Upkari

Upkari is a simple non fussy vegetable side dish found at every konkani meal. Its easy to make and goes well with plain rice daal , or even fish curry.As kids we visited Goa very often.When I say 'very often' I mean at any and almost every vacation. Infact even on a long weekend , mum would grab us and make a dash to Goa, her native place. Between loong morning swims on the beach and splashing around in the stream in the afternoons, there would be a meal of fish curry rice and sol kadhi ( kokum kadhi). After that would be a loong snooze for mum ( back into the water for us ). While we Mumbai kids were used to rotis, mum hated the very thought of them, specially the gujju in my dad insisted on tiny phulkas and she'd have to make a heap of them. Sorry , but i digress. Now every place we were invited to for lunch/ dinner in Goa, a constant was the upkari. And most often than not it was the alsande ( chawli/ yard long beans) upkari. I came to completely hate the sight of it. The funny part was neither guests nor hosts ate it, or so my child sense figured. After marriage though , I craved for the same ..... Well i finally managed to start cooking it. Upkari is made with a variety of green beans and even gourds. This one uses french beans.

1/4 kg Beans , 1/2 tsp mustard seeds, 1 tbsp oil, a pinch of sugar, 2 green chillies slit, 4-5 curry leaves, a pinch of asafoetida, a pinch of turmeric, salt to taste, 2 tbsp dessicated/ grated fresh coconut.

Wash and wipe the beans dry. Cut off the two ends, slice thickly. Heat oil, add mustard seeds, asafoetida, curry leaves and green chillies. Add the beans, salt, sugar and turmeric, sprinkle a little water. Cover and cook on a slow flame. Take off the heat, add coconut and serve with hot Rotis.