Raw Banana Chettinad style / Valakkai Varuval

Last week TH brought back about 3 dozens of raw bananas from his factory !! Well, they manufacture industrial products, but the gardeners have utilised the garden area well by having a lot of vegetables growing there...There are days when he brings back 8-10 bunches of baby spinach, bags of tender okra and cluster beans, and now raw bananas...



I kept a dozen and distributed the rest among my friends...I decided on a Chettinad style of making this. TH's maternal grandfather is from Chettinad and so my mother-in-law makes quite a few dishes the Chettinad way. This is a recipe I learnt from her

Chettinad food is spicy and full of flavours. Fennel, peppercorn, cinnamon and red chillies are some of the most commonly used spices. The fennel and garlic in this dish really gives it a very different flavour from the regular poriyals...
Enjoy this with some hot rice and rasam

What you need -

3 regular size raw bananas (I used 8 small ones)
1 medium onion chopped
1 tomato chopped
1 tbsp fennel seeds
3-4 cloves of garlic
a few curry leaves
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp chilli powder
salt to taste
1 tbsp oil

What you do with it -

Cut the skin off the raw bananas and then slice in half lengthwise and then cut into slices
Soak in water with turmeric till you need to use it
Crush the garlic pods with the flat side of a knife, instead of cutting it, makes it more flavourful that way
In a pan, heat the oil and then add garlic and fennel seeds. Once the garlic changes colour, add the curry leaves and onions
Saute for 2 mins, add the chilli powder and tomatoes and fry for 2-3 mins
Then add the banana pieces and salt. Sprinkle some water over it and cover
Cook on a low flame till the banana is cooked. This wont't take too long, just another 4-5 mins
Serve hot with rice and rasam