Raw Banana Spicy Stir Fry

Banana or plantain is such a versatile thing, it can be curried, fried, boiled, made into cutlets or if ripe can be eaten as it is. I always pick up raw banana during my trips to the local veggie store. Raw banana is really light on the tummy and tastes delicious even with mild seasoning. Raw banana is also a good source of Vitamin C and Potassium while being low in Cholesterol I used to really love the raw banana fish curry Ma used to make. I remember almost every two weeks we used to have the curry and I never grew bore of it. 

Pune doesn't offer a large array of vegetables as we get back home (Kolkata). Thus I had to literally cherry-pick the vegetables which would suite our Bengali palate and raw banana has become an integral part of our meals now. My favourite way is to have it in fish curry form or as banana chips. But just to try something different at times I make this really simple stir fry with commonly used spices and it makes a wonderful accompaniment to rice and dal. Enjoy the lovely Vegan Banana Recipe called Raw Banana Spicy Stir Fry.

Raw Banana Spicy Stir Fry

Preparation & Cooking Time: 25 mins
Serves:2

Cuisine: North India

Ingredients:

• Raw Banana - 2 (medium size - mildly ripe preferable)
• Asafoetieda - 1/4 tsp
  
• Ginger - 1/4 tsp
• Cumin Seed (Jeera) - 1/2 tsp
• Carom Seed (Ajwain) - 1/2 tsp
• Red Chilli Powder/ Chilli Flakes - 1/4 tsp
• Coriander Powder (Dania) - 1/2 tsp
• Garam Masala - 1/4 tsp
• Turmeric - 1/2 tsp
• Dry Mango Powder (Aamchur) - 1/2 tsp or Lemon juice - 1/2 tsp
• Coriander leaf - 1 tsp (chopped)
• Sesame Seeds (for garnishing)
• Refined Oil 
• Salt (to taste)

Procedure:

1.  I prefer mildly ripe bananas for this preparation as the partially ripe bananas impart a mild sweetness to the dish and can be directly used without having to boil at first. But if you have complete ripe bananas, then pressure cook the bananas for a single whistle with it's skin on.

2. Peel the skin off the bananas and slice them in roundels.

3. Sprinkle a pinch of turmeric on the banana slices to avoid blackening.

4. Add the grated ginger to the banana slices and mix well

Take the asafoetida in a small bowl and add 2 tbsp of water to make a uniform liquid paste.Using this paste instead of dry asafoteida directly in the hot oil, prevents it from getting burnt easily and preserves the flavor

5. Heat oil in a skillet and temper it with cumin and carom seeds. When they start to splutter add the asafoetida paste, rest of the turmeric, salt, chilli flakes/powder, garam masala, coriander powder and amchur powder.

6. Mix well and stir fry for a couple of minutes till the bananas are tender

7. Add chopped coriander leaves to the skillet and fry for a minute

8. Sprinkle sesame seeds and mix well

9. Serve hot with rice and dal. This will go well with sambar or rasam as well.


Note: You can alter the amount of Red Chilli depending on your spice tolerance level. Ideally this recipe tastes best in the spicy form.