06 January,2009 10:51 AM IST | | Lavanya Srinivasan
The annual Avarekai Mela, held on the narrow and bustling bylanes of VV Puram in south Bangalore, is a great leveller.u00a0
It's here that the Calvin Klein-clad young professional meets the dhoti-clad uncle over a plate of avarekai vadas, and the visiting NRI family digs into desi delights such as avarekai uppitu (bottled water close at hand) as the pater families pays their modest bill with a satisfied smile!
This unique mela, which is on till January 12 at Sajjan Rao Circle in VV Puram, celebrates the venerable history of the humble avarekai that transforms plebian food like uppitu into a gourmet fare.u00a0
While appetising aromas waft from tawas and kadas in makeshift hotels at the mela, there's hectic activity further up the street as bargain hunters inspect bushels of beans.u00a0
The beans come in all avatars snug in their pods, shelled and skinned. The 'skinned' effect is achieved from soaking the shelled beans in water for hours and deftly removing the outer covering to reveal the tender treat within. Thanks to enterprising shopkeepers, women who have little time to spare get their quota of the skinned beans (called avarebele in Kannada) minus the arduous labour.u00a0
The mela is the time when fancy is out and traditional is in. The measure used is the 'seru' (1 seru = 1.5 kg, approx). The avarekai sells at Rs 23 a seru, while the skinned beans sell at Rs 40 for a seru.
The avarekai mela is also an excuse for indulging in nostalgia. People of a certain vintage recall the leisurely afternoons in winter, spent shelling the beans while catching up on family gossip. The empty peels would not be discarded but fed to wandering cows in the neighbourhood! The leisurely afternoons have gone and the bovines are now deprived of their treat but we can still feast on this seasonal delight thanks to events like the avarekai mela.
For those who want to stock up on snacks, there's avarekalu mixture and fried avarekaalu the ideal accompaniment to a mug of chilled beer.u00a0
Avarekai, whose secrets were known only to people of the Old Mysore province, has now travelled from the sante (street market) to supermarkets, where the peeled and skinned beans are sold in ziplock bags.
"We've been selling avarekai for the last 2-3 years," says Rajesh Thakur of Spencer department store on M G Road.
Pick of the heap
>>Avarekai masala vada. The vadas just melt in your mouth. If only there was some coconut chutney, it would have been heavenly!u00a0
>>Avarekai dosa is another dish capable of winning the culinary equivalent of an Oscar. This soft and spongy dosa comes with a generous topping of spicy avrekaalu. It is served with avarekai sambhar.u00a0
>>Avarekai obbatu made from avarekai flour was the other winner. That the feisty beans could be turned into payasas and desserts had us drooling.
"This is the first time I've come to the mela, but I can't wait to taste the food. I've been waiting for the last 15 minutes for my avarekai dosa but I don't mind the wait," said Srinithi, a resident of Rajajinagar. She had travelled almost 12 km to enjoy the mela.
Avarekai Chutney
Ingredientsu00a0
>>1 cup shelled Avarekai mashed to a smooth paste
>>1 tsp oil
>>1/2u00a0 tsp garam masala
>>A pinch of turmeric powder
>>1 tsp lemon juice
>>Half a cup coconut milk
>>1 tsp chilli powder
>>5 green chilies
>>Curry leaves
>>1/2 tsp mustard seeds
>>Salt to taste
Method
>>Heat the oil in the pan and add the mashed avrekai.
>>Cook until the beans are soft and tender.
>>Add the coconut milk.
>>Then add all the other ingredients except mustard seeds, curry leaves and chillies.
>>Take a separate pan, heat oil and add mustard seeds, curry leaves and chillies.
>>Add the seasoning to the chutney and serve.
Avarekai Kodbale
Ingredients
>>2 cups avarekai flouru00a0
>>2 tsp jeerau00a0u00a0
>>A pinch of asafoetidau00a0u00a0
>>2 tbsp red chilli powderu00a0
>>Salt to tasteu00a0
>>2 tbsp melted butter (unsalted)u00a0
>>Vegetable oil for frying
Method
>>In a large bowl mix avarekai flour, red chilli powder, salt, jeera, asafoetida and melted hot butter.
>>Add water and make a firm dough.u00a0
>>Knead the dough, for 15 minutes, on a flat surface by applying oil to your palm.
>>Take a small ball of the dough and roll out into a thick strip.
>>Roll it into a round shape and stick the ends together by pressing tightly.
>>Keep the remaining dough covered.u00a0
>>Prepare a batch of 10 rings and deep fry on medium heat till they are golden brown.
>>Cool them completely without over lapping the fried rings.u00a0u00a0
>>Store in an air-tight container and serve with coffee.
(Recipes by S Vijayalakshmi Reddy)u00a0
