FOR THE BEANS:

1 cup mochakottai/field beans

1 tsp turmeric powder

½ tsp salt

FOR THE CURRY:

100g dried kurau fish, cut into 4″ pieces

2 tbsp fish curry powder

1 tbsp chilli powder

½ tsp turmeric powder

5 tbsp cooking oil

2 sprig curry leaves, removed from woody stem

1 tsp panch poron—a 5-spice mix of fennel, fenugreek, cumin, black cumin or nigella, mustard seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

½ tsp white urad dal aka ulundu paruppu

¼ tsp fenugreek seeds

20 shallots, peeled and finely sliced

2″ ginger, pounded into a paste

10 cloves garlic, pounded into a paste

125ml tamarind juice

2 medium eggplants, sliced into chunks

3 green chillies, sliced lengthways

2 large potatoes, peeled and sliced into chunks

4 drumsticks/moringa pods/முருங்கை, cut into 3″ pieces

2 tomatoes, sliced into chunks

250ml coconut milk

Small bunch coriander leaves, chopped (for garnish)

1. The night before: Rinse the mochakottai. Place in a bowl and cover with at least 1″ of water. Leave to soak overnight.
2. On the day of cooking, strain the beans from the soaking liquid and rinse them briefly. Place them in the pot of a stovetop or electric pressure cooker. Add in 500ml of water, 1 tsp turmeric powder, and a pinch of salt. Mix well and cover the pot. Set the beans to pressure cook for 15 minutes on high, then release the steam. Strain the beans and set aside, reserving the bean-cooking liquid in a separate bowl.
3. Soak the dried kurau in boiled water for 10 minutes. While the fish is soaking, combine the fish curry powder, chilli powder, and turmeric powder in a bowl, along with 100ml of warm water. Stir until it forms a thick paste.
4. After the fish has soaked for 10 minutes, remove the fish pieces from the water. Rinse the fish pieces and pat them dry.
5. In a large wok or wide-bottomed pot, heat 5 tbsp cooking oil over medium heat. Once the oil begins to shimmer, add the rehydrated kurau pieces to the wok and fry until lightly browned, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove from the oil and set aside.
6. Using the same oil, add the curry leaves, panch poron, cumin seeds, urad dal, and fenugreek seeds. Fry until the mustard seeds in the panch poron begin to sputter, about 30 seconds or so.
7. Add the sliced shallots and fry until they begin to soften, about 4-5 minutes.
8. Add the pounded pastes of ginger and garlic to the wok and fry until they begin to take on a little bit of colour, about 1-2 minutes more.
9. Add the paste of fish curry powder, chilli powder, and turmeric powder to the wok. Reduce the heat to low. Stir all the ingredients together evenly and cook until the oil splits, about 8-10 minutes.
10. Pour the bean-cooking liquid into the wok, along with the tamarind juice. Stir well, then add the eggplant, chillies, potatoes, drumsticks, and tomatoes into the wok. Let the vegetables simmer in the curry until soft, about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
11. Once the vegetables are tender, add the cooked mochakottai and fried kurau into the curry. Pour in the coconut milk and continue simmering the curry for another 2-3 minutes, stirring gently.
12. Check for seasoning, and add more salt if necessary. Be careful about the salt quantity as the kurau should have added enough salinity to the gravy.
13. Turn off the heat, and garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve warm.