Broad Beans Poricha Kootu
This Broad Beans Poricha Kootu is a family recipe I learned from my loving mother-in-law soon after my marriage.
Ingredients
- Broad beans (Avarakkai) – 2 cups, chopped evenly
- Moong dal – ½ cup, boiled and kept aside
- Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
- Salt – to taste
- Water – as needed
- For Freshly Ground Spice Paste:
- Urad dal – 1 tbsp
- Pepper – ½ tsp (adds mild heat, replaces chilli)
- Asafoetida – a pinch
- Grated coconut – 2 tbsp
- For Tempering:
- Cold-pressed gingelly oil – 1 tbsp
- Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
- Curry leaves – few
- Asafoetida – a pinch
- Grated coconut – 1 tbsp
Instructions
- Prepare and cook broad beans:
- Chop broad beans evenly. Add to a little hot water and cook for only 5 minutes — overcooking reduces nutritional value.
- Cook dal:
- Boil moong dal separately and keep aside.
- Prepare spice paste:
- Lightly fry urad dal, pepper, asafoetida, and coconut. Grind coarsely.
- Combine ingredients:
- Once the beans are cooked, add the boiled moong dal and freshly ground paste. Adjust consistency with water as needed.
- Tempering & final touch:
- Heat cold-pressed gingelly oil, add mustard seeds, curry leaves, a pinch of asafoetida, and grated coconut. Pour this over the kootu, mix well, and serve hot.
Notes
We usually make it in winter, when fresh broad beans are in season — back in Trichy and Tanjore, this dish is very famous. The beans are fibre-rich, gentle, and healthy, and can easily be grown in our backyard without chemicals, so they’re fresh and nourishing.For a new mother, this kootu is especially good — we use pepper instead of chillies, and sometimes just one or two whole red chillies in the tempering for aroma. It’s easy on the stomach, helps with digestion, and gives the strength and warmth needed after delivery.Even now, as a teacher, mother, wife, mother-in-law, and grandmother, I love making it. Sharing it with my daughter-in-law over WhatsApp — photos, voice notes, little tips — keeps our family tradition alive. Every time I spend time in the kitchen, I feel happy and connected to all the generations before me.