Beet-Greens Masiyal

When beets are harvested fresh with their greens, it's a sight to take in. The fresh dewy green of the leaves and the striking maroon red of the beets is a contrastingly beautiful, appetizing treat for the eyes. Organic beets are often sold with their leafy greens. When they are available, we often gravitate towards them. This time, my father-in-law wanted to know if the fresh leafy greens could also be cooked. I did some research online and found that the greens were indeed edible! I am always amazed at how thrifty and resourceful the previous generations are! All this while it didn't even occur to me to cook the greens. I was mindlessly tossing them away to use just the beets.

So here is how my in-laws cooked the beet-greens. 

Ingredients:

1. 3 cups washed and cut beet-greens
2. 1/2 cup split yellow moong dhal / payatham paruppu
3. 1 teaspoon salt
4. 1 teaspoon jeera / cumin seeds
5. 1 teaspoon rice flour
6. 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
7. 1 teaspoon split urad dhal / ulutham paruppu
8. 1/8 teaspoon hing / asafoetida
9. 2 dry red chillies
10. 1 tablespoon vegetable oil / olive oil

Preparation:

1. Soak the moong dhal for half an hour (optional). Cook the moong dhal with about 1 cup of water until it is half way done.
2. Add the half-cooked moong dhal to the washed and cut greens. Cook with 1/2 cup of water and salt until the greens and the dhal are completely cooked.
3. Add a teaspoon of slightly crushed jeera to the masiyal. 
4. Thicken the masiyal by mixing rice powder with 1/2 tablespoon water (or slightly more) and whisking the mixture into the masiyal. Simmer on low heat for 5 minutes.
5. Finally, heat oil in a small pan. Splutter mustard seeds when hot, and add split urad dhal, hing, and red chillies. Saute for a minute until the urad dhal begins to change color slightly. Add the garnish to the greens and mix well. 

Remove from heat and serve with rice or roti. Masiyal is another kind of gravy with mashed/cooked greens. 

The beet greens taste quite good! They are mildly sweet and easy on the palate. The whole dish is mildly spiced and extremely healthy.