Yogurt Curry with Cumin and Curry Leaves

This is a very thin curry that's closer to a soup. Pair it with the nutty rice for a quick and filling lunch.

One year ago: Soy Braised Chicken Thighs with Star Anise and Citrus Peel
Two years ago: Spicy Squash Salad with Lentils and Goat Cheese
Three years ago: Garlic Cheddar Biscuits

Yogurt Curry with Cumin and Curry Leaves (from 660 Curries)

Ingredients
2 cups yogurt
2 tbsp chickpea flour
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp coarse salt
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp bishop's weed
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
2 tbsp ghee or melted butter
2 tsp cumin seeds
5 dried red Thai or cayenne chiles, stems removed
10 to 12 medium to large curry leaves
2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro

1. Combine yogurt with 2 cups water in a medium saucepan and whisk.
2. Sprinkle in chickpea flour 1 tbsp at a time, whisking.
3. Stir in sugar, salt, turmeric, bishop's weed, and fenugreek seeds. Bring to a simmer, whisking, and cook until it thickens slightly, 15 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, heat ghee in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add cumin seeds and chiles and cook until chiles blacken slightly, 10 - 15 seconds. Remove skillet from heat and add curry leaves.
5. Add ghee mixture to yogurt and simmer 5 minutes.
6. Sprinkle with cilantro and server.

Bengali Squash in Coconut Milk

I can already hear my office mate's objection to this recipe. How is it any different from the Indian squash dish you already made? Granted, they are somewhat similar, but at the same time different which different seasoning and heat levels. I found this one to be much milder than the last and the turmeric gave it a lovely colour. The original calls for bottle gourd squash, but I used butternut. This recipe also calls for fenugreek and nigella seeds which I didn't have on hand despite the boy's insistence that there must be every spice known to man in the cabinet. Instead, I upped the amount of mustard used in the recipe.

Bengali Squash in Coconut Milk (from 660 Curries)

Ingredients
680g bottle gourd squash, peeled and cut into 1" cubes
2 tbsp mustard oil or canola oil
2 tsp Panch phoron (or roughly 2/3 tsp fennel seeds and 1/3 tsp each cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, nigella seeds, and black/yellow mustard seeds)
2 - 4 dried red Thai, cayenne, or serrano chiles, stems removed
1 tsp coarse kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 can unsweetened coconut milk
2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro

1. Heat oil in a medium-size skillet over medium high heat. Sprinkle in panch phoron and chiles and stir-fry until chiles blacken and seeds crackle, pop, and are aromatic, about 1 minute.
2. Add squash, salt, and turmeric. Cook, stirring, until squash is coated with spices, 1 - 2 minutes.
3. Pour in coconut milk and stir. As soon as it starts to boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover skillet, and simmer, stirring occasionally until squash is juicy-tender, 20 - 25 minutes.
4. Stir in cilantro and serve.

Southeast Asian Squash Curry

My first post-hospital meal was a success! This recipe stemmed from a need to use up some squash and a craving for Thai food. As an added bonus, this recipe called for greens, spinach to be exact, but I figured baby yellow swiss chard would be an excellent substitute. I added some chicken to the recipe because we had some thawed and the boy seems to prefer having animal flesh in his meals, but I don't think it added much to the meal, so I'm posting the recipe without the chicken. If you do want to include, I would brown it before or with the squash and put it into the curry at the same time as the squash. I removed the extra water in the recipe. Finally, I used yellow curry paste instead of red because not only was my refrigerator out of red, but so was the grocery store. I would recommend using either one.

One year ago: Chinese Beef with Broccoli
Two years ago: Easy Buttermilk Cake

Southeast Asian Squash Curry (from epicurious, originally Gourmet)

Ingredients
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons vegetable oil, divided
680g butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
3/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 (14-ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk (do not stir), divided
2 heaping tablespoons red or yellow curry paste
1 (2- to 3-inch) cinnamon stick
3 whole cloves
140g baby spinach (or baby yellow swiss chard)
1 tablespoon Asian fish sauce, or to taste
1/4 cup salted roasted cashews, chopped

1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Sauté squash with cumin and 1/4 teaspoon salt until beginning to brown, about 6 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
2. Add remaining 2 teaspoons oil to skillet and cook onion over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes.
3. Add 1/4 cup coconut milk from top of can and cook, stirring, until fat starts to separate and look glossy, about 2 minutes.
4. Add curry paste and cook, stirring, 2 minutes.
5. Add squash, water, cinnamon, cloves, and remaining coconut milk and simmer, covered, until squash is tender, about 8 minutes.
6. Stir in spinach and cook, covered, until just wilted, 1 to 2 minutes.
7. Stir in fish sauce.
8. Sprinkle with cashews.

