Celery Paruppu Usili is a South Indian traditional recipe with a modern touch, prepared using lentil-based crumble and celery. This soft, crumble protein-rich side dish feels heavenly with more kulambu, another traditional South Indian gravy. Paruppu usili and more kulambu are a match made in heaven.
What is Paruppu Usili
Paruppu means lentil and usili translates to crumble. Paruppu Usili is believed to have originated from a traditional Tamil Brahmin household and has become an integral part of South Indian cuisine.
Traditionally steamed or shallow fried lentil crumbles are cooked with any locally grown vegetables like beans, cluster beans, banana blossom etc. Over a period of time, many variations of Paruppu Usili have emerged, including different vegetables to fit modern needs. Celery Paruppu Usili, Kale Paruppu Usili and Asparagus Paruppu Usili are a few such examples.
About Celery Paruppu Usili
I always prefer to cook the locally grown vegetables as much as possible. That’s why I am experimenting a lot with Western vegetables in our South Indian cuisine. When I was looking into the various ways of including celery in our diet other than juice, celery paruppu usili and various other recipe ideas popped into my mind. All the fusion recipes are coming one by one in this space. Stay tuned.
In my household, we prepare paruppu usili using only one lentil called toor dal. But in today’s recipe, I used the combination of both channa dal and toor dal. Celery has a unique taste & flavour. But when it is cooked and added with steamed dal crumble, It gives an awesome blend of flavour and taste. If you are someone who doesn’t like raw celery, yet want to include it in your diet, then celery paruppu usili is great choice.
All you need to do is, soak the lentils, grind it, steam it and add it to steam cooked celery. Though the preparation and cooking process appear to be lengthy, it is pretty easy to follow and can be put together in a few simple steps.
Ingredients & Variations
Ingredients
Lentil: I used an equal portion of channa dal and toor dal and soaked it for 2 hours.
Celery: Fresh tender celery does a great job. Remove the fibrous strings using a peeler before using it in this recipe. Do not use leaves in this recipe as it gives a slight bitter taste.
Spices: Cumin seeds, dry red chillies, turmeric powder and curry leaves are used.
For Seasoning: Oil, mustard seeds, curry leaves, dry red chillies and asafoetida. You can use asafoetida either while grinding the lentils or while seasoning the vegetables.
Variations
Lentils: You can only use toor dal as explained in my Beans Paruppu Usili instead of using the combination of channa dal and toor dal. Some use an equal portion of these two lentils and some use more toor dal and less channa dal. It is based on one’s personal preference. If you are trying it for the first time, try all these three methods and stick with the one that you like the most.
Vegetables: The unique aroma and flavour of celery add beauty to this dish. However, if it is not available, it can be simply substituted by asparagus, beans, cluster beans, broad beans, carrot, beetroot, cabbage, purple cabbage, kale, bell pepper, banana blossom etc. The only thing you need to concentrate on is to cook the vegetables right without losing their shape and texture.
You may also like the below recipes
How to make Celery Paruppu Usili – Step by Step Method to make Celery Paruppu Usili
Preparation
- Take channa dal and toor dal in a bowl. Wash it until the water runs clear (about 2-3 times). After washing, add dry red chillies. The quantity of dry red chillies is based on your spice level. Generally, paruppu usili has a mild spice level. Then, add water to soak the dal. Keep it aside for two hours or overnight.
- Before starting the cooking process, remove the fibrous strings from the celery and chop them into small cubes. Set aside. Do not use celery leaves as it gives a slightly bitter taste to the recipe.
Step by Step Method to make Celery Paruppu Usili
- Let’s take the soaked lentils first. Drain the water completely.
- Add the dal to a mixie jar / blender. Further add cumin seeds, turmeric powder and curry leaves.
- Grind it to a coarse texture. No need to add water while grinding. The moisture from the dal is enough for grinding. However, if you find the mixture is difficult to grind, then you can add 1 or 2 tbsp of water to make the grinding job easier.
- Make uniform size patties and place it in the steamer. I used steamer insert to steam the dal. Idly pot is another option for steaming. Before grinding the dal, I poured water into the bottom pot of the steamer and turned the stove on. By the time, I was ready with patties, the water started boiling. This is the perfect timing to keep the dal patties in the steamer. Steam it for 5-7 minutes.
- Once done, transfer the patties to a plate. Cool down.
- Using oil-coated hand crumble the dal patties. If you are unable to crumble it, then use the pulse mode in the blender to crumble it. Add a tsp or 2 of oil to make the process easier. The crumble should be soft to the touch yet grainy. At this stage, you can portion this crumble and freeze it for later use.
