Indian cooking
Indian cooking / Dishes / Gujarati Choli Nu Shaak
Gujarati Choli Nu Shaak (Green Beans with Carom Seeds, Chilli and Coriander)

Gujarati Choli Nu Shaak

Green Beans with Carom Seeds, Chilli and Coriander
VegetarianOrigin West

A dry Gujarati-style shaak of green beans and potatoes coated in a carom-seed and chilli tempering. It tastes savoury and lightly spicy, with a warm aroma from the spices and a little sweetness from the sugar.

Tempering spices

8 gStirred into the hot oil at the start (step 2)
01
2 g1 teaspoon
spice
02
3 g1 teaspoon
spice
04
1.7 g1 teaspoon
spice
Keep the carom seeds whole and the coriander seeds coarsely crushed; add all four spices to the hot oil together.

Everything else

01
40 g3 tablespoons
oil/fat
02
Potato · Aloopeeled and cubed
250 g
vegetable
03
149 g150 ml
liquid
04
Green bean · Phalitrimmed and quartered
400 g
vegetable
05
4.2 g1 teaspoon
sweetener
06
to taste
herb
07
to taste
salt

Method

  1. Warm 40.5 g vegetable oil in a frying pan over medium heat.
  2. Add the tempering spices (2 g carom seed, 3 g ground turmeric, 1.3 g kashmiri chilli powder and 1.7 g coarsely crushed coriander seeds) and stir for a few seconds, until the carom seeds sizzle.
  3. Add 250 g potato and turn it through the spiced oil for 1 minute.
  4. Pour in 149 g water, cover and cook for 4–5 minutes, until the potato is partly tender.
  5. Add 400 g green bean and 4.2 g granulated sugar, then add salt to taste; cover and cook over low heat for 6–7 minutes, until the beans are tender, stirring once halfway.
  6. Scatter over coriander leaf, to taste, before taking the pan off the heat.

Don't have something?

Vegetable oil
  • Peanut oil

    Use 1:1 by weight. Handles high-heat frying identically and introduces a very subtle, pleasant nuttiness.

  • Ghee

    Use 1:1 by weight. Yields a much richer, authentic aroma and a glossy, heavier mouthfeel.

  • Mustard oil

    Use 1:1 by weight. Heat until smoking, then cool slightly before cooking to temper its intensely pungent, sharp mustard kick.

Carom seed
  • Carom seeds

    Use the same weight; this is the same seed under its other name.

  • Carom seed paste

    Use the same weight; looser and stronger, so add near the end and taste.

  • Cumin seed

    Use half the weight, lightly crushed; gives a warm aroma but not carom's thyme-like punch.

Ground turmeric
  • Ground ginger

    Use 50% of the weight. Mimics turmeric's warm, earthy, rhizome background, but provides none of the golden-yellow colour.

  • Saffron

    Steep a tiny pinch (0.1 g per 2 g turmeric) in 2 tbsp warm water; use to match the rich golden hue. Contributes an aristocratic, honeyed floral flavour rather than earthy bitterness.

Kashmiri chilli powder
  • Dried kashmiri chilli

    Grind deseeded dried pods to an equal weight of powder; gives identical vivid red colour and gentle warmth.

  • Red chilli powder

    Use 25% of the weight mixed with sweet paprika for colour; straight red chilli powder is substantially hotter and will make the dish fiery.

  • Chilli powder

    Use one-third of the weight; the sauce will be less intensely red and notably sharper in heat.

Coriander seeds
  • Ground coriander

    Use 75% of the weight; stir in along with wet masala or tomato purée rather than frying in hot oil, as the fine powder burns instantly.

  • Cumin seed

    Use 50% of the weight for tempering in hot oil. Lacks the floral, sweet citrus flavour of coriander, introducing warm, pungent earthiness instead.

  • Fennel seed

    Use 50% of the weight in tempering; provides pleasant aromatic sweetness, though noticeably aniseedy rather than citrusy.

