Chikkudu Vittanaala Kura for Sankranthi
Chikkudu (Telugu) also known as papdi lilva (Hindi) is a type of broad bean from India. The tasty pods and plump seeds are culinary delight and part of the menu on Sankrathi festival in our part of Andhra.
The photographed chikkudu are from my garden. I shelled those seeds last month just before the onset of freezing temperatures. With that hearty harvest, it was a glorious goodbye to plentiful 2010-growing season.
Indian Broadbean Seeds (Chikkudu Vittanaalu, Papdi Lilva)
(for 2 to 4, for 2 to 1 meal)
Chikkudu Seeds: 3 cups. Bring 2 cups of water to boil. Add half teaspoon of salt to water. To the boiling water, add the chikkudu seeds. Partially cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Drain the water and set aside the seeds.
Masala Paste: In a skillet, toast a cup of unsalted peanuts. Cool and remove the peanut skins.
In the same skillet, add 1/4 teaspoon each – cumin seeds and black peppercorn, a tablespoon of coriander seeds, 4 cloves and one inch piece of cinnamon stick. Toast to fragrance on low heat constantly stirring. Cool.
Take roasted peanuts in a mixer. Add the toasted spices and also 1×1-inch piece of fresh ginger, 2 peeled garlic cloves, 2 tablespoons of tamarind pulp and 2 tablespoons of crushed jaggery. Add quarter teaspoon of salt. Blend everything together into fine paste. Add half cup of water for easy blending.
Chikkudu Seeds Kura: In a skillet, heat a tablespoon of peanut oil. Do the cumin tadka.
Add the chikkudu seeds and masala paste. Add about a cup of water. Season with quarter teaspoon each – turmeric, chili powder and salt. Mix well. Taste for salt, spice and sweetness, and adjust to your liking. Cover and simmer the kura on medium heat for at least ten minutes, until the seeds have reached buttery texture.
Serve warm with rice or roti. For Sankrathi festive meal experience, serve the kura with pongali or sajje rotte with some ghee and pickle on the side.
Chikkudu Seeds Kura with Chapati and Lemon Pickle ~ Meal on a Cold Day
Woww.. Yummy and delicious chikkudu ginjala koora.. looks absolutely tempting.. Perfect shots.. thanks for the recipe 🙂
My MIL made this Suth Indian delicacy on the Sankranthi day, and I overate 🙂 Though she doesn’t use cinnamon in her cooking and categorizes this as a non-veg food ingredient! Shall do it your way and let you know the difference.Lucky to get such fresh harvest from your backyard.
I make my own version of kura with these seeds at home but with frozen chikkudu ginjalu..I bet there is a difference in taste between the fresh and the frozen ones..
Great idea and looks yummy as well. Thanks for Sharing Indira. On the same note, what can we do to utilize the skin part of these seeds? If you have any ideas, please let me know.
looks delicious indira … will try this some time ……
Indira,belated pongal greeting, what a mouth watering recipe.
looks so yummy … must try it
Super Yummy Recipes
Amma makes kurma with the seeds and I do not remember her adding peanuts.
Indira, Where do you get fresh one’s , I always use frozen
lovely recipe. awesome!
wow feel like eating right now,..
Wow Indira, I’ve never seen this kind of curry, but I can imagine making it with fresh lima beans, and soy beans which will be abundant in our area soon.
Looks absolutely yummy. Indira – thanks for sharing. This is the season for Papdi in India as well. Another dish that is prepared locally in Gujarat is a dry curry with ajwain tempering – no mustard or cumin. And then cooked tender with some water and salt, turmeric and ginger chilli paste. It is finally finished off with dhaniya powder.
Thanks all for your comments.
Sanjeeta: How fortunate you are to have it from mom’s (mil) hands on Sankranthi! 🙂 Miss mom’s cooking.
Aruna: There are few recipes with chikkudu I wrote before listed in Recipe Index page under broadbeans (chikkudu). Check them out.
Cilantro: Would love to try mom’s peanut-less version. How does she make it?
ry: from my garden.
Padmaja: How are you?
Yes, this would taste good with lima beans. Soy beans, I am not sure. Soy beans and peanut combo sounds little bit off. Let me know if you try.
Narayan: Thanks for sharing local Gujarat favorite. Will definitely try with fresh beans.
Chikkudu ginjalanu ela store chesaaru? Freezer lonaa?
Indira,
You have a beautiful food blog. Keep up the great work! I have a few questions for you. First, are Surti papdi lilva (the much loved ingredient in Gujarati undhyu) and chikkudu the same thing? My mom, who is an extraordinary cook (I know all children say that, but she truly is a rare gem) and I are documenting all her recipes–Gujarati (our roots), Maharashtrian, Punjabi, Tamil, Bengali, Mughlai, the cuisine of Uttar Pradesh,and the list goes on. I have created a glossary of ingredients with Gujarati, Hindi, and English names. For the majority of vegetables, fruits, grains, pulses, spices, dairy products,etc., I know the English names. But Surti papdi lilva, val/vaal, and valor are the exceptions. Unfortunately, the majority of food blogs dedicated to Indian cuisine have conflicting names for these ingredients and, to my surprise, many other ingredients, not because of the different regional names within India, but because, well, I don’t know. I have been searching and searching for the English name for Surti papdi lilva and val/vaal. I’m almost certain val/vaal is the hyacinth bean. Is it? And is the young pod of the hyacinth bean valor, making valor and val papdi the same thing? If not, please enlighten me!
Hello A,
I understand your frustration about different names for our ingredients. I think it’s mainly because of different regional names within India and lack of produce-patriotism in Indian marketing system.
I planted both papdi lilva and valor beans last year. Young plants look alike but Papdi lilva produces white flowers and Valor has purple flowers. After going through beans nomenclature and based on flower color, I decided to put papdi lilva in broad beans category and valor under hyacinth bean category. The young pods and beans are not the same, though they are sold under the same name (either papdi lilva or valor) in Indian grocery shops in US. Blame the confusion on marketing system.
In Rayalaseema area of Andhra, we don’t have different names for papdi lilva and valor and they both are called and sold as “Chikkudu” in Telugu.
You mentioned about creating a glossary. Could you please post the link to the page. Thanks.
-Indira
Lovely kurma !
Hi Indira,
I tried to search for chapathi on your site after looking at the beutiful picture of your delish….. chapathi and curry…. I know chapathi is simple thing but not everybody can make like the one you have…. can u post the receipe or direct me to it if it is already there or even email me one…. thank You…