- Now, in a frying pan, heat oil. Add mustard seeds, chopped curry leaves, broken dry red chilli and allow it to splutter. Then add a big pinch of asafoetida.
- Add chopped celery to this. Chopped celery came about 2 cups when measured.
- Add salt to taste and 1/4 cup water. Stir well to mix everything well.
- Cover and cook the celery for 5 minutes. The celery should be nicely cooked without losing its colour, shape and texture.
- After 5 minutes, celery cooked and there is no trace of water. If there is any water, continue cooking until you don’t see any trace of water. At this time, add the dal crumble.
- Mix gently to incorporate everything. Taste and adjust the salt if needed. Super soft and yummy Celery Paruppu Usili is ready.
Storage & Serving Suggestions
Storage
Paruppu Usili stays good for a day at room temperature. To keep it longer, store it in an airtight container and use it within 3 days. Microwave the Paruppu Usili to reheat it.
If you do meal preparation, then prepare the lentil mixture alone in large quantities, portion it and freeze it. Whenever needed, thaw it on the kitchen countertop or microwave it and cook it with any vegetable of your choice.
Serving Suggestions
Celery Paruppu Usili is often served with spicy yogurt-based gravies. As this dish has enough dal in it, it often pairs well with more kulambu (yogurt gravy), another easy traditional South Indian delicacy. So simply serve it as a side with more kulambu.
It also goes well with tamarind-based gravies. The tamarind-based gravies (we call it puli kulambu) that doesn’t use coconut pairs well with Usili.
Expert Tips & Notes
- Do not add more water while grinding. Adding more water doesn’t give a crumble consistency which is very much required for this dish.
- If you have added too much water, then instead of steaming, add it to a heavy bottom kadai along with a few tsp of oil. Stir until it turns into a nice golden colour/crumble texture. It might take time but this is an easy way to fix the crumble.
- Cooling down the dal patties is an important step to get a perfect dal crumble.
- Cooking time might vary depending on the vegetable you use.
- You can use fresh grated coconut if personally like it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Paruppu usili is a south Indian traditional recipe, especially from Tamil Nadu that is made with lentil crumble and steamed or sauteed vegetables. Very commonly it is paired with beans.
No. As we use dal in almost equal proportion with vegetables, starchy vegetables won’t work here.
Yes. After steaming the lentil mixture, cool it down and crumble it. Portion the lentil mixture and freeze in a freezer-safe container. Thaw it in a microwave or on the countertop and use it whenever needed. Use the entire portion once you take it out from the freezer.
Recipe Card
Celery Paruppu Usili
Ingredients
For Paruppu Usili
- 1/4 cup channa dal
- 1/4 cup toor dal
- 3 dry red chillies adjust as needed
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/8 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 sprig curry leaves
For Cooking Celery
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 spring curry leaves
- 1 dry red chilli broken into pieces
- 1 big pinch asafoetida
- 2 cups celery cut into small cubes
- 3/4 tsp salt adjust as needed
- 1/4 cup water
Instructions
- Wash both channa dal and toor dal 2 or 3 times. Add dry red chillies to it and soak altogether for 2 hours.
- Drain the water and add the soaked dal and dry red chillies to a blender along with cumin seeds, turmeric powder, and curry leaves. Blend it to a coarse paste without adding water.
- Make equal-sized patties and steam them for 5-7 minutes. Once done, cool it down and crumble it using an oiled hand or pulse it using a blender for few seconds.
- In a frying pan, heat oil. Add mustard seeds, chopped curry leaves, and broken dry red chillies. Allow it to splutter. Add a big pinch of asafoetida.
- Add chopped celery to it. After adding salt and water, stir it well.
- Cover & cook it for 5 minutes. There should be no trace of water once the celery is cooked.
- Add lentil crumble and mix gently until everything incorporated well.
- Celery Paruppu Usili ready to serve.
Video
Notes
-
- Do not add water while grinding the dal mixture. Adding water doesn’t give a crumble consistency which is very much required for this dish.
- Cooling down the dal patties is an important step to get a perfect dal crumble.
- Cooking time might vary depending on the vegetable you use.
- You can also steam cook the celery without adding water to it.
- You can sprinkle fresh grated coconut at the end if personally like it.
If you have tried this recipe or have any questions, don’t forget to comment below. I would love to hear your feedback and glad to answer your queries. You can also Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Youtube for other updates from my kitchen about Office Lunchbox, Kid’s Lunchbox and simple meal plate ideas.