Savory Squash with Spinach and Coconut Milk

When I arrived home from Europe, I found 3 squashed on my cabinet. They sat, taunting me, until this week when I finally had the chance to use one of them. This recipe calls for bottle gourd squash, but I used a delicata squash as that's what I had on hand. I was a bit concerned that this recipe would be lacking in flavour due to the shortage of spices, but I found it remarkably tasting. I did overdo it a bit on the sliced jalapenos because I overcompensated for the lack of serrano chiles. Use your own judgement on that. I served this over rice.

Savory Squash with Spinach and Coconut Milk (from 660 Curries)

Ingredients
680g bottle gourd squash
2 tbsp coconut oil or canola oil
1 tsp black or yellow mustard seed
2 - 4 fresh green Thai, cayenne, or serrano chiles, to taste, stems removed, cut crosswise into 1/4" slices
1 cup coconut milk
1 1/2 tsp coarse kosher or sea salt
680g fresh spinach, well rinsed and coarsely chopped
2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro
10 medium to large fresh curry leaves (I used dried and added them in the simmering stage)

1. Peel squash and remove seeds. Cut into 1/4" cubes.
2. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add mustard seeds, cover, and cook until seeds have stopped popping, about 30 seconds.
3. Add squash and chiles and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes.
4. Pour in coconut milk and squash (and dry curry leaves if not using fresh).
5. Add 1/3 of spinach, cover and cook until greens are wilted, 2 - 4 minutes.
6. Repeat with remaining spinach.
7. Reduce heat to medium low and cook, covered, stirring occasionally until squash is tender, 15 - 20 minutes.
8. Uncover and raise heat to medium high. Cook, stirring occasionally until coconut milk thickens, about 5 minutes.
9. Stir in cilantro and serve.

Spicy Red Beef Curry

It would appear that it's been more than a week since I last posted. My apologies, but lately I seem to have trouble finding the time to cook (it's a good thing my freezer is well stocked!). I wish I had a stunning recipe to give you given the absence, but instead we'll have to make do with something that's just good. My main complaint with this dish is I expected it to be spicier. Of course, this recipe comes together in the time it takes to cook the rice, so I can't complain too much. Making it a second time around, I would probably double the curry paste and spices and omit the bamboo shoots entirely. In terms of other changes, I cut the bamboo down to 1 can, added some bean sprouts, cut back slightly on the sirloin, omitted the kaffir lime leaves, subbed basil for Thai basil, and omitted the fresh cilantro. Original recipe with a few notes is included below.

One year ago: Egg Drop (an excellent template for breakfast)

Spicy Red Beef Curry (from The Best of Vietnamese and Thai Cooking)

Ingredients
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 shallots, sliced
2 tsp red curry paste (consider doubling)
1/2 plus 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1/2 tsp ground cumin (consider doubling)
1/2 tsp ground coriander (consider doubling)
1 tsp paprika (consider doubling)
450g sirloin, cut into thin strips 2" long by 1" wide
1/2 cup chicken stock
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp sugar
2 kaffir lime leaves, cut into slivers (I omitted)
2 cup canned bamboo shoots, boiled 5 minutes, rinsed, and drained (consider subbing bean sprouts)
1/2 red bell pepper, julienned (I used a whole)
20 fresh thai basil leaves, cut in half
8 fresh cilantro sprigs for garnish
steamed rice (for serving)

1. Heat the vegetable oil in a skilled over medium heat.
2. Add shallots and curry paste and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
3. Add 1/2 cup coconut milk and stir for 2 minutes.
4. Add cumin, coriander, paprika and stir to dissolve spices.
5. Add the beef and toss in the seasonings for 1 minute.
6. Add 1 cup coconut milk, chicken stock, fish sauce, sugar, lime leaves, and bamboo shoot and bring to a gentle boil.
7. Cook uncovered until tender, 10 - 15 minutes.
8. Add red bell pepper and basil (and bean sprouts if using) and removed from heat.
9. Garnish with cilantro and serve with steamed rice.

