Use Winter's Green Tuvar Beans in Lilva ni Kachori
Bhavi Patel uses lilva, or fresh green tuvar beans, to make lilva ni kachori. Green pigeon peas, the poster child of winter, are mashed, enclosed in crisp kachoris with a side of spicy chutney, to make that ultimate luxury on a busy work day — a teatime snack! Find more favourite lockdown recipes from Goya readers here.
RECIPE: LILVA NI KACHORI
Ingredients
500g lilva dana, coarsely crushed (pigeon pas or toor dana)
2 tsp finely chopped green chilies (more if you like it hot)
2 tsp crushed ginger
Salt to taste
Black pepper powder, freshly ground, a pinch
2 tsp sugar (just to cut the tartness of the lemon, this dish is not sweet)
3 tsp lemon juice
3 tbsp roughly chopped coriander leaves
Sesame oil for cooking the stuffing and frying
350g flour
A few raisins (optional)
Method
Heat 2 tbsp sesame oil in a pan
Now, add the crushed green chilies and ginger
Next, add the pigeon peas and salt, and cook until the crushed lilva seeds are tender
Now add in sugar & black pepper powder. Combine well.
Remove from flame, add the lemon juice and coriander leaves. Mix well. Allow the mixture to cool. The stuffing is now ready.
Add some salt to the flour with 1 tbsp oil, and knead into a firm dough, using water as needed. You can add a pinch of black pepper in the dough too, if you like.
Divide the kneaded dough into small balls and roll into puris
Place a small ball of prepared tuvar dana stuffing into the puris, pinch to seal the top firmly. Use some water if needed. The sealing has to be perfect so that the kachoris don’t burst open while frying.
Next, heat the sesame oil for frying
Fry the stuffed kachoris in oil until they are crisp on the outside
Serve hot with some steaming hot tea, tamarind and mint chutney.
Notes from the cook:
Black pepper powder is optional. Black pepper powder is very good for health in winters, so I add some to almost everything I cook in the winters.
My family uses sesame oil to cook everything all through the year. But winter special dishes in Gujarat like Undhiyu, Ubadiyu, etc. But you can use any vegetable oil.
Use fresh tuvar for making these, not frozen or preserved.
Crush the tuvar very coarsely, you still want a little bite. I would suggest putting it into the mixer jar and pulsing it. This is similar to how we crush peas for making nimona.
You can air fry the kachoris or even bake it for a healthier option. But the best and OG way to have this is deep fried.
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