Methi bhaji with moong sprouts

South Indian style methi bhaji with moong(mung bean) sprouts and coconut. Simple, delicious and nutritious!

I SO love making methi bhaji with mung bean sprouts. If I had to explain the taste in words, imagine the fragrance and deliciousness of methi, perfectly cooked sprouts, a little sweetness from jaggery and coconut, spice from the chillies and a mild tartness from the tomatoes. It truly is a well rounded off dish in terms of balance of flavours and that’s what makes a meal satisfying. Try it out for yourself and let me know how you liked it!

Ingredients

• Moong/mung bean sprouts – Learn how to grow your own sprouts in this link
• Fresh fenugreek leaves(methi leaves) – Can be bought at Indian stores or you can grow your own from fenugreek seeds!
• Onion, tomato, ginger, green chilli
• Turmeric powder, red chilli powder(Indian)
• Jaggery – unrefined Indian sugar. Panela, palm sugar or any other unrefined sugar can be used instead.
• Indian cooking seasons oil for flavor for which we need black mustard seeds, cumin seeds, dry red chilli and urad dal(split dehusked black gram) If urad dal is not available, use only mustard seeds and cumin seeds.

Tips

• Don’t overcook the sprouts. I like it when they are just cooked and not mushy.
• This is a pretty straightforward recipe where you will have a great tasting dish, even if you do not follow the exact measurements given.
• Depending on weather conditions, sprouting moong beans will take 1-2 days. So, start the process two days in advance. The sprouts can be refrigerated for 2 days if needed.

Serving and storage

• Serve methi bhaji hot/warm as a side for rice and roti. The below measurements will serve 2 people as the only side. Along with another side, it can serve 3-4 people.
• Store leftovers in the refrigerator. Fresh coconut can go bad if left in room temperature for many hours. So, if you prepare this in the morning, refrigerate leftovers after lunch.

If you love sprouts, check out this mung bean sprouts salad recipe! Check out how to grow your own sprouts here in this link. The post also has detailed instructions to grow longer sprouts for your favourite Southeast Asian recipes!

Methi bhaji with moong sprouts

Shwetha

Fenugreek leaves sabzi with sprouted mung beans, a delicious side for rice and rotis!

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Sprouting time 1 day d

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine Indian, Karnataka

Servings 3 people

Equipment

• Measuring cups used, 1 cup – 240 ml
• Heavy bottomed pan

Ingredients

  

• ¼ cup dry mung bean/green gram 65 grams
• 1 cup onions chopped
• ¾ cup tomato chopped
• 2 cups fresh methi/fenugreek leaves 125 grams
• ⅓ cup water
• ¼ tsp turmeric powder
• ½ tsp red chilli powder or to taste
• 1 green chilli like Thai, Indian, Serrano
• ½ tsp grated ginger
• 1 tbsp jaggery
• 1 tbsp oil
• ¾ tsp black mustard seeds
• ½ tsp cumin seeds/jeera
• 2 tsp split black gram/urad dal optional
• 1 dry red chilli
• ¾ tsp salt or to taste

Instructions

 

Growing mung bean sprouts

• Two days in advance, begin the process of sprouting mung beans/moong. For a detailed sprouting 101, check this link.
• Wash mung beans a few times. Drain and soak in plenty of water for a minimum of 8 hours or overnight.
• The mung beans should have absorbed water by now and plumped up. Drain the water and rinse with fresh water. Drain water completely.
• Cover the bowl with a lid and rest it in a warm spot for 12 hours. We only need the sprouts to grow half an inch long.

  If the sprouts are still very tiny after 12 hours, rinse the beans with fresh water, drain completely and cover and let it rest again in a warm spot for another 8-12 hours.

  Tip: In very cold climates, turn on the oven for 2 minutes. Turn off the oven and place the beans inside the warm oven to sprout.

Preparing methi bhaji

• Heat a heavy bottomed pan over medium heat. Add in 1 tbsp oil.
• Add mustard seeds, urad dal and dry red chilli. When urad dal starts to turn golden, add in the cumin seeds.
• When mustard seeds splutter, add the chopped onions and fry until translucent.
• Add red chilli powder, turmeric powder and fry for another minute.
• Add green chilli, finely chopped methi leaves and fry for about 3-4 minutes.
• Next, add the moong sprouts, grated ginger, water and salt. Cover and cook until the sprouts are cooked to your liking.

  NOTE: This takes me about 4-5 minutes on my cast iron pan, on medium heat. Time required may vary. After 4 minutes taste test to see if the sprouts are cooked.. I like them to be just cooked and not mushy.
• Add chopped tomatoes and jaggery. Cover and cook for another two minutes or until tomatoes are cooked and turn off the heat.
• Serve hot/warm with rice or chapati/roti.

Video

Keyword green gram sprouts, methi bhaji