Plantain and Azuki Beans Soup: another version of Olan!

This is another version of Olan served in Southern Malabar, made with Plantains and Red Azuki Beans. This dish is part of the traditional Kerala feast repertoire.The traditional Olan recipe does not use any onions, garlic or cummin. North Kerala/ Malabar Sadya dishes, do not use any onions or garlic.  This hearty, meatless soup works for winter and reminds one of many dishes from South America and the Carribbean. This goes to Deb's Souper Sundays.

Plantain  and Azuki Beans Soup
Serves 4

Ingredients

1/2 Cup Red Azuki beans, soaked for 5 hours or more
2 Cups of cubed raw plantain, with skin

1/2 Cup finely chopped onions

2-3 finger hot green chillies, slit [ or more according to taste]

2 cloves of garlic, lightly crushed

1/2 tsp cummin seeds

1 1/2- 2 tbsps coconut Oil

Salt

1/2 Cup of thick coconut milk
1/2 cup of thin coconut milk or plain water

Method

Step One: Cooking Azuki Beans

Soak the azuki beans in about 3 cups of water for about 5 hours/ overnight

Cook with 1/4 tsp of turmeric, and salt 
or

Pressure cook  on medium high,
After one whistle, turn the heat down, cook for 10-15 minutes and turn off the heat.
Step Two: Cooking Raw Plantain
The green skin is kept on in this recipe
Cut the raw plantain into cubes,
Soak in plenty of water with 1/4 tsp of turmeric and 1/2 tsp of salt
for 20 minutes
Rinse a couple of times and drain.
Cook the plantain cubes with salt and 2 slit green chillies with 3 cups of water.
Reserve the water for the broth/soup
Important: Make sure that the plantian in cooked well;  almost but not quite to the point of mushiness. Plantain tends to harden as the dish sits/ it gets cold.
Step Three
Once the plantains are cooked,
Heat  2 tbsps of coconut oil
Temper 1/2 tsp of cummin seeds
Add 2 cloves of garlic, saute until soft,
Add 1/2 cup of finely chopped onions and saute until soft
Add the cooked azuki beans  alongwith the slit green chillies,
Add the cooked plantains and reserved water
Bring to a simmer, 
Add  the thin coconut milk at this stage or enough water for the soup, 
Simmer for another 5-6 minutes, 
Step Four
Add the thick coconut milk and immediately take off the heat.
Optional: Serve with another drizzle of thick coconut milk over individual servings.

Pumpkin and Carrot Soup

Pumpkin and Carrot Soup

This soup has its roots in  one of my favourite Kerala dishes, the humble Olan. This mild dish is made with just coconut milk, the heat/spicing coming from hot green chillies cooked alongwith the vegetables.  This was an easy Sunday version in the comfort of the sunday paper, books,  and the lovely winter sunlight streaming in.

Serves 2

Ingredients

2 Cups cubed Indian Pumpkin, [have also used butternut squash at times]

1 Cup carrots, smaller cubes

4 hot  green chillies, slit [ or according to heat level]

About 1/4 Cup of thick coconut milk
1/4 tsp of cummin seeds
3/4 tsp coconut oil [ or vegetable oil]

Water as needed

Salt
2 pinches of dried red chilli flakes [optional]

2-3 fried onion slices for garnish

Cook the pumpkin separately with just enough water, 1/4 tsp salt and one slit green chilli: cooked, holding its shape and not mushy

Cook the carrots with another slit green chilli, 1/4 tsp salt and just enough water, until done

Combine both the vegetables in a pot and and add a 1/2 cup of hot water if you need more broth.

Heat it on medium high until it just starts to simmer

Add the 1/2 cup of thick coconut milk and gently shake the pan,

Turn the heat low,

Check for salt,

Switch off the heat.

Heat  3/4 tsp of oil in a small tempering bowl,
As the oil smokes, add the cummin seeds
Immediately pour over the soup/ temper

Serve with a garnish of fried onions.