Potato
  • Eggplant

    Use equal weight. Cut into large chunks; cooks down much faster (10-12 minutes) and softens into the sauce rather than staying starchy and firm.

  • Paneer

    Use 80% of the weight. Cube and add in the last 5-10 minutes of cooking; adds rich dairy protein instead of starchy bulk.

  • Dried chickpea

    Use 45% dry weight. Soak overnight and boil until fully soft before stirring into the sauce to simmer for 10 minutes.

Water
  • Stock

    Use the same weight in savoury dishes; it adds body, so adjust salt.

  • Milk

    Use the same weight only in doughs or creamy dishes; it makes the result richer.

  • Coconut water

    Use the same weight in curries or rice; it adds sweetness and a faint coconut taste.

Green bean
  • French bean

    Use the same weight, top and tail; same result.

  • French green bean

    Use the same weight; same result.

  • Cluster bean

    Use the same weight, cut into lengths; firmer and earthier, cook slightly longer.

Granulated sugar
  • Jaggery

    Use equal weight; grate or shave finely so it dissolves rapidly, giving a warm, caramel-like sweetness and slightly darker sauce.

Coriander leaf
  • Coriander

    Use equal weight finely chopped; this is the exact same fresh herb.

  • Mint

    Use half the weight finely chopped; provides vibrant green freshness, though the flavour profile becomes noticeably cooler and sharper.

Similar dishes

Sarasondane wali Phali aur Alu
Green Beans & New Potatoes in Mustard Seed Curry
Sarasondane wali Phali aur Alu tastes tangy from tomato and earthy from mustard seed, while this dish tastes dry, savoury and lightly spicy with carom-seed aroma and a little sweetness.
  • Same: Sarasondane wali Phali aur Alu shares green beans, potatoes, vegetable oil and ground turmeric with this dish.
  • Different: Sarasondane wali Phali aur Alu uses new potatoes, a large amount of tomato, black mustard seed, ground cumin and dried red chilli flakes, and it lacks this dish's carom seed, coriander seed and sugar, making it a wet curry rather than a dry shaak.
Shengdana Beanschi Bhaji
Chargrilled Green Beans with Roasted Peanuts, Sesame Seeds, Chilli & Lemon
Shengdana Beanschi Bhaji tastes smoky, nutty and citrusy with a chilli edge, while this dish tastes savoury, lightly spicy and slightly sweet with a carom-seed aroma.
  • Same: Shengdana Beanschi Bhaji shares green beans, vegetable oil, Kashmiri chilli powder and coriander seeds with this dish.
  • Different: Unlike this dish, Shengdana Beanschi Bhaji adds peanuts, sesame seeds, garlic and lemon and omits potato, carom seed, turmeric, sugar and water, and it is chargrilled rather than tempered.
Lucknowi Khatte Aloo
Spiced Potatoes with Pomegranate Powder, Ginger and Green Chilli
Lucknowi Khatte Aloo tastes tart from anardana and gently hot from green chilli, while this dish is lightly spicy and sweet with a warm carom-seed aroma.
  • Same: Lucknowi Khatte Aloo shares vegetable oil, turmeric, Kashmiri chilli powder, sugar, salt, water, coriander leaf and potato with this dish.
  • Different: Lucknowi Khatte Aloo uses cumin seed, asafoetida, fresh ginger, green bird’s eye chilli and anardana powder, and it has no green beans, carom seeds or coriander seeds; this dish uses carom seeds, coriander seeds, green beans and more potato.
Aloo ke Gutake
Potatoes Tempered with Cumin
It tastes pungent from mustard oil and gently warm from cumin and dried red chilli, without the carom-seed aroma or slight sugar sweetness of this dish.
  • Same: Aloo ke Gutake shares potatoes, turmeric, salt and a dry oil-tempered cooking style with this dish.
  • Different: It uses mustard oil, cumin seed and dried red chilli, while this dish uses vegetable oil, carom seed and Kashmiri chilli powder; it lacks green beans, sugar and added water.