Dish of Moth with Green Beans
(click to enlarge)

Moth with Green Beans


India, West   -   Matki Bhaji
Makes:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 4 w/rice
***
1-1/4 hrs
Prep		 A delightful, moderately spiced bean dish, for light main or side. In India, the Moth Beans are always sprouted before cooking, but you can do the dish with well soaked beans.

1/2
6
-----
3
1/2
3
1/2
1
2
1/3
-----
2
1/2
1/2
1/8
1/2
1
c
oz
---
T
in
cl

T

t
--
T
t
t
t
T
t
Moth Beans (1)
Green Beans
-- Paste
Cilantro
Ginger
Garlic
Chili green (2)
Coconut dry
Red Chili dry
Turmeric
------------
Oil
Mustard Seed (3)  
Cumin Seed
Asafoetida (4)
Amchur (5)
Salt
Do-Ahead   -   (6 hrs or 30 hrs - 5 min work)
  1. Wash MOTH BEANS and soak in lightly salted water (skip the salt if you will be sprouting them) for about 6 hours, drain.
  2. IF Sprouting:   Follow instructions given on our Sprouting Bean, Peas, & Lentils page. Sprout them until they have tails about 3/4 inch long. With fresh Moth, this can take as little as 24 hours.
PREP   -   (30 min)
  1. Tip and Tail GREEN BEANS and slice into 1/4 inch lengths.
  2. Bring a pan of water to a boil, add 1/2 t Salt and cook Green Beans until just barely done. Drain and refresh under Cold running water. Drain and set aside.
  3. Chop all PASTE items small and the Ginger fine. Run in a Mixie, Food Processor, or Blender until reduced to a paste. Add just enough water to get a paste consistency.
RUN   -   (40 min)
  1. In a coverable sauté pan, Heat Oil. Stir in Mustard Seed and Cumin Seed. When mustard seeds are popping well, stir in Asafoetida and immediately stir in Paste mix. Fry stirring until aromatic.
  2. Stir in Moth Beans and 1/2 c Water. Cover and simmer over low heat until moth is tender (1/2 hr or so for sprouted, probably more for just soaked). Stir occasionally and check water, it should not be dry.
  3. Stir in Green Beans, Amchur, and Salt. Bring back to a simmer for a few minutes and adjust liquid as needed.
  4. In India this would be served with roti or some other bread. I usually make it a little more liquid and serve with rice. A good quality Sella Basmati goes very well with this (Sella means Par Boiled).
NOTES:

  1. Moth Beans

      These are very tiny beans available only in markets serving and Indian community. for details see our Moth Beans page.

  2. Green Chili

      In India, this might be a Jawala Chili, quite hot. That type of chili is hard to find in North America, so here we use a Serrano, similarly hot. If you want a little more hot, use a whole one. For details see our Indian Chilis page.

  3. Mustard Seeds

      In India, black mustard seeds are always used (except brown in Bengal), but the yellow ones will work if you don't have black.

  4. Asafoetida - Hing:

      This is the resin of a giant fennel plant, used in India by sects forbidden to eat onions or garlic.   Caution: there are two forms: Pure Hing (asafoetida beads or ground) and the more common "Hing Powder". The "powder" is heavily cut with rice flour. The amount given here is for pure asafoetida. Use about 3 times as much if what you have is the "powder" form, and stir into temperings at the last moment. For details see our Asafoetida page.

  5. Amchur

      This is dried powder of Unripe Mango. If you don't have it, substitute 1 t Lemon Juice.
  6. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch tt=to taste ar=as required
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