Until I read Serving Crazy with Curry, the idea of making my own curry scared me, but Amulya Malladi has a way of writing that makes Indian food seem incredibly easy to make. So I made my first attempt a few weeks ago while two friends were visiting, loosely basing it on this recipe. They all loved it!
I should add “Free Arm Workout” to the title. You’ll be stirring for almost the full cooking time, but if you love curry, it’s worth it.
Coconut Milk Vegetable Curry
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespooons oil
1 onion, sliced
1 carrot, diced
1 red bell pepper, cut into strips or diced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon curry paste or powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon paprika powder or 1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder
1 1/2 cups coconut milk, warmed (optional, prevents curdling but tastes ok if you don’t warm before mixing in)
1/3 cup raisins
1/4 cup cashews
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Servings: 3-4
Total Time: 1 1/2 hours
Clarify the butter (instructions found here) and add oil. Saute the onion on medium low heat for 15 minutes. Keep stirring to prevent burning. If any part burns, immediately remove.
Add carrot and saute for another 15 minutes. Add bell pepper, ginger and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables are tender. Add spices, warmed coconut milk, raisins and cashews. Simmer on low heat for 15 minutes, until sauce begins to thicken, stirring frequently. Stir in lemon juice. Let sit for 20 minutes. Sauce will thicken further.
Serve over basmati rice and peas.
Notes:
If using curry powder, saute the powder before adding to the recipe with a little bit of oil and a tiny bit of the onion. This will “wake up” the powder and make a more flavorful curry.
Other ingredients you can add or experiment with: cilantro, tumeric, soy sauce (or fish sauce), cumin. I didn’t include these ingredients because I don’t have access to them in Nicaragua. Which is also why the picture has white rice instead of Basmati.
If looking for a milder taste, use paprika and half the amounts of it and the chili. Avoid cayenne unless you like your curry to blister your lips.
