Paruppu Usili South Indian Green Beans With Lentils

For more delicious green bean recipes, try garlic green beans, Trinidadian green beans and a classic but vegan green bean casserole. Most Indian food aficionados are familiar with delicious south Indian foods like dosa, idli and sambar. But step off the beaten path and you will be rewarded with dishes that are lesser known but just as delicious, like chickpea sundal, Chettinad mushrooms and this green beans paruppu usili. When I ate paruppu usili for the first time in my Tamil mother-in-law’s home, I was smitten. It was true love at first bite - no small feat given the fact that I’ve always been a fence-sitter on the appeal of green beans. Finally, here was a green bean dish that tasted not just good but amazing! What did the trick was those savory, aromatic lentils whose flavor mingled with the green beans, making them so much tastier.

What is paruppu usili?

“Paruppu usili,” (translation “lentil scramble”) is a Tamil side dish of veggies cooked with steamed and crumbled lentils. You can make paruppu usili with nearly any quick-cooking veggie, but the most popular version, at least in my experience, is made with green beans. The beans are finely chopped and cooked before the blended, steamed and crumbled lentils are added to them. The scrambled lentils, which then roast to an appetizing golden-brown hue, taste nutty and perfectly complement the green beans. I often make paruppu usili with broccoli, cauliflower and bell peppers, and I love all of these versions. But the green beans version remains my favorite, because there’s just something wonderful about the texture of the fresh, lightly sauteed green beans with the soft lentil crumbles. Paruppu usili is soy-free, nut-free and gluten-free, so it works for all diets. And it is loaded with protein from the lentils. The recipe is simple and quite straightforward. You need few ingredients and I’m going to make cooking it even easier by walking you through each step and by sharing easy hacks along the way.

How to make paruppu usili

Make scrambled lentils

Serve

Green beans paruppu usili is a terrific addition to meals that need a protein boost. I serve it with basmati rice and an easy curry like coconut curry or mango curry. It’s also terrific with traditional south Indian dishes like rice with sambar or rasam. Check to get new recipe updates by email.