Drumstick leaves Stir-Fry with Moong
Drumstick leaves stir-fry with moong beans is a healthy Indian side dish that can be eaten as a standalone meal too. The stir-fry is a quick preparation, but moong dal requires prepping – it has to be soaked overnight and cooked before using it in this recipe.
Drumstick leaves are very popular in South India and have a separate fanbase. The leaves are considered hot for the body and very nutritious. So mixing it with moong beans, which is considered cold for the body provides an excellent balance. But if you are not a moong fan, consider replacing it with cooked toor dal or split pigeon pea. Taste-wise, both combinations are great!
I hope you try this healthy vegan recipe. If you do so, let me know how you liked it in the comments. Enjoy!
Check out more recipes here: Stir-fry recipes
Drumstick leaves Stir-Fry with Moong
Equipment
- Cooking pot for boiling moong beans
- Strainer
- Cooking pan with lid
Ingredients
- 150 g moong beans soaked overnight or for 8 hours and drained
- 3 cups drumstick leaves (1 cup measurement = 180g)
- 2 tbsp coconut oil or vegetable oil
- ½ tsp mustard seeds
- 2-3 dried red chilies split into halves
- 5-6 curry leaves
- a pinch of asafetida
- 1 small red onion chopped
- 1 clove garlic minced
- salt to taste
- 600 g water or enough to cook moong beans
Instructions
- Into a cooking pot, add soaked and drained moong beans along with water and a pinch of salt. Cook this on medium heat until moong is tender yet firm. (Avoid over cooking it to the extent that it becomes mushy) Drain out water and keep cooked moong aside.Alternatively, you could use a pressure cooker to expedite cooking. But for that moong beans have to soaked only for 3-5 hours and they would be done in 2-3 whistles. Soaking them overnight and pressure cooking will make them mushy and that's not what we need for this recipe.
- Heat coconut oil in a cooking pan on medium heat. Add mustard seeds and allow them to pop. Then add curry leaves, dried red chili and asafetida.
- Add the minced garlic plus chopped onion and sauté them for a minute. Transfer the drumstick leaves into the cooking pan and stir-fry for 3-4 minutes until the leaves are tender and cooked.
- Now transfer cooked moong mean into the pan, add salt to taste and gently stir to mix well. (Feel free to add 2-3 tbsp of grated coconut at this point, if you like). Continue cooking for another minute or so and turn off heat.
- Serve it warm as a side-dish with rice-dal or enjoy it as is!
Notes
- If you need to know how to prep drumstick leaves, you will find many videos on YouTube. Linking some here – https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=cleaning+drumstick+leaves
- Toor dal is a good replacement for moong beans. But it should be cooked rightly – lentils should be cooked yet firm not mushy.
- Garnish this healthy stir-fry with 2-3 tablespoons of grated coconut for enhanced flavor.