Maangaai Paruppu
It’s mango season again and the supermarkets and groceries are stocked up with different varieties of mangoes. I simply love dishes with mango, whether raw or ripe ones, and love to experiment with a combination of both too. Maangaai Paruppu is one such sweet, sour and spicy stew made from raw (unripe)/semi-ripe mangoes and lentils. It tastes great with plain rice, dosai or idli.
This is a traditional recipe in my family and when I make maangaai paruppu I don’t even need a curry or a side dish to go with it. Simple plain rice and maangaai paruppu is more than enough for a meal as it tastes great on its own and also nutritionally balanced.
Here’s the recipe for this simple flavourful stew!
Ingredients
Raw (unripe) mango (cubed) – 1 cup
Semi-ripe mango (cubed) – 1 cup
Toor dhal – 1 cup (see note 2)
Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp
Cooking sesame oil – 2 tbsp
Asafoetida (hing) – 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds – 1/2 tsp
Dry red chillies (break into halves) – 2 (or to taste)
Green chillies (slit) – 3
Curry leaves – a few
Salt – 3/4 tsp (or to taste)
Water – 350 ml
Jaggery/brown sugar – 1/2 tsp (optional)
Flavour enhancer powder – 1/4 tsp (optional, check Puliyodharai recipe for details)
Yield
Serves 5
Prep time
25 mins
Cook time
20 mins
Method
1) Boil toor dhal, turmeric and 1/2 tsp of sesame oil together until the dhal cooks completely and becomes soft and mushy. Set aside.
2) Heat a wide pan, add 1 1/2 tbsp of sesame oil and let it warm up. Add mustard seeds and let it splutter.Then add fenugreek seeds and dry red chillies. Fry until the fenugreek seeds become golden (only takes a few seconds).
3) Now add the slit green chillies and curry leaves together. Fry for a minute. Then add asafoetida and mix. Immediately add the cubed mango pieces, 1/4 tsp of salt and mix. Cover and cook the mangoes on medium heat for 4 to 5 mins.
4) After 5 mins the mangoes will become soft and semi cooked. Now add all the water and the remaining salt. Cover the pan again and let it boil for few mins (until it comes to a rolling boil).
5) By now the mangoes will be cooked completely. Now add the boiled and mashed dhal to the pan. Mix well. Add jaggery/brown sugar and simmer the heat. Let it simmer for a further 3 or 4 mins (or until the oil starts to mildly coat the top layer of the maangaai paruppu).
6) Finally, add the flavour enhancer powder if you have it (check puliyodharai recipe for details) and a few curry leaves. Mix well and switch off the heat. Serve hot with plain rice, dosai or idli.
Notes
- A combination of raw (unripe) and semi ripe mangoes would be perfect for this recipe. Fully ripe mangoes will make maangaai paruppu too sweet. A blend of sweet, sour and spicy taste is the highlight of this dish.
- I’ve used toor dhal for this dish, but a combination of toor, moong and masoor dhal will also work. Choose according to your preference.
- I prefer a combination of dry red chillies and green chillies. But it’s totally a personal choice. You can either choose to make maangaai paruppu with only red chillies or only green chillies. The final taste will not vary much.
- If the semi ripe mango you are using is slightly on the sweeter side rather than sour, then you can skip jaggery/sugar.
- Adding the flavour enhancer powder gives a boost to the already flavourful maangaai paruppu. Just 1/4 tsp of this, for the entire quantity of maangaai paruppu, definitely adds a punch.
4 Comments
MotherOfNOMS
Asafoetida is a common ingredient used as a flavour enhancer in many indian dishes. It also aids digestion. You can get this in any Indian store (ask for ‘hing’ – as it is called in India). Unripe mango adds a nice sourness to the stew. Hope your little one likes it! 🙂
Mihaela | https://theworldisanoyster.com/
I never cooked with Asafoetida (and never heard of it before) and did not think of using mango in stews. I should try this one; paradoxically, my fussy eater is keen on anything with a creamy texture and doesn’t mind if I use things they won’t touch otherwise – mango is at the top of the list!
MotherOfNOMS
Ohh then you must try this, it’s absolutely delicious! Using raw/semi-ripe mango in cooking is very South Indian and I haven’t seen it a lot in other cuisines. I hope you like it 🙂
Jeannie
I have never cooked with raw/green mangoes before! I have most of the other ingredients and need to try!