French Beans Foogath – Goan Style Green Beans Stir Fry
Course: SidesCuisine: GoanDifficulty: Easy4
servings20
minutes15
minutesA Goan style Green Bean stir fry, simple to put together and packs a big flavour punch
Ingredients
1/4 kg green beans / french beans (approximately)
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
2 chillies, cut into quarters lengthwise
1 onion, peeled and chopped
A little grated coconut
1 tbsp oil
Salt, to taste
Directions
- Prep the green beans by washing them, trimming the ends and chopping into little pieces.
- Heat some oil in a pan.
- Add the mustard seeds.
- When they start spluttering, add the chillies and stir for a few seconds.
- Add the onion and saute till they’ve softened and they start developing a little color.
- Add the green beans and stir well. Stir fry for about a minute.
- Add a little salt and stir through for about another minute.
- Add a couple of small splashes of water. Let the water come to a boil. Lower the heat, cover the pot and let the vegetable cook.
- Check the vegetable in a couple of minutes. Stir and ensure there is sufficient water. Add more water if needed.
- Check for seasoning and adjust if required and let it continue to cook till done.
- When it’s almost done, add the coconut and stir through. Let it cook for another minute or so, to let the coconut warm through.
Serve hot.
Enjoy!!!
Recipe Video
Eeril Fugad / Goan Snake Beans Stir Fry
Every summer, snake beans were at the peak of their season. We didn’t grow this but there was a local farmer in the village who did. And he did a fantastic job of it. I loved and to this day love snake beans. We cook this up in a very simple way, a traditional Goan fugad. A fugad has its roots in Portuguese food. It is a stir fry of vegetables with some spices and seasonings and a sprinkling of fresh grated coconut. Most Goan households still cook their vegetables this way. The snake bean version was my favorite. I volunteered to prep 2 massive bundles every single day. Yes, I managed to convince my mother and aunt that I wanted to eat this every single day while I was there and that I would clean it and get it ready to be cooked myself. Thankfully, they obliged and so someone from that good old farmers household would graciously drop off a couple of bundles at the house on their way to the market. The simplicity of the dish may fool you. But the end result is fantastic. In my humble opinion, it is delicious. The beans turn out tender and sweet I’m sure kids would love it too. I could eat it by itself or with steamed rice or chapatis.
I recently managed to get some gorgeous bundles of snake beans and had to make this fugad again and I thought it was a perfect opportunity to share it with you. So if you can find some good, fresh snake beans or if you grow them yourself, I hope you try this out.
Eeril Fugad / Goan Snake Beans Stir Fry
3 small bundles of snake beans, the fresher the better
1 large onion, diced
2 fresh green / red chillies
Salt, to taste
1/4 cup freshly grated coconut
1 tbsp olive oil
Break off the ends of the snake beans and break off into inch sized pieces. Rinse through and drain and keep aside.
Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat.
Slit the chillies in length, but not all the way through. This way you get all the flavor but not much of the heat.
Let the chillies fry up for a few seconds till they get fragrant.
Add the chopped onions and saute till the onions have softened and get slightly brown on the edges.
Add the snake beans and stir them in for a while. You will see the green color of the beans turn a darker shade.
Add the salt and let the bean stir fry for about 2 minutes.
Add a splash of water, a very small amount to prevent the beans from burning and help them cook through.
Cover the pan and let it cook. Add more water, if needed.
When the beans are almost cooked, add the freshly grated coconut and stir through.
Serve hot as a side dish with some Goan fish curry or prawn curry and rice or with some chapatis.
Some other Fugad recipes –
Cabbage Fugad
Black Channa (Chickpeas) Fugad