Ussal & Missal ( mixed bean sprouts cooked with spices)

I have always been fond of the Maharashtrian dishes ussal and missal. They also happen to be famous Mumbai street food. Ussal is  mixed bean sprouts cooked with spices in a spicy, onion-tomato sauce and missal is when ussal is served with a topping of savory mixture ( the Indian chex-mex), finely chopped onions and cilantro and some lemon juice. It is usually paired with Pav ( roll) that has been pan-toasted with butter. It took me a long time to understand the difference between the two and even longer to find an easy recipe to cook it! A few year ago, when I looked up online for recipes, I was overwhelmed with the sheer number of steps involved in making this dish! Most stated that a specific Ussal/missal masala is required for this dish! Every time I visited Mumbai, I used to ask my aunt ( who has been living in Mumbai for more than 45 years for ussal/missal masala and she would look at me perplexed! She had not heard of any such thing! Recently a colleague of mine who is from Mumbai finally brought me Kolhapuri missal masala packet. Believe it or not , the package came with two small packets inside and a whole bunch of instructions and steps which were so tedious that it just took away the fun of making it ! My  quest for an easy, simple missal recipe continued...until my virtual brothers came to my rescue! One of the groups that I belong to on Facebook is the Konkan Coastal Cuisines and Beverages ( KCCB), where in like-minded people share recipes that are predominantly from the Konkan region of India. My two virtual brothers ( wonderful members ) of the group: Suresh Sawant and Prasad Naik shared their very user-friendly recipes for ussal and missal. I tried it and found it to be so easy, simple and user-friendly that I have not looked for any more ussal/missal recipes! Today I am going to share this recipe with you. Try it . I bet you will go back to it over and over again!

Servings: 4-6 ( 1 cup missal per person served with one Pav)

Ingredients:

For the Ussal:

Green Mung-bean sprouts: 1 cup
Black chick pea sprouts: 1 cup
Coconut oil: 1 tbsp ( any cooking oil can be used)
Onions: 2, medium-sized, finely chopped.
Ginger-garlic paste: 1 tbsp
Turmeric powder: 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder: 1 tbsp
Jeera( cumin) powder: 1/2 tbsp
Red chilli powder: 1/2 tsp ( can be modified as per individual spice tolerance)
Tomatoes: 2, medium sized, finely chopped.
*Kolhapuri masala: 1 tsp ( can add more based on preferred spice level).
Garam masala: 1/2 tsp
Salt: as per individual taste.
Water: 4 cups ( can be adjusted as per individual gravy preference).

* if you don't have Kolhapuri masala, just add a little Kashmiri-chilli powder,and a little more coriander, jeera powder and garam masala powder.

For the Missal:

Onion: 1 medium, finely chopped
Fresh coriander leaves( cilantro), chopped:1/4 cup
Lemon wedges: from one lemon
Mixture: 1 cup, any combination will do .
Pav ( rolls): 4-6 ( one per person)

Method:

Cook the chickpeas ( Chana) in the pressure cooker with 2 cups of water for 15 minutes on low flame after you hear the first whistle. Turn off the flame. Do not open the cooker until the pressure has been completely released. Once you open it, separate the chickpeas from the water and keep aside. Do not discard the water.

In a different pot, cook the mung-bean sprouts with two cups water until tender( around 15 mins). Turn off the flame. Separate the cooked sprouts and water . Keep aside. Do not discard the water.

Heat oil in a kadai/ sauté pan. Add chopped onions. Add a little salt Sauté until they start to sweat. 

Now add ginger garlic paste and sauté for couple of minutes. Next, add turmeric powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, red chilli powder, goda masala/ Kolhapuri masala, garam masala one after the other, sautéing for a few seconds after the addition of each one. 

Next, add the chopped tomatoes. Sauté on low flame until the tomatoes start to leave oil.

Now, add the cooked sprouts and mix well. 

