Green beans are a very tasty vegetable which goes well with rice. Cooking it with coconut cream gives it a sweet taste which complements the spicier meat. Green beans are a common side dish in traditional Sri Lankan lunch.
Ingredients
- Green beans – 250g cut into 1 inch diagonal piece
- Small onion – 1 thinly sliced
- Garlic – 3 cloves chopped
- Green chilies – 1 thinly sliced
- Pandan leaves – 2 inch piece
- Curry leaves – 7 leaves
- Raw curry powder – 1 1/2 teaspoons (recepie found here)
- Turmeric – 1/2 teaspoon
- Chilli powder – 1 teaspoon
- Cinnamon – 1 inch piece crushed
- Cardamom – 2 pods crushed
- Dried smoked tuna flakes or Maldive fish flakes – 1 teaspoon (optional)
- Coconut cream – 50ml mixed with 75ml water
- Salt to taste
- Vegetable oil – 2 tablespoons
Method
- Heat vegetable oil in a saucepan.
- Add cinnamon, cardomom and let them fry for 30 seconds.
- Add onions, garlic, green chillies, pandan and curry leaves and fry for 2-3 minutes until onions are soft.
- Add raw curry powder, turmeric, chilli powder and salt. Fry for 30 seconds. Don’t let the spices burn.
- Add the beans and mix well.
- Cover and let it cook for 5 minutes on low heat.
- Add coconut cream mix and dried tuna flakes. Bring to a simmer. Be careful not to overcook the beans. They should be crunchy.
- Turn off the heat and add lemon to taste.
- Mix and serve.