Arbi with chana dal
Reviewed by Dr Namrata Bagaria, MBBS, MPH (Harvard)Last reviewed
Arbi is a favourite in a great many households and it is, on its own, largely starch. Eaten as a sabzi with rice or roti it makes a meal that is carbohydrate on carbohydrate, which is the commonest problem with Indian vegetarian plates.
Cooking it with chana dal solves that without changing the character of the dish. You keep the arbi you like and you get a serving of protein and fibre alongside it.
Ingredients
- 250 g arbi (colocasia)
- 1/2 cup chana dal, soaked 2 hours
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 tomato, chopped
- 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp ajwain (carom seeds)
- Salt to taste
- 2 tbsp oil
- Chopped coriander
Method
- 1
Boil the arbi whole until a knife goes in easily, about fifteen minutes. Cool, peel and cut into thick slices. Boiling first is what stops it going slimy.
- 2
Pressure cook the soaked chana dal with a little salt and turmeric for three whistles, until soft but still holding its shape. Drain any excess water and keep it.
- 3
Heat the oil, add the cumin and ajwain, then the onion. Cook until golden.
- 4
Add the ginger garlic paste, tomato, remaining turmeric, coriander powder and salt. Cook until the tomato breaks down.
- 5
Add the arbi slices and let them brown a little on the base of the pan without stirring too much. Then fold in the chana dal and a splash of the cooking water, and simmer five minutes. Finish with coriander.
Good to know
- The ajwain is not decoration here. Arbi is heavy for some people and carom seeds genuinely help with that.
- Boiling the arbi before frying is the whole trick. Raw arbi in hot oil goes sticky and stays sticky.
- Serve with one roti rather than two, and let the dal and the vegetables carry the plate.
- If arbi disagrees with you, the same method works well with raw banana or yam.