Tag Archives: food

Chana Dhal and Courgette Curry

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My brother-in-law John is staying with us again this summer and expressed an interest in trying Indian food.

You mean John lived with us all last summer and I DIDN’T COOK INDIAN FOOD? What kind of a sister-in-law am I????

Plagued by the knowledge that if I didn’t rectify this–and fast–my head would explode in flames, I decided to make a vegetarian and meat curry pronto. This is the vegetarian recipe I chose, and it’s so good, you guys. I came home the next day hoping to eat the small amount of leftovers for a late afternoon snack, but lo and behold John had eaten them already.

I was slightly pleased, I can’t lie.

There’s no better proof of love than the disappearance of leftovers before they’ve even been in the fridge for 24 hours.

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Anyway, there are no words adequate enough to express my love for this curry.

Though this facial expression comes close to illustrating it.

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With no hard-to-find ingredients (you can use yellow split peas as I did, and the lime juice and brown sugar take the place of tamarind juice), there’s no excuse not to make it.

Unless you don’t like Indian food.

In which case . . . well, I just have to believe that you haven’t actually tasted Indian food yet.

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Not tasted Indian food?

You poor soul.

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Ingredients

Serves 4

2/3 cup chana dhal or yellow split peas, washed
3 cups water
4 TBS vegetable oil
2 green chilies, de-seeded and minced
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 inch piece of ginger, minced
8 curry leaves (optional)
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp turmeric
3 medium winter squash or zucchini, chopped into quarter moons
2 TBS lime juice
2 TBS brown sugar
2 medium to large tomatoes, chopped
Salt, to taste
1 small bunch cilantro, chopped
Cooked rice, to serve

1. In a deep pan, bring the dhal or split peas to a simmer with the 3 cups of water and a generous pinch of salt. Simmer for about 30 minutes, until tender (but not mushy), adding more water as needed and stirring every now and then.

2. In the meantime, heat the oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add the onion (and a pinch of salt) and cook for about 15 minutes, until starting to caramelize.

3. Add the chilies, garlic, ginger and curry leaves to the onion and cook for 2-3 minutes.

4. Add the chili powder, turmeric, and another pinch of salt to the onions. Cook for 1 minute, stirring so that the spices don’t burn.

5. By now the chana dhal or split peas should be tender, so add them to the pot with the onions, including any water that wasn’t absorbed.

6. Add the squash or zucchini, lime juice, sugar, tomatoes and cilantro to the pot. Simmer over medium heat until the squash or zucchini is tender, 20-30 minutes.

7.  Taste and season with more salt if needed. Serve over rice!

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Chicken and Rice with Peas

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I’ve made Chicken and Rice in many variations and usually end up being disappointed. Soggy rice, overcooked meat, too much mushy uniformity. Or, on the other end of the spectrum, very good but extremely laborious. But this version, I really enjoyed. It was a success on both ends–good-tasting and not too complicated for a weeknight.

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Yes, it’s ultimately one bowl of the same thing (so not a thrill for those who enjoy a little bit of this, a little bit of that), but for me on that particular evening it was one bowl of pure comfort. With wine by candlelight, even better.

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And let me tell you what happened with the leftovers after a little trip through the food processor:

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Well? Do we have an official Alice Endorsement?

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Thinking . . . thinking . . .

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And the answer is . . .

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Yes!

Inspired by the October 2012 issue of Real Simple, here it is.

Ingredients

(Serves 3-4)

1 TBS olive oil
2 large bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 large onion, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1 red bell pepper, finely diced
1 cup long-grain rice
2 cups chicken broth
1 tsp dried thyme
1 cup frozen peas
½ cup diced green olives

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium high heat. When hot, add the chicken breasts, seasoning liberally with salt and pepper. Brown the chicken breasts on all sides for about 10 minutes, then remove them to a plate.

2. Add the minced onion to the pot and cook over medium high heat until starting to caramelize, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding salt and pepper as it cooks.

3. Add the garlic and pepper to the pot. Cook for 5-7 minutes, until the             pepper has softened.

4. Add the rice, broth and thyme; stir well, then add the chicken pieces on top.

5. Bring to a boil, cover the pot, and simmer over low heat for 20-25 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the rice has absorbed most of the liquid. Turn off the heat.

6. Remove the chicken to a cutting board.

7. Stir the peas and olives into the pot of rice, cover the pot and let it sit for about 5 minutes.

8.  Shred or chop the chicken, discarding the skin and bones. Stir the             chicken pieces into the pot of rice and taste for seasoning. Serve hot!

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