Curried Mung Bean Dip
My Philippine friend Tony turned me on to mung beans a few years back. Tony said I should take a shot at making them so that he could eat them given that mung bean dishes are not a staple in the U.S. Being Latin and all I wasn’t shy to trying a new bean and going through the soaking process etc. Instead of using the typical spanish cumin, onion and tomato paste sauce I used a curry one instead and the dish was fabulous. I remember Tony was so excited that he had way too many bowls of the stuff and he was soon comatose and napping in a corner chair in the middle of the day. Having said this, mung beans are actually really light (if eaten in moderation) and carry a slight nutty taste that adapts well to other flavors.
This dip recipe came after much experimentation with mung beans through the years. I Latinized the dip a bit by adding quinoa to it for thicker consistency. There is always the option of pureeing the dip for smoothness but I like the slight chunkiness that comes from leaving the ingredients as they are right from the cooking pot.
Add more curry than the recipe calls for if you want more spice.
If you can’t find dried shallots use freshly diced ones instead.
Serve cold or warm depending on your mood. I love it warm, even in the summer…
- 1 cup dried whole mung beans
- ¾ cups cooked quinoa
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 yellow onion diced small
- 4 garlic cloves diced small
- ½ medium tomato diced medium
- 2 teaspoons Indian curry (unsalted)
- Sea salt
- Freshly cracked pepper
- Teaspoon of dried shallots
- Place mung beans in a deep bowl and cover with water
- Let soak for 6-8 hours
- Rinse well and set aside
- Add coconut and olive oils as well as onions to stock pot and cook over medium heat until onions are translucent
- Add garlic and cook for 2 minutes stirring frequently
- Add tomato and stir in for 1 minute
- Add curry and stir in for 1 minute
- Add mung beans and stir covering mung beans well
- Add 3 cups of water and bring to a boil
- Cover and cook over low heat for about 45 minutes (check and stir every 10 minutes making sure that there is enough water. Add water as needed.)
- Taste beans to make sure they are soft
- Turn heat off and stir in cooked quinoa
- Add salt and pepper to taste
- Place dip in dish and sprinkle with dried shallots
- Serve dip warm or cold with crackers
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I love mung beans and they are full of protein, so good for you. Thank you for sharing this one.
Thanks for your comment Kelly. It’s hard to believe how light these little beans are and how much of a protein punch they carry!