Badami Hariyali

Last weekend we had a farewell party for one of our close friends. It was a potluck party and i took kesar pista rasmalai and this deliciously sinful curry. Initially i thought of making Methi Malai Mutter as its a breeze to make and tastes rich but as i started making i realized i was out of cashews which is the key to make the curry rich and creamy. In such crisis what does one do? Think out of the box..so i put on my thinking cap and thought of various alternatives, after all it was question of 20 empty stomachs :) Few years earlier at one of our family gatherings i had tasted a mix veg curry made with almond paste and it was pretty darn good. So I made few changes to my methi malai mutter and came up with Badami Hariyali. You must have guessed why the name badami, the gravy is made with skinned almonds with onions and as i have used only green vegetables so the word hariyali :)

Verdict? It was fantastic, everybody loved it, few of them also asked me for the recipe and it was over in no time! I would consider this as a BIG hit. Its perfect with naan and phulkas or you can even enjoy it with pulav or jeera rice, whichever way you choose you will surely crave for more!

This is my entry to OriginalRecipes event by Lori.

Ingredients:

5 big white onions, quatered

3-4 green chillies

1/2 cup almonds skinned

2 tsp ginger paste

1/3 cup fresh coriander leaves

1/2 cup methi leaves finely chopped (I used dried ones)

1 cup green beans, chopped boiled

1 cup frozen green peas

2 tbsp fresh cream

2-3 tsp sugar

1 tsp cumin powder

2 bay leaf

2 whole star anise

2 tbsp of oil

Salt to taste

Some fresh crumbled paneer for garnishing

Procedure:

• Grind together almonds, onions, coriander leaves, green chillies and ginger paste with little water into a smooth fine paste.
• In a big vessel heat oil along with star anise and bay leaf for about a min.
• Now add in the onion and almond paste and fry for 2 to 3 mins until the raw onion smell disappears.
• Now add in methi leaves, green peas, salt, sugar and cumin powder and cook for 7 to 8 mins.
• Add the boiled green beans with fresh cream and cook for another 2 to 3 mins.
• Adjust salt and sugar as required.
• Drizzle little cream on top and garnish with fresh crumbled paneer.
• Serve hot with naan and enjoy this creamy and rich goodness!

Luv