Beans poriyal is a quick and tasty South Indian recipe made with tender french beans, savory spices and fresh coconut. This is a dry steamed dish whether the green beans are beautifully cooked until tender with some herbs and spices like mustard seeds, curry leaves, red chilies and later finished with some freshly grated coconut. A healthy side dish that pairs greatly with most South Indian meals.
Poriyal is a South Indian dry vegetable preparation where the veggies are sauteed or steamed with spices and later mixed with fresh grated coconut. You can make poriyal with veggies like cabbage, carrot, beetroot, okra, potato etc.
I make poriyal recipes often as a side dish with sambar or rasam along with rice. Poriyals are easy and quick to make and are healthy vegan side dishes that comes together quickly.
I have already shared few poriyal recipes like:
Beans are a healthy vegetable and I try to include them in various ways. This poriyal recipe is one of those recipes I make often with beans along with Beans thoran, Beans foogath and Aloo beans sabzi.
I suggest to use fresh tender green beans. The beans should snap easily when you break them. This means that they are crisp, fresh and tender.
You can serve beans poriyal with roti, chappati or as a side dish with sambar-rice or rasam-rice combo. It will also go well with dal and rice combo.
How to make Beans Poriyal Recipe
Preparing Green Beans
1. Rinse 225 to 250 grams of french beans for a few times in water very well using a colander. Later drain all the water.
2. Take some beans on the chopping board. Remove the side strings from the beans if you are able to. In some beans the side strings comes of easily and in some they don’t.
3. Then chop them diagonally or straight in ¼ inch pieces. Collect 6 to 7 beans together and chop them. This works faster, than chopping each french bean separately.
You can also use a food chopper or a food processor to chop beans. But ensure that you don’t chop too finely.
4. Keep the chopped french beans aside.
5. Measure and keep all the ingredients ready for making french beans poriyal.
Making Beans Poriyal
6. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a kadai or pan. Keep the heat to a low. Add ¾ teaspoon mustard seeds and ¾ teaspoon urad dal (split husked black gram).
You can use any neutral flavored oil or coconut oil. I like to use coconut oil in this dish.
7. On low heat fry the mustard seeds and urad dal, till the mustard seeds splutter and crackle.
8. When the mustard seeds begin to crackle, you will also see the urad dal changing color. Fry the lentils till they turn into a maroonish red color. Remember not to burn the dal.
9. Add 2 dry red chilies which are broken and deseeded. Also, add 1 sprig of curry leaves (about 10 to 12 curry leaves).
if you don’t have dry red chillies then you can add about ½ teaspoon of chopped green chilies or serrano pepper.
10. Next add ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder and 1 pinch of asafoetida (hing). Mix well.
11. Now add the chopped french beans.
12. Mix very well.
13. Saute for a minute and then add ½ cup water.
14. Also add salt as required. Mix well again.
Cooking Beans
15. Cover the pan with a tight lid. On a low heat simmer the french beans till they are cooked and tender.
16. Check beans poriyal in between whilst cooking. If the water dries up, you can add some more water.
17. Simmer till the french beans have become tender. There should be no water in the pan. If there is water, then cook without the lid till all the water evaporates.
Once the beans are cooked till tender and there is no water in the pan, then add 2 to 3 tablespoon fresh grated coconut.
You can also use frozen coconut or desiccated coconut.
18. Stir and mix very well and then switch off the heat.
21. Serve Beans poriyal hot or warm with sambar and steamed rice or as a side with any South Indian meal. They also taste good with roti or paratha or you can pair it with dal and rice.
Since coconut is added to the recipe, I recommend not to store it as the coconut can become rancid. So eat the poriyal as soon as you make it or within an hour or two depending the temperature and climate in your city.
