red chillies
- ½ tsp Turmeric powder
- ½ tsp Asafoetida powder
- 2 tbsp Grated Coconut
- 1-2 Green Chilli
Instructions
- The first step is to cut the stems away from the leaves. Wash both the stems and leaves thoroughly either under running water or in a bowl until you see no sediment at the bottom of the bowl. Allow the greens to dry a little bit; you can even keep it under the fan.
- Chop the stems into small pieces and transfer them to a plate. Next, chop the leaves into small and equal size pieces. You can stack a few leaves, roll the bundle and chop them up to get even sized pieces.
- Place a large kadai on a low-medium flame. Add 1 tsp of gingelly oil. Once the oil is warm, add the mustard seeds and split urad dal. Allow the mustard seeds to pop. Add the dried red chillies and toast them in the oil for a bit.
- Next add in the chopped beetroot greens stems. This will take a slightly longer time to cook as compared the leaves.
- Add the turmeric powder, asafoetida powder and ¼ tsp salt. Allow the stems to cook for a two minutes. Pick a piece of the stem to check is its cooked enough. It should have only a little crunch.
- Next add the chopped beetroot greens. Add ¼ tsp salt and mix all the ingredients well. You will see the greens wilt as you cook it down in a low-medium flame.
- Withing the next minute or two the greens will completely wilt and change to a dark green colour. Turn off the stove.
- This is an extra step, but i like the taste of coconut and green chillies in keerai curries. I take a tablespoon of grated coconut (or chunks) and add it to a mixer along with a small green chilli. Pulse grind until you have a coarse mixture.
- Add this coconut garnish to the beetroot greens and mix well. Your Beetroot Keerai Poriyal is ready!