A thing to love or despise?

Banana heart /flower  stir fry with mung daal and coconut .

Often in life we look down upon things that come to us free.Most of the times in the course of life we realise  that some of best things in life are free .But sometimes the realisation happens only when it’s no longer free.This truth of life even applies to a simple banana flower/heart.Did  I ever think that one day I would have to travel about 2 hours and pay 5 pounds for a banana flower.The answer is no.To me this was always something that was readily available in mom’s vegatable garden in the backyard of the house.

The banana flower in one form or another had its place on our dinner table and to me that was only because it was “there” pleading to be to be picked up.Needless to say, I wasn’t very appreciative of it’s taste and it’s nutrition quotient.Things changed drastically after I moved here and now this dish enjoys a top spot in the list of things I crave for.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 1 Banana flower , cleaned, chopped finely.
• ½ cup moong dal cooked
• 1 tsp oil
• Salt to taste

To Grind

• ½ cup grated coconut
• 4-5 green chillies
• 2-3 Garlic pods
• ½ tsp Cumin

For seasoning

• ½ tsp Mustard seeds
• A few Curry leaves
• 1 tsp finely chopped Shallot/Onion
• 1 tsp Oil

Method

Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan.Add finely chopped banana flower and cook for about 6-8 minutes.Add the cooked moong dal, ground coconut paste and salt.Cover and cook for further 5-8 minutes.Add 2-3 tbsp of water if the mixture is getting stuck to pan.Remove from fire when its done.

For seasoning, heat oil in a pan , add mustard seeds.When it starts to splutter add shallots/onion and curry leaves.Fry till the onion is brown.Pour the seasoning over the cooked banana flower mixture.

Best served with rice and a generous helping of curried buttermilk (moru kachiyathu).

Note: To clean the flower , discard the deep purple coloured outer layers of the flower (bracts) and use only the lightly coloured densely packed inner core .Finely chop it and soak  immediately in buttermilk for about 10  minutes to get rid of its bitterness.