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Beans Poriyal Recipe
Ingredients
- 225 to 250 grams french beans
- 2 tablespoons oil – any neutral flavored oil or coconut oil
- ¾ teaspoon mustard seeds
- ¾ teaspoon urad dal (split husked black gram)
- 2 dry red chilies – whole or broken and deseeded
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder (ground turmeric)
- 1 pinch asafoetida (hing)
- 1 sprig of curry leaves or 10 to 12 curry leaves
- 2 to 3 tablespoon fresh grated coconut or desiccated coconut or frozen grated coconut
- ½ cup water or add as required
- salt as required
Instructions
Chopping beans
- Rinse the french beans for a few times in a colander with fresh water. Drain all the water.
- Remove the side strings from the beans and then chop them diagonally or in ¼ inch pieces.
Making beans poriyal
- Heat oil in a kadai or pan. Add the mustard seeds and urad dal.
- On a low heat fry the mustard seeds and urad dal. Fry till the mustard splutters and the urad dal turns into a maroonish red. Don't burn the dal.
- Add the dry red chilies, curry leaves, turmeric powder, asafoetida. Mix very well.
- Now add the chopped french beans
- Saute for a minute and then add ½ cup water together with the salt.
Cooking Beans
- Cover the pan with a lid and simmer on a low heat until the french beans are tender and done.
- Check in between while cooking. If the water dries up, you can add some more water.
- Once the beans are cooked till tender and there is no water in the pan, then add the grated coconut.
- Mix well. Switch off the heat.
- Serve the french beans poriyal hot or warm with sambar and steamed rice.
- It also tastes good when eaten with roti or paratha. You can also serve it as a side with South Indian meals or dal and rice.
Notes
- Use fresh tender bright green colored beans that snap easily when broken.
- For a gluten-free version omit adding asafoetida or use gluten-free asafoetida.
- If you don’t have dry red chilies then sub with green chilies. You can add about ½ teaspoon of chopped green chilies or serrano pepper.
- Swap fresh coconut with desiccated coconut or frozen grated coconut. Since the coconut is added, finish this dish in an hour or two.
- The recipe can be scaled easily.
Nutrition Info (Approximate Values)
This Beans Poriyal recipe post from the blog archives (first published in December 2013) has been updated and republished on 29 June 2021.
Hi dassana, I am a big fan of your recipes. Your page is google of almost all Indian recipes.Tried beans poriyal and came out super yummy. My 2 year old was super happy having the yummy dish. Thankyou so much ????
Welcome Akki. Glad to know this. Thanks for your positive feedback.
Hey Dasana, I have been following your recipes and have tried many. They have turned out very well. Thanks for sharing them. While checking french beans poriyal recipe, i had one question. Which coconut will be better dry coconut in powder form or raw coconut?
thanks kanan. for poriyals always add fresh coconut and not the dry coconut. fresh coconut tastes better.
Hi Dassana, I tried this today and it came out well.. light n simple.. Thanks for sharing it. I follow your other recipes too.. Thank you for helping us…. ?
welcome sneha and thankyou so much for your kind words 🙂
Sis I need step by step photos and procedure
in a few recipes posted, there are no step by step photos. i plan to update all these recipes one by one with stepwise pics.
Hi Dassana & Amit,
I discovered your blog yesterday when I was searching for a boiled peas recipe from my childhood using dried green peas. Found something close to it on your blog. I love Indian food, particularly recipes from South India. This bean recipe reminds me of an okra version which I enjoyed growing up in Fiji. My mums Indian friends used to make roti parcels of it. If I try and make it with okra would i need to dry the okra out first as it tends to be quite slimey? That’s assuming I can find okra in Sweden. Haven’t been able to find freshly grated coconut here, i guess dessicated coconut will suffice?
I’m looking forward to trying many of your recipes!
Dawn
thanks dawn. i make okra poriyal too and i will be adding the recipe in some time. you have to cook the okra first. i temper with sesame oil, mustard seeds, urad dal (split & husked black gram), red chilies or green chilies, curry leaves, turmeric and asafoetida. then add chopped okra. the okra has to be sliced in 1/4 inch roundels. add salt and stir. cook the okra uncovered, till the okra is done. stir at intervals to ensure that the okra slices do not get browned. lastly add coconut and stir. you can use desiccated coconut instead of fresh coconut.