Some vegetables are just more popular than others. People positively moan at the mention of mushrooms, others recount their favourite tomato sauce recipe immediately when asked. But when was the last time you craved green beans? I don’t think they conjure the harsh dislike that mushrooms or tomatoes can either, but I get the sense that people feel lukewarm toward them for the most part. For me, green bean greatness is are all about how they are cooked. I have three favourites.
There is a Hakka method where they are fried, or rather poached in oil and doused in salty black beans. There are my mom’s fried beans, which are chopped finely and sauteed with onions till sweet and brown. But best of all are these, her curried beans.
These beans on a bed of rice make a completely satisfying and addictive dinner on their own. If you’re making them in a hurry, you can line the beans up and dice them, but cutting them on a (not-too-thin) bias is more flattering and the texture in the finished dish is superior too. You’ll probably find, as I did, that the only way to get there is to cut one, maybe two at a time, which takes a little longer. Worth it for when you’re making a special dinner, like when you’re serving these with yellow rice.
This story and the recipe that goes with it can be found in “SRI LANKAN YELLOW RICE FEAST”, ISSUE 010 of Le Sauce Magazine! Get it here: http://www.lesauce.com/app