Photo: Phadke09 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Tamilnadu · Lunch

Paruppu Usili (பருப்பு உசிலி)

Traditional 9. Paruppu Usili recipe

🧺 Ingredients

• ½ cup chana dal, soaked 2 hours
• ¼ cup toor dal, soaked 2 hours
• 3 dried red chilies
• ¼ tsp asafoetida (hing)
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp sesame oil (for greasing steamer)
• 2 cups fresh green beans (flat beans / cluster beans), cut into 1 cm pieces
• ¼ tsp turmeric
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• ½ tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp urad dal
• 10 curry leaves
• 2 dried red chilies, broken

👩‍🍳 How to make Paruppu Usili

1. Drain soaked chana and toor dal.
2. Grind in a blender with dried red chilies, asafoetida, and cumin seeds — add NO water.
3. Grind to a coarse paste (not smooth — should look like rough hummus with visible pieces).
4. Add ½ tsp salt.
5. Mix.
6. Grease a small steel plate or heatproof bowl with sesame oil.
7. Spread the lentil paste in a thin, even layer (1 cm thick).
8. Steam in a pressure cooker or steamer for 8–10 minutes on high heat until the lentil paste is cooked through — it should feel firm to the touch and look matte-dry (not wet).
9. Remove and cool for 5 minutes.
10. Once cool enough to handle, break the steamed lentil cake by crumbling with your fingers into small, irregular pieces (roughly pea-sized).
11. The crumbled pieces should be dry and hold their shape — this is the "usili."
12. In a pan, cook green bean pieces with ¼ cup water, ¼ tsp turmeric, and ½ tsp salt on medium heat for 4–5 minutes until just tender but still slightly crisp.
13. Drain completely.
14. Heat 2 tbsp sesame oil in a wide kadai over high heat.
15. Add mustard seeds — crackle.
16. Add urad dal — fry golden.
17. Add curry leaves and broken red chilies — sizzle.
18. Add cooked beans — toss 1 minute.
19. Add the lentil crumble.
20. Toss everything together on medium-high heat for 5–6 minutes — the lentil crumbles should dry-fry slightly, turning golden-brown and crispy on the edges while the beans heat through.
21. The dry stir-frying develops the usili's distinctive crunchy exterior.
22. Taste for salt.
23. Serve immediately — paruppu usili loses its crispy texture if it sits.
24. Serve as a side dish on the banana leaf alongside sambar rice.

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