Usal Recipe
Usal is a classic Indian Maharashtrian dish of sprouted beans in a spicy coconut sauce. It's a great recipe for adding more nutritious legumes into your diet, and it's delicious served over steamed rice or with roti.
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 167kcal
Equipment
- Saute pan or saucepan (for cooking beans)
- Larger saucepan
Ingredients
- ½ cup dried mung beans
- ½ cup matki beans (also called moth beans)
- ½ teaspoon turmeric (divided)
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 teaspoons avocado oil or any neutral oil (divided)
- 6 cloves garlic
- 2 medium red onions (One sliced, other finely chopped)
- ½ cup grated coconut (unsweetened)
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2 sprigs curry leaves (about 20 leaves)
- 2 medium tomatoes (diced)
- 1 teaspoon cayenne (use more or less based on your preference for heat. You can also use Kashmiri chilli powder for more color).
- 2 teaspoon goda masala (or garam masala)
- 1 teaspoon jaggery (or granulated sugar)
- 2 tablespoon cilantro (chopped)
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Sprout the matki and mung beans. To do this place the beans in a bowl with enough water to cover and let them stand overnight. Then strain out the water, rinse, and let them stand in a colander covered with a kitchen towel for a day or two until small sprouts appear. Remember to rinse the beans a couple of times each day. In summer it shouldn't take more than a day for the beans to sprout. You can also tie the beans in cheesecloth and hang the bundle up in a cool, dark place until sprouts appear.
- Place the sprouted beans in a pan. Add enough water to cover the sprouts by an inch. Add a bay leaf and ¼ teaspoon turmeric.
- Bring to a boil over medium high heat, then cover with a lid, turn heat down to a simmer, and cook 20-30 minutes or until the beans are tender. Check a few times to make sure all of the water hasn't evaporated and add more water if needed.
- In a saucepan or wide saute pan, add a teaspoon of oil. Add the garlic cloves and saute for a minutes, then add the sliced onions with a pinch of salt. Saute the onions until they become soft and begin to brown.
- Stir in the grated coconut and stir-fry the coconut until it browns. Remove the ingredients to a plate and when they have cooled blend them into a paste with ½ cup water. Set aside.
- In the same pan heat another teaspoon of oil. Add the mustard seeds and, after they crackle, add cumin seeds. Stir in the chopped onions. Saute for a few minutes until the edges start to brown, then stir in the curry leaves.
- Add tomatoes to the pan, .then stir in the spices: cayenne, remaining ¼ teaspoon turmeric, and goda masala or garam masala. Mix well. Continue to cook the tomatoes, onions and spices until the tomatoes are very soft.
- Add the cooked sprouts with a cup of the cooking water and the blended coconut-onion paste. Mix well and bring the usal to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower the heat to a simmer and continue cooking about 10 minutes until you see reddish pools on top. Add jaggery and salt to taste.
- Stir in the cilantro and turn off heat. Serve hot.
Nutrition
Calories: 167kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Potassium: 490mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 405IU | Vitamin C: 18mg | Calcium: 68mg | Iron: 3mg