I love vegetables. I eat at least one vegetable dish with every meal. I like my vegetables very simple, not overcooked or over spiced. I try to keep them as simple as possible. Mostly I cook them in a stir-fry with basic Indian spices but I also love them boiled, roasted, steamed or baked.
Here’s one more vegetable dish from my kitchen. Indian flat beans are a family favourite. They have a slightly bitter yet sweet taste. Soft when cooked well and crunchy when raw they are wonderful both ways. In this it’s simple boiled with a tempering of garlic and cumin. 
I cooked the flat beans till soft but you can also just blanch them if you want to retain the crunch. Don’t throw away the water it was cooked in. Use it in soups and curries for extra flavor and nutrition. I used an entire pod of garlic. Use more or less depending on your taste.
Though it doesn’t sound fancy, it tasted so good! Leave the cumin out if you are not too crazy about it but I really loved the nutty flavours of it with the pungent garlic. Though I typically serve veggies like these with rice and curry, this one was better as a warm salad. My husband can eat a huge bowl full of this for lunch.
PrintWarm Flat Beans Salad
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 3-4 servings 1x
Description
This warm flat beans salad features sweet and slightly bitter Indian flat beans boiled and topped with nutty cumin and lots of garlic, making for a flavorful and simple dish.
Ingredients
- 1 bunch of Indian flat beans
- 1-2 tablespoons oil
- 1 whole pod of garlic
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- Clean the flat beans by cutting off both ends and removing the fiber on both sides.
- Place the beans in a pot of salted water and bring to a boil. Cook until the beans are slightly soft, about 5 minutes. Strain the beans and reserve the cooking water for soups or curries.
- Peel and crush the garlic in a pestle and mortar.
- Heat oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and let them sizzle for a few seconds until fragrant.
- Add the crushed garlic to the pan and sauté for 1-2 minutes until golden brown and aromatic.
- Add the boiled flat beans to the pan and stir well to coat them with the garlic and cumin mixture. Cook for another 2-3 minutes until the beans are heated through.
- Serve warm as a salad or as a side dish with rice and curry.
Notes
You can blanch the beans instead of boiling them to retain their crunch. The cooking water can be reused in soups or curries for added flavor. Adjust the amount of garlic to suit your taste. If you prefer, you can omit the cumin seeds.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Side Dish
- Cuisine: Indian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 120
- Sugar: 2
- Sodium: 150
- Fat: 9
- Carbohydrates: 10
- Fiber: 4
- Protein: 3
- Cholesterol: 0
The flat beans look a little like snow peas or sugar snaps that you can find in the US. I really like your flavors.