A lima bean curry in a creamy, spicy orange sauce with cilantro.
For years now, one of my favorite quickie recipes has been a flavorful but utterly simple cauliflower curry that requires just a minimum of ingredients.
The cauliflower goes into a tomato sauce that, together with some turmeric, creates a glorious orange color.
But this time I thought, why not substitute the cauliflower with beans?
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So in went some lima beans, those creamy, buttery, flavorful little nuggets that I simply adore in dishes like Greek Gigantes. The result was quite wonderful. I guess one could use both cauliflower and limas, and I might just try it that way the next time I make this dish.
So here's this glorious, gorgeous but super-easy dish that will have you coming back for seconds, and thirds.
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Recipe card
Lima Bean Curry
Ingredients
- 1 cup lima beans (cooked or canned)
- 2 tomatoes (diced)
- 2 teaspoon cumin seeds (divided)
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil or any neutral oil
- A pinch asafetida or hing (hing, optional)
- 1 teaspoon cayenne (use less for less heat)
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- ½ cup cilantro (minced)
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Blend together the tomatoes, a teaspoon of cumin, mustard seeds and garlic, using just enough water. Set aside.
- Heat the oil in a saucepan. Add the remaining cumin seeds for tempering, and when they sputter, add the asafetida, if using, and the blended tomato mixture.
- Add the cayenne and turmeric powders and stir in. Cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.
- Now add the beans and liquid to the saucepan. Add salt to taste, and continue to cook until the gravy thickens, about 10 minutes. (If you use cauliflower, add the florets raw when you would the beans, but stir-fry for a couple of minutes before you add some water. Check regularly to ensure that the cauliflower does not overcook.)
- Garnish with cilantro. Serve hot with rice.
Nutrition Information
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Dawn says
Please help! I'm confused. I'm sure I'm missing something or just not reading the recipe correctly. The ingredients list calls for Cumin seeds and Mustard seeds (no powder), but the instructions mention cumin/mustard powder (blended with the tomatoes) then cumin seeds going into the fry pan and no mention of the mustard seeds.
Vaishali says
Hi, I've corrected the typo--blend half the cumin and the mustard with the tomatoes and use the rest for tempering.