Note: One can increase the coconut milk to 1/2 a cup instead of the 1/4 cup given here. I like a lighter touch since it does not have  spicing other than the green chillies and the vegetables are also on the 'sweeter' side.

This goes to the lovely Deb's Souper Sundays event.

Traditional Onam Delicacies: Olan/ Winter Melon in coconut milk

Southern Malabar Olan for sadya/feast usually follows a very simple recipe of boiling the ash gourd/ winter melon with slit green chillies and the final addition of thick coconut milk. It does not add cowpeas or azuki/ adzuki beans. The traditional, home-style Olan uses only water to cook the tender winter melon.

Ingredients

2 Cups Winter Melon cut in square slices

2 thai hot green chillies

1/2 Cup thick coconut milk

Salt

Water

Method

Cook the sliced winter melon with just enough water and slit green chillies until done

Take off the heat

Add 1/2 Cup of thick coconut milk,

Add salt  and drizzle with coconut oil.

Squash and Beans Soup!

This is part of the re-inventing process  with  traditional dishes! And yes, have been on a spree of winter melon and squash....:-)
Squash and Peas Clear Soup  has  the subtle flavour of coconut and has been re-invented from the traditional  Olan. Coconut milk gives the richness of cream and can be used: either towards the finishing process or  just as a little garnish for the soup. Garlic cloves are boiled alongwith the squash and give a milder flavour.

Ingredients

1 1/2 Cups Cubed Squash

3/4 Cup Black Eyed Beans

2 non-spicy long green chillies

1/2 Cup thin coconut milk

1/4 cup thick coconut milk

2-3 cloves of garlic crushed

1/4 tsp white pepper powder

2-3 curry leaves

1/2 tsp coconut oil for garnish [ optional]

Optional: for tempering:

 2-3 finely chopped red shallots/sambhar onions

1/ 4 tsp cumin seeds

1 clove garlic finely sliced

Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil/ coconut oil and when it reaches the smoking point, temper the cumin and fry the onions and garlic quickly, taking care to see that they don't burn.

Pour over the Soup.

Method

Boil the Squash with about 1 cup of water with the garlic cloves, turmeric powder and salt until cooked but still holding its shape.

Soak the black-eyed peas in cold water for 1 hour or more. Cook the black-eyed peas separately with salt and add to the cooked  squash. Add the thin coconut milk and simmer for 3-4 minutes. Add 1/4 cup thick  coconut milk and take off the heat. Drizzle with coconut oil and add freshly torn curry leaves.

Here have just added a drizzle [1 tbsp] of thick coconut milk to the individual bowl of soup. One can either mash up the boiled, softened garlic or  have a milder flavour by leaving the garlic cloves as is.

Winter Melon

Could not resist the play on words with the snow....

Winter Melon Curry/Olan

This traditional dish  incorporates winter melon, green chillies, coconut milk and a drizzle of coconut oil. Pumpkin alongwith Winter Melon is used to create this simple but very elegant dish.

Olan

Ingredients

1 cup -Winter Melon, cut in thin, fairly square slices!

1 cup- Pumpkin/Butternut Squash, cut  in thin fairly square slices,

1 or more hot green chillies, according to taste

1/4 cup thick coconut milk

Salt

1 tsp -Coconut Oil.

Method

Cook the winter melon and pumpkin in about a cup of water, cooked, not mushy and still retaining its shape.

Season with salt.

Add slit green chillies, simmer for a couple of minutes

Take off the stove/heat.

Add the coconut milk

Drizzle coconut oil and serve.

This dish can be re-invented as a very simple Summer Soup.Another combination uses Black-eyed Peas/ Cowpeas/ Vella Payar.  A final addition of thick coconut milk after the dish is taken off the heat and a drizzle of coconut oil completes the cooking process. 

Winter Melon Soup

Clear Winter Melon Soup

Winter Melon, slit green chillies, crushed whole cloves of garlic and a seasoning of salt creates this simple elegant soup.