How does one perfect a staple? Check out Swetha Sivakumar’s favourite recipe for aloo-beans

Getting beans right is tricky. They must be neither soggy nor chewy, yet infused with flavour. ‘I found a recipe that truly does it all,’ Sivakumar says.

Every adult who has ever tried to feed a child beans knows how important it is to get a recipe like this just right. Green beans in particular are tricky. Undercooked, they are fibrous and tough; overcooked or waterlogged, they lose nearly all flavour and texture.

The beauty of this recipe lies in how the beans are cooked. By covering the kadhai at timed intervals, steam is used to cook the beans but keep their form intact. Once they’re cooked,