Add the water that was kept aside after removing the cooked sprouts. Add enough water to dilute it to your desired thinness of the gravy( sauce). Do not dilute it too much. Bring it to a boil. 

Garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves.

Ussal is ready!

Putting it together to make Missal:

Take ussal in a bowl. Top it with some mixture ( farsaan) , finely chopped onions and cilantro . Serve with a wedge of onion on the side. This is usually served in combination with ladi pav ( bread roll). In the picture, I have paired it with regular sliced bread as I didn't have pav on hand.

Enjoy! I am bringing this to Angie's Fiesta Friday#93 where two wonderful bloggers are co-hosting: Jhuls@the not co creative cook and Kaila@GF Life 24/7


I am also linking this to Throwback Thursday # 13 and Saucy Saturdays # 19.

Cooking made easy:

You could cook the sprouts together in the pressure cooker, but chances are that some of the sprouts like moong bean will be overcooked and mushy.

The leftover water from cooking the sprouts can be made into a saaru ( soup). You can find the recipe here.

Tip for healthy living:

Beans are much healthier when sprouted as sprouting increases the bio-avavailability of the nutrients in it.

Food for thought:

Power is like being a lady.. if you have to tell people you are, you aren't. Margaret Thatcher

Moong bean sprouts pulao/ pilaf

Ever since I was little I remember my mother making sprouts and curries using the sprouts. There is a very traditional konkani dish that is made called muga ghashi which translates to moong bean sprout curry. You can find the recipe for the same here. My mother also makes moong bean sprout salad. I use moong bean in a variety of dishes. This time I decided to make pulao/ pilaf with it and I must say that it was really good. I regularly make pulao. But this time I wanted to make something that the kids would eat too. I was pleasantly surprised when my kids ate the pulao without even noticing it!  Mission accomplished! This is a very quick and simple recipe wherein one can utilize leftover cooked rice. It is also a great way to get your children to eat healthy. This is a one pot meal that can be had for breakfast, lunch or dinner.I am bringing this to my friend Angie's Fiesta Friday #88! A party I try not to miss! To top it, my friends Julie@ Hostess at heart and Liz @ Spades, spatulas and spoons are co-hosting this week!

Servings: 4-6 ( 1.5 cups per person)

Ingredients:

Cooked rice : 4 cups
Moong bean sprouts: 2 cups
Sliced mushrooms: 1 cup
Coconut oil: 1 tbsp
Onion: 1 medium-sized, chopped
Cloves: 2 nos
Cinnamon: 1 inch stick
Cardamom: 1-2 pods
Bay leaf: 1 small
Cumin seeds( jeera): 1/2 tsp
Green chillies: 1-2 , chopped fine, adjust as per individual taste.
Bell pepper ( capsicum): 1 small, diced small.
Cilantro, chopped: 1/4 cup for garnishing

Method:

Heat oil in a sauté pan/ kadai. Add cumin seeds, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom and bay leaves, one after the other. Sauté for 10-15 seconds.

Now add the chopped onions and cook it until it turns a little golden in color.

Add the chopped green chillies, moong bean sprouts and salt. Cook until the moong beans are partially cooked.

Add in the mushrooms and bell peppers and sauté for 2 minutes. 

Add in the cooked rice and toss well until everything is nicely mixed. 

Add/garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve hot with a raita of your choice.

Served with cucumber slices and easy chicken curry.

Cooking made easy:

Whenever I make sprouts, I cook it for 10 mins on the stove top or until slightly tender and then store it in the fridge to use as needed. You could make a lot of things with that, for example: salad, ghashi, pulao etc.

Tip for healthy living:

Experts recommend 4-5 servings of vegetables daily.You can increase the vegetable servings in your family's diet by trying to incorporate veggies into everything that you cook. If you are making sambar, you can add a lot of veggies, instead of just a little. If you are making one-pot dishes like pulao, fried rice, noodles, pasta, try to incorporate more vegetables into it. If your family is not used to eating vegetables, start by adding 1-2 vegetables that have been finely chopped and then gradually increase the number of vegetables added over a period of time.

