This Sri Lankan green bean curry makes for a quick, hearty vegan dinner you can whip up on a weeknight.
There’s just something about a steaming hot bowl of curry that spells comfort food in more ways than one, and if you’re someone who loves curries too, this authentic Sri Lankan green bean curry is worth a try.
The green beans are cooked in simple yet flavorful spices, and transformed into a nice curry with the coconut milk added in.
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Ready to give the recipe a try? Scroll down and keep reading to discover more about it before you do.
Ingredients For the Recipe
You’ll need two sets of ingredients to make this recipe from start to finish.
For the Sri Lankan Curry Powder:
- Basmati rice: 2 tbsp
- Dry red chilies: 3-4
- Mustard seeds: 1 tbsp
- Coriander seeds: 2 tbsps
- Cumin seeds: 1 tbsp
- Fennel seeds: 2 tsps
- Cloves: 5-6
- Black pepper (Whole): 3 tbsps
For the Curry
- Onions (roughly chopped): 1 cup
- Ginger: 1 inch
- Garlic: 4-5 cloves
- Turmeric powder: 1 tsp
- Salt: 1 tsp
- Coconut oil: 1 tbsp
- Mustard seeds: 2 tsps
- Curry leaves: A handful
- Beans (chopped): 2 cups
- Prepared Sri Lanka Curry Powder: 2 tbsps
- Coconut milk: ½ cup
- Water: If required
- Garam masala: 1 tbsp
- Lemon juice: 1 tbsp
- Coriander leaves (chopped): For garnish
Kitchen Tools Needed
How to Make the Sri Lankan Green Bean Curry
Once you have all your ingredients ready, here’s what you need to do to make the Sri Lankan green bean curry.
For the Sri Lankan Curry Powder, start by first dry roasting the basmati rice for about 30 seconds on medium flame.
Next, add all the remaining dry spices to the same pan and dry roast until done.
Keep the mixture aside to cool down and then grind the same into a powder. Store it in an airtight container for future use.
Next, take a blender and add onions, ginger, garlic, turmeric powder, salt, and a few drops of oil. Blend into a smooth paste.
Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds and curry leaves. Saute until the seeds start to crackle.
Add the prepared paste next and saute for 1-2 minutes.
Add the beans next and mix well.
Add the prepared curry powder and mix well.
Pour the coconut milk over the mixture and mix well. You can add water to adjust the consistency of the curry as per your liking.
Sprinkle garam masala over the curry and mix well.
Serve hot with rice or roti after garnishing with lemon juice and coriander leaves.
Frequently Asked Questions
This classic Sri Lankan green bean curry is made using green beans, but you can also add other veggies of your choice into the mix. Cauliflower, sweet potatoes, carrots, and bell peppers are all excellent choices, but you can work with pretty much anything else too.
This curry base is actually a great way to put any of those veggies lying in the refrigerator to use. 
You can! While there’s just something different about making your own curry powder, you can use the store-bought version if you’re trying to whip this up in a hurry. You don’t necessarily need to stick to using Sri Lankan curry powder- you could make do with any basic curry powder you have in your pantry, and it should work just as well.
You can top this versatile and flavorful curry with practically anything you prefer. A generous sprinkle of chopped coriander and a little squeeze of lemon juice can work wonders, but if you want to go beyond that, you can top the curry with fried shallots or fried garlic too. 
Your leftover Sri Lankan green bean curry can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Make sure you use an airtight container and reheat the curry on low heat. It is always best to have the curry while it is still fresh, especially if you want to enjoy the nice crunch factor that the beans bring in.
Tips to Make the Sri Lankan Green Bean Curry
Think you’re all set to give the flavorful curry a shot? Wait up! You might want to keep these little tips and tricks in mind to make sure you nail the recipe.
- Try to use a cast iron pan or a clay pot to make the curry. This will ensure that the heat is distributed evenly throughout the contents, and you’ll get perfectly cooked beans in every single bite.
- Also, remember to cook the curry down at the lowest heat setting once you have added the coconut milk into it. This will help the curry thicken just the way you want it to.
- To make the curry more rich and flavorful, you can add some cream or coconut cream into the mix towards the end.
- If you don’t mind a bit of spice in your curry, you can add a couple of slit green chilies into it along with the coconut milk.
- Remember that the longer you cook the green beans, the softer they’ll become, but that also means they’ll lose that bright green color. Depending on your personal preference, you can either let them cook until they’re tender or let them retain their crunch factor and pop of green color.
- You can also use frozen green beans for this recipe, but remember that they’ll need a few minutes of extra time to cook to perfection, and you probably won’t be getting that bright green color of the beans if you use them as opposed to fresh beans.
- If you prefer your curry to be thinner, you can add a bit more coconut milk.
- Have some extra leftover green beans? You can use them up by trying out this flavorful Thai green papaya salad.
Serving Ideas & Suggestions
Just like any other soulful curry, this one tastes best when you pair it with some roti (flatbread) or steaming hot rice. If you have some extra time at hand, you can make some homemade naan bread, or try some hot and spicy lemon rice for an extra punch of flavor.
You could also just serve it with some bread to mop up all those flavorful juices if you don’t have the time to put together either of these.
Sri Lankan Green Bean Curry
Ingredients
Ingredients for the Sri Lankan Curry Powder
- 2 tsp Basmati rice
- 3-4 pcs Dry red chilies
- 1 tsp Mustard seeds
- 2 tsp Coriander seeds
- 1 tsp Cumin seeds
- 2 tsp Fennel seeds
- 5-6 pcs Cloves
- 3 tsp Black pepper (Whole)
Ingredients for the Curry
- 1 cup Onions (roughly chopped)
- 1 inch Ginger
- 4-5 cloves Garlic
- 1 tsp Turmeric powder
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Coconut oil
- 2 tsp Mustard seeds
- A handful Curry leaves
- 2 cups Beans (chopped)
- 2 tsp Prepared Sri Lanka Curry Powder
- ½ cup Coconut milk
- If required Water
- 1 tsp Garam masala
- 1 tsp Lemon juice
- For garnish Coriander leaves (chopped)
Instructions
- For the Sri Lankan Curry Powder, start by first dry roasting the basmati rice for about 30 seconds on medium flame.2 tsp Basmati rice
- Next, add all the remaining dry spices to the same pan and dry roast until done.3-4 pcs Dry red chilies, 1 tsp Mustard seeds, 2 tsp Coriander seeds, 1 tsp Cumin seeds, 2 tsp Fennel seeds, 5-6 pcs Cloves, 3 tsp Black pepper
- Keep the mixture aside to cool down and then grind the same into a powder. Store it in an airtight container for future use.
- Next, take a blender and add onions, ginger, garlic, turmeric powder, salt, and few drops of oil. Blend into a smooth paste.1 cup Onions, 1 inch Ginger, 4-5 cloves Garlic, 1 tsp Turmeric powder, 1 tsp Salt, 1 tsp Coconut oil
- Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds and curry leaves. Saute until the seeds start to crackle.2 tsp Mustard seeds, A handful Curry leaves
- Add the prepared paste next and saute for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the beans next and mix well.2 cups Beans
- Add the prepared curry powder and mix well.2 tsp Prepared Sri Lanka Curry Powder
- Pour the coconut milk over the mixture and mix well. You can add water to adjust the consistency of the curry as per your liking.½ cup Coconut milk, If required Water
- Sprinkle garam masala over the curry and mix well.1 tsp Garam masala
- Serve hot with rice or roti after garnishing with lemon juice and coriander leaves.1 tsp Lemon juice, For garnish Coriander leaves
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