Power up with Protein rich yard beans stir fry

Protein! That ever important ingredient. If you are a vegan, I’m sure you have spent a fair bit of time trying to get more protein in your diet. 

So how do the vast majority of Indians manage to get protein in food without going stir crazy, without reading food labels or without trying too hard and without relying on supplements? I’ll share my secret: take it in directly through food. Make green beans a staple.

As a kid I’d love these yard beans whenever my aunt made it for me. I seemed to intuitively know & trust innocently in my body’s intelligence. I’d happily take a bowl of these beans and have just that with a dollop of yoghurt. That’s all I needed to keep me going. It kept me full without being heavy. I imagine the yogis in the Himalayas eating similar fare so that they can fuel the body lightly to keep their mind clear.

Now as an adult, I learn that these foods are best for our body. Light and yet nutritious they fuel us up to keep going.

Eating heavy foods comes at a price. Our bodies take about 1-4 hours to digest food. The heavier the food, the longer they stay in our digestive tract. The longer they stay in our digestive tract, the less energy we have to do other things. Our whole body’s attention is turned towards digestion and there is very little energy left for mental activity or even performing physical activity. Ever felt a headache when you ate too much? this is why.

Last bonus point – these yard beans are really tasty, and they grow above soil so they get lots of direct energy from the sun that is life giving energy. Try more above ground vegetables in the summer, keep root vegetables for cool weather substance and warmth In cool weather.

2 cups loosely packed yard long beans, cut delicately

Spice Garnish 1 tbsp grated coconut ½ tsp mustard seeds 1 tbsp coconut oil 1 tsp curry leaves 2 dry red chilies 1 tsp urad dal Pinch hing Salt to taste

Method
• Wash yard beans thoroughly. Then cut finely into delicate and small rings. The smaller you cut it the tastier these beans are.
• Steam the beans. I use a stainless steel collapsible steamer within a pressure cooker, but you can easily use a bamboo steamer or any other way to steam. Set aside beans when lightly crisp.
• Heat frying pan. Add coconut oil, then mustard seeds, when they splutter add urad dal, curry leaves, red chillies split in two and hing. Saute lightly.
• Toss the steamed yard beans in the pan, allow to coat with spice mix.
• Add salt. I’m addicted to Himalayan sea salt and would highly recommend that, even if its on the expensive side. You need very little and its good for you unlike the iodised table salt that’s full of chemicals.
• Stir in grated coconut and you’re done.
• See how easy that was. The biggest job here is cutting the yard beans.
• Serve with whole grain chapatis.

This simple yet delectable stir fry with yard beans is my personal favorite in the green bean kingdom. Actually, who am I kidding? I’ll happily eat any kind of green beans and there are several that I’ve tried thanks to growing up in New Delhi.

These beans keep you filled up in a healthy and light way, plus they are delicious when served with whole grain chapatti. Never made chapati before, then try this step by step post I wrote up.

–charuyoga–

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