Curry leaf smoked beets and pear in a lemon and honey dressing topped with roasted peanuts

• Curry lead smoked beets – 2 medium sized par boiled and cut in cubes
• Pear – 1  sliced thinly
• Lemon juice – 1 tbsp
• Honey – 1 tbsp
• Whole pepper powder – ½ tsp
• Salt – to taste
• Mint leaves – to garnish
• Roasted peanuts – 2 tsp

I personally enjoy the smoky flavor in food. Smoking food was developed as a way of preserving food many years ago. Tribals used to hang their kill to dry in their caves. Since there was no way out for the smoke from the fire, they noticed that both the flavour and the preserving qualities were improved by the smoke … and so it began. After reading up on how to smoke vegetables, here’s my own cheat s version of doing it. For the Curry leaf smoked beets:

1. Heat charcoal on high flame till it turns orange
2. Chop the beets in cubes and par boil . Place in a big vessel that is heat proof
3. Make a depression in the center to place a cup (this cup is where you need to place the burning charcoal) – Make sure to use a cup that can withstand the heat of the charcoal (in my case I used a terracotta cup).
4. The beets are now ready in a vessel with a burning charcoal cup right in the center
5. Add a few drops of oil and curry leaves on the burning coal and close the big vessel air tight
6. Let it sit for a good 30-40 mins.
7. Curry leaves smoked beets are ready!

For the salad:

• Combine the curry leaves smoked beets and thinly sliced pears
• Make a dressing with lemon, honey, salt and whole pepper powder
• Add the dressing to the vegetable mélange
• Garnish with mint leaves and roasted peanuts

This was part of the 5 day salad challenge. If you want to check out more salad recipes and food stories and quaint food trails – Check Puliyogare Travels