Chicken Curry with Tomatoes, Potatoes, and Spinach

One of the advantages of keeping a cooking blog is it's easy for me to track my cooking trends. I knew it had been a while since I bought chicken, but I was slightly surprised to see that the last time I bought chicken was October. I suppose it's time for poultry again! I wasn't quite ready to do a completely meat-centered meal though, so I cut the amount of chicken in the recipe in half and replaced it (roughly) with potatoes. To add some colour to the dish, I included some baby spinach (doesn't it look pretty with the red and green?).

The key to this recipe is a good spice blend. I used a Arvinda's madras masala mix that smells amazing. I also doubled the sauce for the recipe because 1/4 cup coconut milk just didn't seem like enough. Doubling the curry powder as well made it a tad bit spicy, so feel free to scale that back a bit depending on the spiciness of what you're using. I skipped the step where you remove the chicken and let the sauce thicken more, but feel free to do so!

Chicken Curry with Tomatoes, Potatoes, and Spinach (adapted from 660 Curries)

Ingredients
2 tbsps ghee or canola oil
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
4 medium cloves of garlic, minced
2 tbsps ginger, grated
350g chicken breast, cut into 1" pieces
4 small potatoes, diced (even smaller than the picture above!)
4 tsps Madras curry powder (see notes above)
1 1/2 tsp coarse kosher or sea salt
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 large tomato, finely chopped
1 package baby spinach
cooked rice for serving

1. Preheat large skillet over medium-high heat. Drizzle oil. Add onion, garlic, and ginger and cook until light brown, 3 - 5 minutes.
2. Add chicken, potatoes, and curry powder. Cook until meat is seared on all sides, 5 minutes.
3. Sprinkle salt over chicken and pour in coconut milk. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to medium. Simmer, stirring occasionally until chicken is cooked, 5 - 7 minutes.
4. Stir in tomatoes and add baby spinach.
5. Cover for a few minutes, allowing the spinach time to wilt.
6. Stir until sauce is as thick as you want it. Serve over cooked rice.

Zucchini Curry

There are some cooking steps I'm just not ready for. At the moment, I can think of a big three:
1. Making homemade pasta.
2. Making stock/broth from scratch.
3. Using a mortar and pestle to make pastes (and let's also include hand-chopping garlic here).

I know I should try these things. I know they might be better, but I just can't bring myself to take that extra step, which is why I will say that this recipe is adapted. Technically, I should have roasted seeds and then pounded things together into a paste, but I didn't and it still worked out. This is a quick and easy weeknight meal that's done in the same amount of time (or less) as it takes to make rice. I kept the spices the same and halved the recipe for myself (and still ended up with enough for 3 meals), but the original is included below. It was a tiny bit more spicy than I would've liked (maybe I should've gone with 1 serrano pepper instead of 2?), but I think I would've found the unadjusted recipe too bland, so feel free to do with it as you please. Serve over cooked rice.

Zucchini Curry (adapted from Gourmet Today)


Ingredients
1/2 tsp ground mustard
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 clove garlic, minced
1 - 2 serrano peppers, minced
2 tsps freshly grated ginger
1 tbsp Madras Masala (or other curry powder)
1/4 tsp ground coriander
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 large onion, minced (or thinly sliced)
6 medium zucchinis cut into 1/2" thick slices
1 can coconut milk well stirred (I used lite because that's all they had)
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup roasted cashews, chopped
cooked rice

1. Heat oil in a wide heavy pot over moderately high heat. Add onion, spices, pepper, and garlic. Cook until onion is golden, about 8 minutes.
2. Reduce heat to medium low, add zucchini and cook, stirring, until it begins to look moist, 3 - 5 minutes.
3. Add coconut milk and 1 tsp salt and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until zucchini is just tender, 10 - 12 minutes.
4. Sprinkle with cilantro and cashews and serve with rice.

Thai Shrimp and Spinach Curry

I felt like this dish was missing something ... maybe a little bit of spice? But the speed and ease in which you can make this more than makes up for any small disappointment in spiciness. The original calls for 2 carrots and 1 red bell pepper to be added, but after picking up kitty litter, I didn't feel like stopping at the Val-Mont as well (it was heavy!). If you do add the veggies, the recipe suggests removing the shrimp after it's cooked, then adding the sliced bell pepper and carrots and cooking before adding the spinach.

Serve over rice or something else to soak up some of the sauce.

