Raw Banana / Plantain Fry (Vazhakkai Varuval)

Category: Lunch / Poriyal

Preparation Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 15-20 mins
Servings: 2

Hey everyone, how many of you love Raw banana also known as Vazhakkai or plantain?

Vazhakkai / Raw Banana Fry

These versatile veggies are packed with complex carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals, and they’re super easy to digest. They’ve been a favorite of mine since I was a kid. I still remember the simple vazhakkai poriyal with pearl onions and fresh coconut I used to enjoy during my school days.

Back then, we didn’t have the fancy health benefits of veggies explained to us before we ate them. In our hometown, our houses were surrounded by banana trees and coconut trees. And guess what? In most of our dishes, we used fresh coconut, and once a week, we’d have Raw banana, banana flower, and banana stem on our menu. Also, since we’ll be growing small pearl onions in our farm, we used the pearl onions which is also called as "sambar vengayam" in our everyday cooking. The big onions which we’re used to now make a rare appearance in our home then.

After moving to the US, these things have become a bit of a challenge for me when it comes to cooking. We can buy raw banana and plantains here, but banana flowers and banana stems are a bit harder to find. And here, we’re used to using frozen coconut most of the time because it’s so convenient. 

But these won’t stop me from experimenting with my favorite veggie in new ways! Let’s see how to make this vazhakkai varuval with fresh ground masala. These go well with any South Indian meal - Rasam rice, Sambar rice, Morkuzhambu, or curd rice. If you’re like me, you can just enjoy it on its own!

Ingredients:

• Vazhakkai / Plaintain / Raw banana - 2 medium sized
• Onion, thinly sliced- 1 
• Oil - 1 Tbsp
• Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Salt-  to taste
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
• Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp
• Coconut oil - 1 tsp

Vazhakkai Masala Fry (Plantain Spicy Masala Curry)

Category: Lunch / Poriyal
Preparation Time: 10 mins +15 mins marination
Cooking Time: 15 mins
Servings: For 2-3 persons 

Vazhakkai Masala Fry

Ingredients:

• Vazhakkai / Plaintain - 1 big sized / 2 small ones
• Onion, finely chopped - 1 small sized
• Oil - 1 tbsp
• Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Urad dhal - 1/2 tsp
• Channa dhal - 1 tsp
• Curry leaves - few
• Salt-  to taste
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

To Roast and Grind:

• Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
• Red chilly - 2-3 nos (adjust as per spice level)
• Curry leaves - few
• Garlic - 3 pods
• Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
• Pepper - 1 tsp
• Coconut - 3 tbsp

Method:

1. Heat a pan in a low/medium flame and dry roast the coriander seeds and red chilly for 30 secs and then add the garlic pods, curry leaves, fry till we got nice aroma; then add the pepper and cumin seeds fry for few secs
   
2. Switch off and finally add the coconut
   
3. Allow the mixture to cool and grind it to a coarse paste with very little water
4. Peel the skin and chop the plantain into bite sized cubes; keep it in water to prevent browning
5. In a wide bowl, add the ground masala, turmeric powder and salt, mix well
   
6. To this masala, add the  plaintain pieces (without water),Mix well and allow to marinate for atleast 15 mins
   
7. After marination time, heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, Urad dhal, channa dhal and curry leaves and fry till the dhals turn golden brown
   
8. Add the finely chopped onion and fry with a pinch of salt till it becomes transparent
   
9. Then add the marinated plaintain pieces along with 3-4 tbsp of water and cook covered in medium flame till it gets cooked and become soft. Take care not to turn it mushy
   
10. Once the water gets evaporated and the vegetable gets cooked, fry for another min and switch off
    
11. Serve hot with Rice, Sambar or Rasam and also tastes fantastic with curd rice!