Paruppu Usili with Banana Stem Flower

Paruppu Usili is such a versatile dish that you can make with almost any vegetable...I got this recipe from my mom who really makes it very tasty. I tried to follow the very same method and the method has not failed me. Well other suggested vegetables for this paruppu usili is cluster beans(goruchikkudi kayilu-telugu , kothavarangai-tamil) and regular beans can be substituted too for this usili.

The deep purplish colored banana flower is used as a vegetable in India,mainly I have seen much of their use in Southern India. They are long, slender, sterile male flowers with a faint sweet fragrance which are protected by large reddish bracts(outer reddish leaves). Higher up the stem are groups of female flowers which develop into fruits(white sticks). We dont need the bracts or the reddish leaves ..we just need the fruits..the white colored sticks for our Usili.

How to prepare this vegetable

Whenever working with this vegetable smear oil on both ur hands because touching them could sometimes be very sticky and dirty.Remove all the outer purplish leaves as they are very very mature and will taste bitter.But as you keep layering one leaf after another ,remove the fruits (white sticks)and keep aside in a bowl of (buttermilk + salt) else they will turn black. If buttermilk is not available use yogurt(4 tblsp).Churn it properly add salt and water and churn again. Once you get to the inner core, you will find leaves which are yellow in color meaning they are young and tender . You can use these leaves too. So now the fruits(the white sticks) , the tender yellow leaves should all have been soaked in buttermilk solution. Now chop these into fine pieces and again keep them soaked in the same solution. Once the chopping is done,wash the veggies thoroughly, transfer the contents to a pot of clean water, add salt and boil it till the vegetable is about 3/4 cooked.Thus preparation part is over!!!



Ingredients

Banana stem flower-1

Paste

coconut - 1 tbsp
jeera-1/2 tsp
hing-1/4 tsp
turmeric-1/2 tsp

Soak

toor dhal-1/2 tblsp
bengal gram dhal-1/2 tblsp
r.chillies-3 to 4

Seasoning

mustard,urad dhal,curry leaves - 1 tsp, 2 tsp,1 sprig

Method

1. Soak the dhals with the r.chillies for about 1 to 2 hrs till the dhals get little soft.
2. Once the dhals are soaked grind them with the other ingredients and make it into a coarse paste.
3. Combine paste with the boiled vegetable and steam it for 15 min to 20 min.
4. After the steamed mixture is cooled , just crumble it.
5. Heat oil in a kadai. Add mustard, urad dhal, curry leaves and add the crumbles.
6. Finally add the coriander and lemon to taste.