Food for thought:

Anything unattempted remains impossible. Unknown

Muga Ghashi ( Sprouted Moong beans in coconut sauce)

Muga ghashi is a favorite in konkani households. It is my mother's all-time favorite. She pretty much makes it every other week. So what exactly is this dish? "Mugu" is moong beans in konkani and "ghashi" refers to the kind of coconut sauce it is in. Mugu here spegifically refers to the sprouted moong beans that are so tiny to begin with. Think of the sheer amount of work that it takes to peel each single one if them! I know of only one person who diligently does it! Who?? My mother of course!! She will sit and patiently peel each and every one of them! Can you believe that?? Well she does! This is the deal with her. She does not like a single moong bean peel in her muga ghashi. You will never see a hint of green in her muga ghashi. Now are you wondering if I have taken over my mother's skills?? NO! I could not have such patience in a million years!! I have adopted my mother-in-law's policy. Cook the sprouted moong with the peel! Ha ha! And to think that I used to hesitate to make this favorite dish of mine just thinking about the sheer amount of work! Now I get some fiber too in my diet:). When you cook the sprouts in water, the peel floats up top. You can scoop the peel and remove it. Whatever peel is left, you eat. But the authentic way to make this dish is by removing the individual peel from all the moong beans. Remember, your mother is always right!

Now, for this dish you could add any of the following as an accompaniment: suran( yam), keerlu( tender bamboo shoots), bikand(jackfruit seed),kook( chinese potato), cauliflower, tendle( gherkin), simebadane( chayote) or even potato. Each one gives the dish a nice unique taste. My favorite is with the tender bamboo shoots and with Chinese potatoes. Today, I will share with you the dish I made by combining sprouted moong beans with tender bamboo shoots.

Servings: 4-6

Ingredients:

Sprouted moong beans: 3 cups
Tender bamboo shoots: 1 cup, cleaned and chopped into medium pieces.
Salt to taste.
Water: 2 cups + 1 cup

For the coconut masala/gravy/ sauce:
Grated fresh coconut: 1 cup
Dry Red chillies:4-5 nos ( depends on the spice level of; the chilly).
Tamarind: marble sized if dry, 1/2tsp if pulp.
Water: 3/4 cup( can add more if needed)

For tempering:Mustard seeds: 1 tsp
Curry leaves: 1 sprig
Coconut oil: 1 tsp ( any cooking oil can be used.)

Method:

Grind all the ingredients listed under coconut gravy and keep aside.

Cook sprouted moong beans with 2 cups water in a pot on medium flame until tender. Generally around 20-25 minutes. Keep aside.

Cook tender bamboo shoots with 1/2 cup water in a pot until tender.Around 8-10 minutes. Keep aside.

When all the above are ready, mix it all together in pot big enough to hold it all. Now place it on medium heat and bring it to a boil. Once boiled, switch of the flame. Temper with the ingredients listed under tempering.

Tempering:
In a small frying pan, heat coconut oil, add mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds splutter, add the curry leaves.Add it to the above pot.

Note: some people add 1/4 tsp jeera( cumin seeds) to the tempering.

Some people temper with fried chopped onions. I prefer the taste of mustard and curry leaves.

Serve hot with rice.

Enjoy!

Cooking made easy:

One of the easy ways to peel the skin off the sprouted moong beans is by soaking it in water. Soak the sprouts in cold water for 3-4 hours. You will see the the peel separates from the seeds and floats up on top. Scoop it up. There might be a few stubborn ones that might be required to be manually peeled.

Tip for healthy living:

Sprouts are very nutrient-dense.Apparently the quality of the protein, the fiber content, essential fatty acid content  and vitamin content in the beans improves upon sprouting. There are 100 times more enzymes in sprouts than uncooked fruits and vegetables.They are easy to make at home, and are by far the best locally-grown food.

Food for thought:

Absence- that common cure of love. Lord Byron