Spicy Green Beans (masaledar Sem)

Ingredients

1 1/2 lb. fresh green beans
piece fresh ginger about 1 1/2 inches long, peeled and coarsely chopped
10 cloves garlic, peeled
1 1/2 cup water
5 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 teaspoons whole cumin seeds
1 whole, dried hot red chili, lightly crushed in mortar
2 teaspoons ground coriander seeds
2 medium tomatoes, peeled and finely chopped
about 1 1/4 tsp. salt
3 Tbsp. lemon juice or to taste
1 teaspoon ground roasted cumin seeds
freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Serves 6.. Trim beans and cut them crosswise at 1/4 inch intervals. put ginger and garlic into container of electric blender or food processer. Add 1/2 cup of the measured water and blend until fairly smooth. Heat oil in a wide, heavy saucepan over a medium flame. When hot, put in cumin seeds. Five seconds later, put in crushed chili. As soon as it darkenes, pour in ginger-garlic paste. Stir and cook for about a minute. Put in coriander. Stir a few times. Now put in chopped tomatoes. Stir and cook for about 2 minutes, mashing up tomato pieces with back of a slotted spoon as you do so. Put in beans, salt, and remaining 1 cup water. Bring to a simmer. Cover, turn heat to low and cook for aboutr 8-10 minutes or until beans are tender. Remove the cover. Add lemon juice, roasted cumin and a generous amount of freshly ground pepper. Turn heat up and boil away all of liquid, stirring beans gently as you do so.