Thai Shrimp and Spinach Curry (adapted from Gourmet Today)

Ingredients
1 can coconut milk (slightly chilled and not shaken to aid the separation)
2 tsp Thai green or red curry paste
450g medium shrimps, peeled and deveined
2 tbsp fish sauce
340g spinach
cooked rice

1. Spoon 1/3 cup thick coconut cream from the top of the can into a skillet. Cook over medium heat until thickened, 2 or 3 minutes.
2. Add curry paste and cook whisking for a minute or so..
3. Add shrimp and cook until they turn pink, 1 - 2 minutes.
4. Add remaining coconut milk and fish sauce and bring to a simmer. Simmer, stirring occasionally until shrimp are cooked through, about 1 minute.
5. Add spinach in batches stirring until each batch is wilted.
6. Serve over rice.

Coconut Red Lentil Soup

I know I said I was going to cook more meat, but for some reason, I still find myself drawn to vegetarian recipes.  How could I pass on something that included plenty of curry and coconut milk?  The last recipe I tried from this site was somewhat of a disappointment, but this recipe more than makes up for it.

I couldn't find yellow split peas, so I used green.  I'm not a fan of raisins, so I just excluded them.  I also skipped on the scallions and cilantro for garnish.  Finally, I ran out of curry powder (!  Perhaps that means a trip to Jean Talon to find fancy curry powder is in order!), so I added in a heaping 1/2 tbsp of garam masala.


Coconut Red Lentil Soup (from 101cookbooks)

Ingredients
1 cup / 7 oz / 200g yellow split peas
1 cup 7 oz / 200g red split lentils (masoor dal)
7 cups / 1.6 liters water
1 medium carrot, cut into 1/2-inch dice
2 tablespoons fresh peeled and minced ginger
2 tablespoons curry powder
2 tablespoons butter or ghee
4 green onions (scallions), thinly sliced
1/3 / 80 ml cup tomato paste
1 14-ounce (398mL) can coconut milk
2 teaspoons fine grain sea salt


1. Give the split peas and lentils a good rinse - until they no longer put off murky water. Place them in an extra-large soup pot, cover with 7 cups of water, and bring to a boil.
2. Reduce heat to a simmer and add the carrot and 1/4 of the ginger. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes, or until the split peas are soft.
3. In the meantime, in a small dry skillet or saucepan over low heat, toast the curry powder until it is quite fragrant. Be careful though, you don't want to burn the curry powder, just toast it. Set aside.  [I skipped this step out of laziness, but it's probably an excellent idea!]
4. Place the butter in a pan over medium heat, add half of the green onions and the remaining ginger. Saute for two minutes stirring constantly, then add the tomato paste and saute for another minute or two more.
5. Add the toasted curry powder to the tomato paste mixture, mix well, and then add this to the simmering soup along with the coconut milk and salt. Simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes or so. The texture should thicken up, but you can play around with the consistency if you like by adding more water, a bit at a time, if you like. Or simmer longer for a thicker consistency.

Chicken Curry Masala

This smells amazing when it's cooking, so make sure you're not starving when you start cooking.  I made this last night and only used half of the chicken that the original recipe called for, so the gravy seemed to be a little bit runny, but we'll see if it's less liquid-y as leftovers.  I was apparently tired when I went to the grocery store and invested in safflower oil instead of sunflower oil ... close enough I hope.


Chicken Curry Masala (from Kayotic Kitchen)

Ingredients

1 kg chicken (with bones)
1 large onion
1-2 red chili peppers, deseeded
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp salt
4 tbsp curry powder (Suriname masala is prefered)
5 tbsp sunflower oil
8 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 chicken bouillon cube
1 1/2 cup water
2 to 3 bay leaves 

1. Use a food processor to chop together the onion and chili pepper.  It will become a pretty orange mixture.
2. Add garlic, salt, curry, and 1 tbsp of oil.  Mix together.  It should smell delicious.
3. Place chicken in a dish and score a few times.  Rub marinade into chicken.  Cover dish and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
4. Add 4 tbsp oil to a dutch oven.  Heat over medium heat.  Cook chicken until browned on both sides, about 15 minutes.
5. Remove chicken from pan.  Pour in 1 1/2 cup water and stir to loosen bits stuck to the pan.
6. Crumble in chicken bouillon.  Add 2 - 3 bay leaves and potatoes. 
7. Place chicken on top of the potatoes, crack lid and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes, shuffling occasionally so things don't stick.