Achinga Payar Thoran is a simple and comforting Kerala-style stir fry made with finely chopped Yardlong beans, fresh coconut, green chilies and tempering of Mustard seeds, Urad dal, curry leaves in coconut oil. This everyday side dish is nutritious and flavorful authentic Kerala thoran recipe, easy to prepare with minimal ingredients.
This Yard Long beans thoran is a wonderful addition to your meal rotation as well as a part of Onam sadhya.
This was inspired by my Idichakka thoran recipe on this site and pairs well with this Varutharacha sambar or even simply rasam.
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About Achinga Payar Thoran
Achinga Payar Thoran is a traditional simple side dish prepared in Kerala Cuisine,with achinga payar (yardlong beans),grated coconut and South Indian spices as main ingredients. Lightly seasoned,allowing the natural flavor of the vegetable.
This dish is commonly served as part of a Kerala sadya as well as everyday lunches. The combination of tender beans and coconut gives it a pleasant texture. If you enjoy Kerala style vegetable dishes,you will definitely enjoy this.
I love Kerala thoran,especially how they chop it really beautiful. Someone who enjoy chopping vegetables with care,totally enjoy seeing a beautifully chopped thoran vegetable like cabbage,carrot,beetroot. Next in my Kerala dish list is mezhukkupuratti 🙂
Long beans thoran Ingredients
Here are the ingredients needed to make Long beans thoran.
- Achinga payar–Yard long beans –Choose tender,fresh stock for best taste,texture and flavor.
- Coconut–Fresh grated or frozen,one of the main ingredients for thoran
- Green chilies –For wonderful flavor and spice
- Small onions–Shallots –Pearl onions –Indian pearl onions works best in flavor
- Cumin seeds–For digestion and flavor
- Turmeric powder–Boosts the color of beans
- Salt
- Tempering items
- Coconut oil –Main flavour in any Kerala cooking
- Mustard seeds
- Urad dal
- Curry leaves –Smells amazing with coconut oil
Please see the Recipe card for quantities.
Step by step Images
Let’s see how to make Achinga thoran with step by step instructions.
- To begin with,clean the long beans. Stack,cut off the ends and finely chop as much as possible.
- Take some time and chop it really fine. This is the beauty of the dish. Keep aside.
- In a blender,take ½ cup grated coconut,5-6 pearl onions,2 green chillies,¼ teaspoon Turmeric powder and ½ teaspoon cumin seeds.
- Grind coarsely. Do not add water,it can change the flavour.
- Heat a pan (I used manchatti) so heat in medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon coconut oil. Once hot splutter mustard,followed by urad dal. Then add curry leaves.
- After that,add chopped achinga payar and sauté for 2 minutes without changing color. Flame should not be high.
- Now add required salt and 1 or 2 tablespoons of water. I used manchatti so added 2 tablespoons. You can just use a splash of water if you are using other materials. It doesn’t take long to get cooked since we chop finely and saute it too.
- Cook covered for 2 minutes. Check if it is done.
- In goes ground coconut mixture.
- Stir well to mix and cook furthermore for 2 minutes or until dry,without changing the color.
Achinga thoran ready.
Serve as an accompaniment for rice with sambar,rasam in a regular day menu or as part of Onam sadhya.
Substitutions &Variations
There are many variations of thoran from household to household. So you can adapt it for your own taste buds.
Spice–I have used Green chilies for grinding and dry red chilies just for additional heat and flavor. You skip red chilli,use only green chillies.
Instead of green chilli,use 1 teaspoon red chilli powder.
No onion No garlic thoran–Skip onion while grinding and use ⅛ teaspoon of asafoetida while tempering. This is perfect if you are avoiding onion,garlic during Onam.
Garlic –You can swap small onion with 3 small variety garlic cloves.
Add one finely chopped large onion after tempering and saute before adding the chopped achinga payar.
Storage
Since the dish uses coconut,I recommend to consume within 5-6 hours in room temperature. If refrigerating,cool down and put inside fridge soon,. You can consume the next day.
Top tips
- Using Turmeric powder in this thoran enhances the colour.
- Chopping finely helps the bean cook fast.
- Add less water to keep the thoran dry. Sauteeing well helps it half done and later adding little water ensures quick cooking.
- Do not grind the coconut mixture smooth or with water. It changes the flavor and looks different too. Thoran is supposed to look dry.
My notes
You can use a mortar and pestle as well,for grinding the part.
Use green beans or french beans in place of long beans if you do not get it.
FAQ
Achinga payar is the Malayalam name of Yard long beans also known as long beans or asparagus beans.
Too much water during cooking can make the dish soggy. Cook with minimal water and allow any excess moisture to evaporate before adding the coconut mixture by cooking open.
Since we chop finely,achinga gets cooked easily. So while sauteeing itself it gets almost done,and then adding little water ensures thorough cooking. If you over cook,then it loses it’s color. Make sure do not cook longer than needed.
Recipe card
Achinga Payar Thoran | Yard Long Beans Coconut Sautee
Achinga Payar Thoranis a simple and comforting Kerala-style stir fry made with finely chopped Yardlong beans,fresh coconut,green chilies and tempering of Mustard seeds,Urad dal,curry leaves in coconut oil.
Cup measurements
Ingredients
- 12Yard long beansAchinga payar
- Salt
To Grind Coarsely
- 2Green chillies
- ¼teaspoonTurmeric powder
- ½cupCoconut
- 6shallotspearl onions,Indian
- ½teaspoonCumin seeds
To temper
- 1tablespoonCoconut oil
- ½teaspoonMustard seeds
- 1teaspoonUrad dal
- 1sprigCurry leaves
Instructions
To begin with,clean the long beans. Stack,cut off the ends and finely chop as much as possible.
Take some time and chop it really fine. This is the beauty of the dish. Keep aside.
In a blender,take ½ cup grated coconut,5-6 pearl onions,2 green chillies,¼ teaspoon turmeric powder and ½ teaspoon cumin seeds.
Grind coarsely. Do not add water,it can change the flavour.
Heat a pan (I used manchatti) so heat in medium flame. Add 1 tablespoon coconut oil. Once hot splutter mustard,followed by urad dal. Then add curry leaves.
After that,add chopped achinga payar,required salt and saute for 2 minutes without changing color. Flame should not be high.
Now add 1 or 2 tablespoons of water. I used manchatti so added 2 tablespoons. You can just use a splash of water if you are using other materials. It doesn’t take long to get cooked since we chop finely and saute it too.
Cook covered for 2 minutes. Check if it is done.
In goes ground coconut mixture.
Stir well to mix and cook furthermore for 2 minutes or until dry,without changing the color of coconut. Achinga thoran ready.