Traditional Valluvanad: Elephant Yams and Chinese Long Beans/ Chena and Payaru Upperi

Ingredients

I bunch of chinese long beans, broken into 1 inch pieces,

1 1/2 cups of cubed yams (frozen used here),

1/4 cup finely chopped onions,

Chilli powder 1/2-3/4 tsp depending on your taste ( optional),

Salt

Coconut Oil/ Vegetable Oil

[Optional: 3 crushed cloves of garlic, not in the original recipe]

Method

Heat the oil and saute the onions until soft. Add turmeric and chilli powders and saute some more. Add the cubed yams and fry on medium heat, checking to see that  it does not burn. Turn gently so that it retains its shape and is not mushed up.

Heat oil in another pan, lightly fry the beans for a few minutes. Add  a little amount of water so that the beans almost cook in the steam. Once they are done: cooked but not soft, add the beans to the yams. Increase the heat  and fry for a few minutes. Add a drizzle of coconut oil and  torn curry leaves as garnish.