Green bean season is here, and I absolutely love green beans. It was my favorite vegetable growing up. Although I would happily eat them any way – canned, frozen, fresh – I especially loved growing them in our garden. Put a little olive oil or butter and salt on them, and I was in heaven.
As an adult, I will still happily inhale green beans right out of the boiling water, but I also like to sometimes do a little more with them. This is a tribute post to the green bean recipe that I can’t stop making. It is Priya Krishna’s Chickpea Flour Green Beans.
Let’s first begin by talking about Krishna’s cookbook. If you’re the kind of person who says that you don’t like curry and therefore don’t like Indian food, this cookbook is proof that Indian cooking is so much more than the heavy stews that dominate the menus at Indian restaurants. Krishna’s food is fresh, bright, healthy, unpretentious, and very accessible.
Although there are so many amazing recipes in the book, the first time I got it from the library I instantly fell in love with this green bean dish. I love green beans. I love chickpea flour. It was basically love at first sight.
A few notes about chickpea flour
So what is chickpea flour? Chickpea flour is made from processed dry chickpeas. It has been used for centuries in India, Italy, France, and the Middle East. I did not grow up eating it, and mom does not remember my Nonna using chickpea flour, though I highly doubt it was something she would have found in America in the 1950s and 60s when my mom was growing up.
It has become more popular in America in recent years, in large part because of gluten free recipes. I, like so many others, fell in love with it in recent years, but not because of its gluten free status. I just honestly love the flavor. Ever since first using it for socca, I’ve been seeking out recipes that use it – not modern American recipes, but recipes that feel more old-world. This green bean dish is one of them.
Priya Krishna’s Recipe
Full transparency: the first few times I made Krishna’s recipe, it was during the stay at home order, and I was not able to get ajwain seeds, so I used cumin seeds instead. It is amazing with cumin seeds and turmeric and makes a great substitute, if you can’t find the ajwain seeds.
Although I’m going to describe how to make a variation of Krishna’s recipe, I highly recommend making her version too. You can find the recipe online here, but be sure to checkout the cookbook Indian-(ish): Recipes and Antics from a Modern American Family.
My Italian-ish Variation
Because it is summer and my garden is overflowing with herbs, I decided to play around with different variations of Krishna’s recipe. The method I’m describing below is very similar to Krishna’s but takes full advantage of fresh summer herbs. I call it my Italian-ish version.
Begin by heating extra virgin olive oil in a large non-stick sauté pan over medium to medium-low heat. A few drizzles will do. Add one small diced yellow onion and sauté for about five minutes or until soft. Add 1 or 2 large cloves of garlic (minced), one sprig of thyme leaves (stem removed), and the leaves of 2 sprigs of fresh oregano (about a tablespoon). Sauté for another minute.
Now add about a pound of fresh green beans (stems removed). Sprinkle everything with a generous pinch of kosher salt, several grinds of black pepper, and some red pepper flakes (to taste but I love these with a bit of a kick). Add a heaping ¼ cup of chickpea flour and ⅓ cup of water. Give the beans a good stir until they’re all coated with the chickpea flour mixture. Add a little more water, if needed. Cover the pan and let the green beans cook for about 5 – 7 minutes. Do not stir the green beans during this time.
Once the green beans are tender, stir them and scrap up any brown bits of chickpea flour that have formed on the bottom of the pan. Let everything cook for another minute or two and then squeeze a little lemon juice on top. Taste to see if it needs more salt or lemon. Try not to eat the entire pan (as I am always tempted to do).
Serve with fresh basil or parsley on top. Enjoy!
