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5 from 9 votes

Sugar Bean Curry

A staple dish in most Indian homes, simple but delicious bean curry. Best served with roti
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time1 hour 20 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian
Keyword: bean curry, vegan, vegetarian
Servings: 4

Ingredients

  • 1 cup/250ml dry red speckled beans
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil or 1 tbsp butter ghee
  • 1 onion finely chopped
  • 2 bay leaf
  • 2 small pieces cinnamon stick
  • 1 star aniseed
  • 1 teaspoon ginger/garlic paste
  • 1 sprig curry leaf
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground soomph/fennel
  • 1 tbsp medium masala
  • 2 teaspoon kashmiri chilli powder
  • 2 small roma tomatoes blanched and pureed
  • 2 potatoes peeled and each cut into 4 cubes
  • salt
  • water

Instructions

  • Soak the beans in some warm water for an hour. Rinse well and boil the beans until it is soft and tender. Do not add too much water when boiling the beans. Set aside
  • In a medium pot heat the oil or butter ghee on low to medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and fry until it splutters
  • Add the cinnamon stick, bay leaf, star aniseed and curry leaf together with the onion. Sauté until onion is slightly brown
  • Add the ginger/garlic paste and fry for a minute
  • Add the turmeric, coriander, fennel, masala, and kashmiri chilli powder. Cook for a minute. Add a few drops of water to prevent the spices from burning
  • Add the potatoes and allow it to cook for 2-3 minutes with the spices. Add the pureed tomatoes.
  • Cover and cook until all the liquid dries up
  • Add half cup of water and allow potatoes to cook on a low heat until tender but not fully cooked
  • Add the beans. Season with salt. Add another half cup of water and allow the beans to cook with the potatoes until the potatoes are soft. You can add more water depending on how much gravy you prefer.
  • Garnish with coriander

Notes

  1. Soak tomatoes in boiling water for a few minutes. Run some cold water over it, remove the skin and puree the tomatoes in a blender or use a stick blender
  2. You can soak your beans overnight to make the cooking process easier. Boil it before cooking your curry
  3. When adding water to your curry be careful not to add too much as you don't want a runny gravy, it shoud be thick. If you are using soft cooking potatoes you won't need as much water as you would need when using potatoes that take longer to cook
  4. If you do not have masala you can increase the amount of Kashmiri Chilli Powder
  5. If you 're having a lazy day you can replace the dried beans with 2 cans of Red Speckled Beans, Woolies sells an amazing one