...AKA what we had for dinner tonight. This is one of our favorites and an adaptation of a recipe we got from Gourmet magazine. We thought it was a little bland and so have revised it to the following--changing/adding spices as well as the coconut milk, and omitting some of the more confusing and (we have found) unnecessary steps:
Amended Curried Red-Lentil Stew with Vegetables
or we just call it "making Indian"
6 tablespoons vegetable oil (or just use a spray like Pam)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2+ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ginger paste (available in the Asian section of most grocery stores)
5 large garlic cloves, coarsely chopped; or 2-1/2 tsp minced garlic
5 1/3 cups water
3 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon garam masala (an Indian spice blend; not necessary, but something we really like)
1 cup red lentils (available in bulk at a lot of grocery stores; otherwise, dried in bags)
3 medium carrots, quartered lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces
3 cups chopped trimmed spinach leaves (3 ounces)--frozen does not work very well, FYI
1 cup frozen peas (not thawed)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2-1 cup coconut milk to taste (we use the whole can if we're using the light version, 1/2 a can if we go with the full-fat deal)
For rice:
2 cups basmati rice
1 tsp lime juice
Salt
1/2 tsp curry powder
Amended Curried Red-Lentil Stew with Vegetables
or we just call it "making Indian"
6 tablespoons vegetable oil (or just use a spray like Pam)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2+ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ginger paste (available in the Asian section of most grocery stores)
5 large garlic cloves, coarsely chopped; or 2-1/2 tsp minced garlic
5 1/3 cups water
3 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon garam masala (an Indian spice blend; not necessary, but something we really like)
1 cup red lentils (available in bulk at a lot of grocery stores; otherwise, dried in bags)
3 medium carrots, quartered lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces
3 cups chopped trimmed spinach leaves (3 ounces)--frozen does not work very well, FYI
1 cup frozen peas (not thawed)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2-1 cup coconut milk to taste (we use the whole can if we're using the light version, 1/2 a can if we go with the full-fat deal)
For rice:
2 cups basmati rice
1 tsp lime juice
Salt
1/2 tsp curry powder
Directions
Saute onion in oil until golden, 8 to 10 minutes.
Puree ginger, garlic, and 1/3 cup water in a blender. Add purée to golden onion and cook about 5 minutes. Add curry powder, turmeric, and cumin and cook over low heat, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in lentils and remaining 5 cups water and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes.
[In a separate pot, combine basmati rice with 4 cups water. Add lime juice, a shake of salt, curry powder, and a splash of olive oil. Bring to a boil, turn down to simmer, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.]
Add carrots and remaining salt to spice/onion mixture and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until carrots are tender; 15 to 20 minutes.
Stir in spinach and peas and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until peas are tender, about 3 minutes. Stir in cilantro and season stew with salt and pepper. Add coconut milk and stir until well mixed. Serve stew over rice.
YUM. Matt also makes whole-wheat flat bread to go along with it, which is excellent and is basically unleavened whole-wheat bread (a little like tortillas) with rosemary, garlic, and olive oil.
UPDATE: And I probably would be remiss if I didn't mentioned what we had last night: baked potato pizza, a most excellent use of the locally-grown potatoes we bought at the Eastern market, and absolutely superb on top of Matt's homemade sauce and whole-wheat crust, along with some chopped onions and topped with sour cream.
Below: when the going gets tough, the tough make bunches of cookies. (Thanks, Laura!) I was out of oatmeal this time and so I substituted an extra cup of whole-wheat flour. Matt says they turned out great :) Say whatever else you want about us, but we do know how to eat.
Puree ginger, garlic, and 1/3 cup water in a blender. Add purée to golden onion and cook about 5 minutes. Add curry powder, turmeric, and cumin and cook over low heat, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in lentils and remaining 5 cups water and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes.
[In a separate pot, combine basmati rice with 4 cups water. Add lime juice, a shake of salt, curry powder, and a splash of olive oil. Bring to a boil, turn down to simmer, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.]
Add carrots and remaining salt to spice/onion mixture and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until carrots are tender; 15 to 20 minutes.
Stir in spinach and peas and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until peas are tender, about 3 minutes. Stir in cilantro and season stew with salt and pepper. Add coconut milk and stir until well mixed. Serve stew over rice.
YUM. Matt also makes whole-wheat flat bread to go along with it, which is excellent and is basically unleavened whole-wheat bread (a little like tortillas) with rosemary, garlic, and olive oil.
UPDATE: And I probably would be remiss if I didn't mentioned what we had last night: baked potato pizza, a most excellent use of the locally-grown potatoes we bought at the Eastern market, and absolutely superb on top of Matt's homemade sauce and whole-wheat crust, along with some chopped onions and topped with sour cream.Below: when the going gets tough, the tough make bunches of cookies. (Thanks, Laura!) I was out of oatmeal this time and so I substituted an extra cup of whole-wheat flour. Matt says they turned out great :) Say whatever else you want about us, but we do know how to eat.
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