One of my favorite Tamil dishes, paruppu usili, is not one you'd easily find on an Indian restaurant menu. But this simple, home style preparation of green beans sauteed with spiced, steamed and scrambled lentils is delicious and nourishing and it will make you fall in love with this often unsung veggie. Serve it as a side dish with any Indian entree, particularly when you need extra protein in your meal.
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What is paruppu usili?
"Paruppu usili," (translation "lentil scramble") is a Tamil side dish of veggies cooked with steamed and crumbled lentils. You can make paruppu usili with nearly any quick-cooking veggie, but the most popular version, at least in my experience, is made with green beans. The beans are finely chopped and cooked before steamed and crumbled lentils are added to them. The lentils are roasted to an appetizing golden-brown hue and become nutty and delicious - a perfectly complement to the green beans.
When I ate paruppu usili for the first time in my Tamil mother-in-law's home, I was smitten. It was true love at first bite - no small feat given the fact that I've always been a fence-sitter on the appeal of green beans. Finally, here was a green bean dish that tasted not just good but amazing! What did the trick was those savory, aromatic lentils whose flavor mingled with the green beans, making them so much tastier.
I often make paruppu usili with broccoli, cauliflower and bell peppers, and I love all of these versions. But the green beans version remains my favorite, because there's just something wonderful about the texture of the fresh, lightly sauteed green beans with the soft lentil crumbles.
Paruppu usili is soy-free, nut-free and gluten-free, so it works for all diets. And it is loaded with protein from the lentils. The recipe is simple and quite straightforward. You need few ingredients and I'm going to make cooking it even easier by walking you through each step and by sharing easy hacks along the way.
Love green beans? Try them in delicious recipes like garlic green beans, Lebanese loubieh bi zeit, Trinidadian bodi, and Indian green beans sabzi
Recipe card
Green Beans Paruppu Usili
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds green beans (trimmed, any strings removed, and chopped very finely).
For lentil scramble
- ⅓ cup toor dal (arhar dal/tuvar dal/tuvaram paruppu/split pigeon peas)
- ⅓ cup chana dal (Bengal gram dal)/kadalai paruppu)
- 2 dried red chili peppers (sivappu milagai)
- ½ teaspoon turmeric (haldi/manja podi)
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera/jeeragam)
- Salt to taste
For tempering
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds (rai/kadugu)
- 1 tablespoon urad dal (black gram/ulutham paruppu)
- ¼ teaspoon asafetida or hing (hing/perungayam)
- Salt to taste
Instructions
Make the lentil scramble
- Soak the chana dal and toor dal in enough water to cover for 30 minutes. Blend with the red chili peppers, turmeric and cumin seeds into a smooth paste, adding water, a little at a time, only if necessary.
- Transfer the paste to a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high for two minutes. Scrambled the steamed paste with a fork, then microwave again for two more minutes. The paste should have set by now. Let it cool and then crumble into pea-sized bits. Set aside.
Temper and cook the green beans
- Heat the oil in a wok or skillet. Add the mustard seeds and, when they pop, add the urad dal and asafetida. Saute for a minute until the dal begins to turn lightly golden.
- Mix in the chopped green beans and add a bit of salt. Saute the green beans 8-10 minutes until they are tender but still have a slight bite to them.
- Add the crumbled lentils to the green beans and mix well. Saute the paruppu usili until the lentils begin to turn reddish-brown, about 10 more minutes. Turn off heat and serve.
Notes
Ingredient notes
- Lentils: The toor dal and chana dal blend is key for the flavor and texture of this dish, so don't be tempted to substitute. Urad dal, added to the tempering, gives a delicious crunch.
- Red chili peppers: Use any moderately spicy dried red chilli like Kashmiri chillies, Byadgi chillies or Mexican arbol chilli peppers. If you have red pepper flakes on hand, you can use ½ to 1 teaspoon instead of the dried chili peppers. You need some heat in the lentil scramble, but you can tweak it to your preference.
Nutrition Information
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How to make paruppu usili
Make scrambled lentils
Soak the toor dal and chana dal in enough water to cover the lentils for 30 minutes.
Trim and then finely chop the green beans.
Place the soaked, drained lentils, cumin seeds, turmeric, red chili peppers and salt in blender. Add ½ cup water. Blend into a smooth paste.
Place the lentil paste in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave two minutes on high.
Remove the lentils from the microwave and use a fork to mix them up a bit so the uncooked bits surface. Microwave again for two more minutes.
Let the microwaved paste cool for a little bit, then use your fingers to crumble it into pieces about the size of peas.
In a wok or skillet heat the oil. Add mustard seeds and, as soon as they sputter, add the urad lentils and asafetida. Saute for a minute until the lentils begin to color.
Add the finely chopped green beans to the wok. Add a bit of salt and saute the beans for about 8-10 minutes or until they are cooked but still have a slight bite to them. They are most delicious this way.
Add the scrambled lentils to the green beans. Mix well.
Saute until the lentils start to turn red and taste very nutty, about five to 10 more minutes. Check salt and turn off heat.
My top tip for amazing paruppu usili
In traditional paruppu usili recipes, the beans or veggies are boiled or steamed before being combined with the lentils. Veggies cooked this way can end up soft and mushy and although the dish tastes good overall, it tastes even better when you saute the veggies instead of steaming them so they are slightly toothsome. This also helps retain the fresh flavor of the beans. Another tweak I like to make is to add jeera, or cumin seeds, to the lentils before they are blended. This adds more flavor and character. I've even used garlic in the lentil blend with great results - just one or two cloves do the trick!
Green beans paruppu usili FAQs
If you have a steamer, place the lentil paste in a bowl or in a plate and steam for 10 minutes until it has set. Cool and crumble. If you have an idli mold, divide the paste among the idli molds (lightly oil them first) and steam.
You can add the lentil paste directly to the wok without microwaving or steaming it first. But if you do that you will need more oil to ensure the lentils lose their raw flavor and become nutty. I'd advise adding two tablespoons of oil at least and sauteing over medium-high heat.
You can use the method above to make paruppu usili using other veggies like cabbage, banana flower and other varieties of beans. I have made paruppu usili with broccoli and cauliflower as well. Try and use veggies that don't express too much water when cooked.
Green beans paruppu usili is a terrific addition to meals that need a protein boost. I serve it with basmati rice and an easy curry like coconut curry or mango curry. It's also terrific with traditional south Indian dishes like rice with sambar or rasam.
Refrigerate the paruppu usili in an airtight container for up to a week. You can also freeze it for up to three months in a freezer-safe container. Thaw and reheat until warmed through before serving.
Michael says
Thank you for sharing all these lovely Indian recipes. They're always completely free of animal products or easily adapted, as well as gluten free. Both are very important to me and I appreciate all the effort you put into these recipes, I can't even tell you how many I've tried and enjoyed.
There was a time not long ago when I wouldn't eat green beans at all, so I'm definitely giving this one a try 😄
Thanks again Vaishali 🙏
Vaishali says
🙂 Awesome, thanks for the kind words, Michael, and so happy to hear you've enjoyed the recipes! I am thrilled to hear you want to give this recipe a try. You won't be disappointed!
judy shank says
Thank you so much for your recipes. Your recipes have been easy to follow & they are delicious. Finally, my husband has converted from a meat eater to a vegetable diet & he is thrilled. I showed him that your recipes are so flavorful & delicious as well as healthful. Additionally, the dishes are full of anti- inflammatories. Thank you!
Vaishali says
What a lovely message, Judy -- thank you!! ❤️It's so wonderful to hear you and your husband have loved the recipes.