Vaal nu Shaak, simply known as Vaal, is a delicious Gujarati shaak made with lima beans. This recipe is prepared with aromatic whole spices, tamarind and jaggery and is often served at Gujarati weddings.
Vaal nu Shaak is an aromatic Gujarati shaak (curry) that is perfectly balanced with tart, sweet and mildly spiced flavours. It feels creamy thanks to perfectly cooked vaal (lima beans) and a rich, thick gravy.
It is easy enough to prepare day-to-day but the delicious flavours make it perfect for weddings, lagnaprasang.
My Mum often prepares this Gujarati lima bean curry on special occasions with a Gujarati sweet dish.
Other beans Gujarati curries include tuvar, kala chana nu shaak and mag nu shaak.
Ingredients notes
Be sure to check out the full recipe in the recipe card below.
Vaal - known as lima beans. We are using dry white lima beans for this recipe. For easy and quicker version use canned white lima beans.
Oil - any mild flavoured oil works fine.
Whole spices: mustard seeds, dry red chillies, cloves, bay leaf, stair anise, ajwain (carom seeds)
Hing - for gluten-free diet make sure your asafoetida is free from wheat flour.
Spice powders: red chilli powder, turmeric powder, ground cumin coriander (dhana jeeru)
Green chilli and ginger - crushed or as a paste.
Tamarind - tamarind works best but alternatively, you can use kokum or lemon juice.
Jaggery - sugar is an alternative.
Besan - helps to thicken the gravy and create a creamy shaak.
Coriander for garnishing.
How to serve Vaal nu Shaak
Vaal nu Shaak is best served as part of a Gujarati thali with rotli, Gujarati daal, jamanvar bateta nu shaak and basmati rice.
For a sweet, include churma na ladwa or mohanthaal and for the savoury (farsan) include fulwadi. This would be a typical wedding food thali but can also be served during special occasions.
It is full of flavour on its own but you could also have a side of pickle such as carrot and green chilli pickle.
Hayley's Tips & Tricks
- Lima beans are avaliable in different sizes. I have used medium sized vaal. You may need to adjust the cooking time.
- Ensure the besan is well roasted to prevent the raw taste coming into the food.
Storage
Store leftover vaal nu shaak in an airtight container and keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Vaal freezes well for 3 months. Allow to defrost then reheat thoroughly on the stove with a splash of water as it likely will have thickened.
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📖 Recipe
Vaal nu Shaak
Equipment
- 1 Pressure cooker Instant Pot or Pan
- 1 pan
Ingredients
- 2 cup lima beans Vaal (dry)
- ¼ cup oil
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds,
- 1 tablespoon whole spices dry red chillies, cloves, bay leaf, stair anise,
- ½ teaspoon carom seeds ajwain
- ¼ teaspoon hing
- 2 tablespoon red chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 2 teaspoon cumin coriander powder
- 1 tablespoon green chillies and ginger crushed
- 2 tablespoon tamarind
- 3 tablespoon jaggery
- 2 tablespoon besan
- 3 tablespoon coriander garnishing
Instructions
- Soak the lima beans for 8 hours or overnight until they are doubled in size and can be squeezed between your fingers.
- Discard the soaking water, wash the vaal in clean fresh water.
Stove Top Pressure Cooker
- Add 4 cups water and cook the vaal for 4-5 whilstles on medium flame.
Instant Pot
- Cook the vaal for 8 minutes on high pressure and allow natural pressure release.
Stove top pan
- Boil the vaal in 5-6 cups of water for 40-45 minutes until soft and tender.
Prepare Vaal nu Shaak
- Meanwhile soak tamarind in hot water then strain to make tamarind pulp.
- In a heavy bottomed pan, heat oil.
- Once oil, is hot, add the mustard seeds, cloves, bay leaf, star anise and dried red chillies.
- When the mustard seeds crackle, add the ajwain and hing.
- Spoon in the besan, 1 teaspoon red chilli powder and turmeric powder, and mix well.
- Roast for 2 minutes or until besan is fragrant, and immediately top with a little water (cooked vaal water) to prevent the spices burning.
- Add crushed ginger and green chillies.
- Add in the remaining spice powders, tamarind water and jaggery.
- Add more water and allow the mixture to cook until the jaggery is dissolved and the mixture has thickened. Add salt.
- Tip in the cooked vaal and mix gently.
- If the gravy is too thick, add more water and cook a further 5 minutes.
- Remove from the heat.
- Note that the shaak will thicken upon cooling.
- Garnish with fresh chopped coriander.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
PLEASE NOTE: Nutritional values are estimated by a computer and may vary based on ingredients and portion sizes. For personalised dietary advice, please consult a qualified healthcare professional.
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Hayley Dhanecha says
That beautifully balanced sweet, sour and spiced gravy with the soft creamy lima beans is exactly what a Gujarati wedding spread tastes like, and my mum makes this every single time there is a big occasion at home because it is one of those dishes that just feels celebratory the moment it lands on the table.