Recipe: Magical Soy-Garlic Beans

We all have vegetables we hate. Could be doodhi. Or snake gourd. Maybe peas. Perhaps baingan (eggplant) or karela. Some member of the sabzi family that you find repulsive.

But hey, don't blame the vegetable.

The reason you don't like it is because you haven't found a recipe to bring out its best side. For every, single veggie there is the right recipe out there in the universe to magically make it taste like gourmet fare.

Here's that kind of recipe for beans, in case there are bean haters around. These crunchy Steamed Soy Garlic Beans are healthy and delicious and can be eaten even just as a snack by themselves.

Steamed Soy-Garlic Beans

Serves: 2-3

Ingredients

• 250 gm French beans
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• Few pinches salt (add carefully, soy has salt as well)
• Pinch red chilly powder
• Pinch black pepper powder
• Dash jaggery powder
• 3-4 tbsp finely chopped garlic
• 2 tbsp extra virgin oil
• 2 tbsp grated cheese, optional

 Method

• Top and tail the beans.
• Steam the beans in a double boiler over boiling water for 7-10 minutes till the beans slightly change colour.
  Keep aside.
• In a non-stick frying pan or heavy-bottomed kadhai, fry the chopped garlic in the olive oil over medium heat for 2-3 minutes till the garlic lightly browns.
• Add in the beans and toss lightly.
• Add a little salt if required.
  Add the soy, jaggery, black pepper powder, red chilly powder and mix and fry the beans for 3-4 minutes more.
• Take off heat, sprinkle cheese on top and serve warm as side with pasta or fried rice or with soup. 

Zelda's Note: If you have an open bottle of red wine hanging about, add a dash, like 2 tbsp, when you add the soy. It adds some phenomenal extra zing.

These beans can also be made in the air fryer.

Instead of steaming the beans, after top and tailing them, place in the air fryer container and drizzle 1 tbsp olive oil over them and cook in the air fryer for six minutes at 200 C.

After six minutes, open the air fryer and sprinkle the soy, salt, chilly powder, jaggery, black pepper powder, grated cheese (optional), and 1 tbsp garlic paste (not chopped garlic) and toss lightly.

Cook the beans in the air fryer for a further 4-5 minutes at the same termperature and remove and serve hot.

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