The combination of aloo with beans seems to me, and I think most North Indians, natural. They go well together, the crunch of fresh beans compliments the soft texture of cooked potatoes. Potatoes, though new to the subcontinent (they travelled along with the Portuguese who colonized Goa and, Daman and Diu until 1961) have become ubiquitous. It is hard to imagine what our ancestors did before this starchy tuber arrived! This recipe uses cluster beans or gawar phali in combination with potatoes. Compared to french beans which have a snap, gawar is not as tender but offers a good bite. When cooked in a dry sabzi as in this Gawar phali ki sabzi it is delicious paired with paranthas. The Aloo Gawar is similarly good with fresh rotis and even rice.
Indian grocery stores to the rescue of expat palates!
Guar / gawar is most likely a truly south asian bean. It is rarely grown elsewhere and incredibly hard to find in the US. Bless Indian store owners – specialized ethnic food grocers serve diverse immigrant populations in the US – who manage to find such produce. As soon as I found some at my local store in Tucson called India Dukaan, I bought a whole lot and proceeded to cook it in two different ways. I am also glad to report that this aloo gawar sabzi was frozen and retained its flavor and texture when defrosted. In my excitement, I tend to buy more produce than we can manage to consume and the freezer is a true friend in such situations.
Let’s cook Aloo Gawar phali ki Sabzi
Time: 30-45 minutes, Inactive: 15 minutes, Active: 15 to 30 minutes (faster if using a pressure cooker)
Ingredients:
- Gawar phali/Cluster Beans ~ 1 lb or ~ 500 gms
- Aloo/Potatoes – 2 medium or 1 large
- Lahsun/Garlic – 2 to 3 cloves, smashed and chopped
- Adrak/Ginger – 1” piece, julienned
- Tamatar/Tomato – 1 or 1/2 is large, chopped
- Piyaaz/Onion – 1 or 1/2 if large, chopped
- Green chillies – 2 to 3, finely chopped (optional)
- Oil 1 tbsp
- Zeera/cumin seeds
- Dhania/ Coriander powder – 1 tsp
- Laal mirch/ Red chilli powder – 1/2 tsp
- Haldi/Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp
- Namak/ Salt – 1/2 tsp, adjust to taste
- Water ~ 1/4 to 1/2 cup
You will need either a pressure cooker or a pot with a lid.
To cook the Aloo Gawar sabzi:
Start by washing the beans in lots of water. Then chop them into equal sized pieces, about 1 inch long. Wash and dry the potatoes. I use mine without peeling. If you prefer peeling that’s fine too. Then proceed to cube them. Similarly, clean the tomato and onion. Cube the tomato and slice the onion. Keep onion slices chunky, that helps them dissolve faster as they cook. Smash and peel garlic cloves and chop them. Clean and julienne the ginger. Off late I’ve been using ginger with its skin on. In order to do so I wash it thoroughly to rid it of any dirt. Peeling is fine too. If you like green chilies and have them, use 2-3, finely chopped. If not, skip. No harm done.
Pressure cooker saves the day!
I cooked this sabzi in a pressure cooker. It was a weeknight and I wanted to save some time. It can just as easily be cooked in a pan with a lid, or a dutch oven, or kadhai. To begin, put the utensil you are using on medium high heat. As soon as it feels warm, add oil. Followed by zeera (cumin seeds). Once the seeds start spluttering, add garlic and sauté for just a minute. Next, add onion and tomato. Cook them for a few minutes, approximately 2 to 3. Follow this with all the dry spices; allow the spices to bloom. Then, add potatoes and mix well. Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. You could loosely cover the utensil at this point. If using a pressure cooker don’t close the lid, just place it on top. After a few minutes of cooking potatoes add the chopped beans. Mix everything well. Next, I added about 1/4 cup of water and julienned ginger. Then closed the lid and pressure cooked on high until the first whistle. Reducing the heat after that to low for another 5 minutes. Turn off the heat.
If using a pan/kadhai/dutch oven, cook covered until the potatoes are cooked through. Poke a few pieces with a fork to check for doneness.
Aloo Gawar is ready to serve!
Allow the pressure in the cooker to release naturally and then open the cooker with care. A good rule of thumb is to always check if the pressure valve (if your pressure cooker’s lid has one) has dropped or to lift the whistle weight to release any leftover steam before opening the lid.
Serve Aloo Gawar with fresh chapatis or even on rice. I really enjoyed mine with rice and a sprinkle of dry spicy garlic thecha on top. Yumm! This Kohlapuri chutney can be made at home and used moist or in a dry powder form. It works really well over any meal, but especially Vada pav.
Aloo Gawar phali ki Sabzi
Equipment
- Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 lb Gawar phali
- 2 Potatoes 1 if using large potato
- 2-3 cloves Garlic smashed and chopped
- 1 1" piece Ginger julienned
- 1 Tomato 1/2 if large
- 1 Red onion 1/2 is large
- 2-3 Green chillies finely chopped
- 1 tbsp Oil
- 1 tsp Zeera cumin seeds
- 1 tsp Dhania coriander seeds
- 1/2 tsp Laal Mirch red chilli powder
- 1/2 tsp Haldi turmeric powder
- 1/2 to 1 tsp Salt adjust to taste
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup Water adjust as needed
Instructions
Prep ingredients
- Wash beans in lots of water. Chop them into equal sized pieces, about 1 inch long. Wash and dry the potatoes. Peel or not per your choice and cube them. Clean tomato and onion. Cube the tomato and slice the onion. Keep onion slices chunky, that helps them dissolve faster as they cook. Smash and peel garlic cloves and chop them. Clean and julienne the ginger. If you like green chilies and have them, use 2-3, finely chopped.
Aloo-Gawar in Pressure Cooker* (see notes)
- Put the utensil you are using on medium high heat. As soon as it is warm, add oil. Followed by zeera. Once spluttering, add garlic and sauté for just a minute.
- Next, add onion and tomato. Cook for a few minutes, approximately 2 to 3. Add all the dry spices; allow spices to bloom.
- Add potatoes and mix well. Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. You could loosely cover the utensil at this point.
- After a few minutes of cooking potatoes add the chopped beans. Mix well. Add about 1/4 cup of water and julienned ginger. Clos the lid and pressure cook on high until the first whistle. Reduce the heat to low for another 5 minutes. Turn off the heat.
- Allow the pressure in the cooker to release naturally and then open the cooker with care.
- Serve Aloo Gawar with fresh chapatis or even on rice.
Notes
- I cooked this sabzi in a pressure cooker. It was a weeknight and I wanted to save some time. It can just as easily be cooked in a pan with a lid, or a dutch oven, or kadhai.
- If using a pan/kadhai/dutch oven, cook covered until the potatoes are cooked through. Poke a few pieces with a fork to check for doneness.
- When opening a pressure cooker a good rule of thumb is to always check if the pressure valve (if your pressure cooker’s lid has one) has dropped or to lift the whistle weight to release any leftover steam before opening the lid.