Avarekalu Akki Rotti

Indian beans, or avarekaLu is one of the specialties of South India, especially Karnataka. There are a wide variety of dishes prepared from this bean. The taste, flavor and texture of these beans are just awesome. Almost every other famous regional cuisine here, can be modified to include these beans, which then give an entirely special variety.
Along with making unique dishes with it, you can add these beans to Rasam, Sambhar, Upma, Bisi Bele Bhaath, make pulav out of it, add to lemon rice, so on and so forth. And the most special one is akki rotti with avarekaLu, which is considered as a real specialty. The taste and flavor it adds to the already mouth watering akki rotti is simply unique. Especially when made directly on a skillet, and served hot with a coconut chutney!
Check out the recipe....

Avarekalu Akki Rotti

Preparation time : 15 min Cooking time : ~3 min per rotti Serves : 4 Ingredients: Rice flour - 2 cups Avarekalu/Indian beans - 1 ½ cups Coconut - ½ cup, grated Cumin seeds - 1 tsp, optional Cooking oil - 2-3 Tbsp Ginger - 1 tsp, grated Curry leaves - 2 Tbsp, finely chopped Green chilies - 2-3, optional Coriander - 2 Tbsp, finely chopped Salt - ½ tsp or as per taste Method: • Cook Avarekalu/Indian beans in a pressure cooker with 2 cups of water and ½ tsp of salt for 3 whistles, or till cooked soft • Once cool enough to handle, add rice flour, grated coconut, cumin seeds, chopped coriander and curry leaves, green chilies, grated ginger, more salt if required and mix • Add more water if necessary. Do not make the dough too watery, neither too tight. • The consistency should be soft enough to pat it with fingers easily, without sticking • Take a skillet, preferably non stick, or otherwise a well seasoned one, and smear a teaspoon of oil on the inside, till about ¾ths from the centre • Take a ball of the dough (for a medium sized kadai take a small orange sized ball) and place on the centre • Pat it with your fingers, and spread it evenly till the ¾ths, where oil was already smeared • Make sure that the rotti thus patted is evenly spread. Since it contains beans, it cannot be patted too thin, do don’t worry about that • Smear another teaspoon of oil over it • Place the kadai on medium high flame and cover with a lid/plate • After half a minute, remove the plate and let it crisp for another half a minute as per your choice • Once done, the rotti comes out of the skillet very easily with hardly any effort to remove it manually • Cool the skillet and repeat the same for the other rotties (See tips below) • Serve hot with a coconut chutney Tips n Tricks: • Use at least two skillets if you have to make this for 2 to 4 people. Use one, by the time it is cooking pat on the other. When the second one is cooking, cool the first one and reuse. This way, time can be managed well • To cool the skillet keep it under running cold water, inverted. Do not wet the inside, only outside should get wet and cool • Any sized kadai can be used. The small, iron skillet used for making tempering is the best. Vary the size of the dough taken and the cooking time based on the size • Use tender, fresh Indian beans for the best taste Variations: If you are pressed for time and cannot afford to cool the pans and pat each rotti, then, here’s an alternative: • Use a thick polythene sheet and cut it into a circle of desired size (size that fits on you tawa), or use a plantain leaf • Smear the sheet with oil and pat the dough on it. • Heat the tawa and invert the sheet over and after a few seconds remove and let cook on the tawa on both sides. Meanwhile pat another one and keep ready before removing the first one • This is easier in preparation, saves time and also consumes less resource like heat and water. However, you’ll be compromising a great deal on the taste. I do not say it tastes bad, but the one made on skillet cannot be compared for sure.

Sending this to Akila's event: Dish name starts with A.