Assam Fish Curry

My grandmother used to use this Assam Fish Curry as a the soup base for her Laksa. I never could quite take to it. I prefer the Laksa my dad makes. However, the Assam Fish Curry goes terrifically with white or brown rice.

I adapted this recipe from Kuali. Serves 8.

Ingredients:
1 kilogram mackerel ;
250 grams ladies fingers
1 Tomato ; quartered
3 sprigs polygonum leaves ; (daun kesum)
4 tablespoons tamarind paste ; mixed with
500 mililiters Water
1 wild ginger bud ; halve and smash stem
2 pieces dried tamarind skin
5 tablespoons oil
~~ -- Ground Ingredients -- ~~
12 shallots
8 fresh red chillies
4 slices Galangal
1 cm fresh turmeric
2 cm square belacan ; toasted
2 stalks Lemongrass
~~ -- Seasoning -- ~~
3/4 teaspoon salt ; or to taste
1/2 teaspoon sugar ; or to taste

Instructions:
Heat oil in a deep saucepan and sauté ground ingredients and wild ginger bud halves and polygonum leaves until aromatic and the oil rises.

Add asam jawa juice and bring to the boil. Add ladies fingers, dried tamarind skin and simmer for 8-10 minutes. Put in mackerel and cook for 10 minutes. Add tomato and adjust seasoning to taste. Dish out and serve with hot plain rice immediately.

Curry Chicken with Dhall

Here's another recipe for curry.

Ingredients:
1 Chicken ; (cut into 8 pieces)
1 1/2 cups dhall ; (washed and drained; and soaked at least 4 hours)
1 pint Water ;
2 potatoes ; (skinned and minced)
2 Brinjal ; (skinned and minced)
1 teaspoon Turmeric
2 tablespoon Chicken curry powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoon Cooking oil
~~ -- Pounded Ingredients -- ~~
3 Red chillies
3 dried chillies
1 (2-in) Ginger
10 small Onion
6 cloves Garlic
1 (1-in) Lengkuas

Instructions:
1. Pour water into a saucepan. Bring to the boil. Put in dhall, turmeric powder, curry powder and salt. Continue to boil.

2. Heat oil and fry pounded ingredients till a film of oil forms on the surface. Stir well into the boiling dhall.

3. Add chicken pieces, potatoes and brinjals. Cook until dhall and chicken pieces are tender. Season well. Dish up and serve hot.

Curry Kapitan

I love all types of curries. One of my favourites is a Nyonya curry which is drier than most curries but bursting with flavour.

One thing to note: do try to get the spice paste as fine as you can. I adapted this recipe from Rasa Malaysia.

Ingredients:
340 grams boneless chicken thigh and/or breast ; (cut into small cubes/pieces)
1 lemon grass ; (cut into 4-inch lengths, use only the white part, pounded)
4 piece kaffir lime leaves
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/2 tablespoon lime juice
Salt ; to taste
~~ -- Spice Paste -- ~~
3/4 inch galangal
114 grams fresh red chili ; (seeded and sliced)
2 1/2 shallots ; (sliced)
1/2 inch Ginger
3 candlenuts ; (soaked in warm water)
1/4 inch fresh turmeric
1/8 teaspoon belacan ; (fermented shrimp paste)

Instructions:
1. Blend all spice paste ingredients to a very fine paste.

2. Heat up some cooking oil in a work and stir-fry paste until aromatic or a thin layer of oil rises to the top.

3. Add chicken and continue stirring until it''s almost cooked.

4. Add the coconut milk and the rest of the ingredients and continue to simmer for another 15-20 minutes, over low heat.

5. Add salt to taste and serve hot.

Butter Chickpea Curry

This is definitely one of my favourites dishes with chickpeas. It is creamy and just bursting with flavour. Unfortunately, I didn't manage to take a picture of it. However, take my word for it, it's good!

This recipe is adapted from AllRecipes and serves 6.

Ingredients:
3 medium potatoes ; cubed
1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
3/4 medium yellow onion ; diced
1 1/2 teaspoon Garlic ; minced
1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoon cumin
3/4 teaspoon salt
229 grams condensed tomato soup
3/8 cup Yogurt ; or milk
255 grams Chick peas ; rinsed and drained

Instructions:
1. Place potatoes in a saucepan, cover with water, and bring to a boil over high heat; simmer until the potatoes are tender. Drain, and set aside.

2. Warm oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in onion and garlic, and cook until the onions are soft and translucent. Stir in curry powder, garam masala, ginger, cumin, and salt. Cook for 1 or 2 minutes, stirring. Pour in soup, cream, and chickpeas. Stir in potatoes. Taste. Put in more milk if required to counter the tomato soup taste. Simmer 5 minutes.

Serve with hot rice.

Spicy Vegan Curry

I am so on a curry phase right now. Also, most recipes with chickpeas happen to be curries and I made 1 large potful of chickpeas by a slightly miscalculation on my part. Yeah. That's right.

This dish is another pretty good one. Not as flavourful as the previous ones I've made but it's able to stand on its own feet.

Adapted from AllRecipes, serves 3.

Ingredients:
2 potatoes ; peeled and cubed
1 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 yellow onion ; diced
1 1/2 cloves Garlic ; minced
1 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala
1/2 inch Fresh ginger root ; peeled and minced
1/2 teaspoons Fine salt
206 grams Diced tomatoes ; (about 4 tomatoes)
213 grams Chick peas ; rinsed and drained
213 grams peas ; drained
199 grams milk

Instructions:
1. Place potatoes into a large pot and cover with salted water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until just tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and allow to steam dry for a minute or two.

2. Meanwhile, heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion and garlic; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Season with cumin, cayenne pepper, curry powder, garam masala, ginger, and salt; cook for 2 minutes more. Add the tomatoes, garbanzo beans, peas, and potatoes. Pour in the coconut milk (enough to cover the ingredients and slightly more), and bring to a simmer. Simmer 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Daring Cooks' Challenge: Indian Dosas

The September 2009 Daring Cooks' challenge was hosted by Debyi from The Healthy Vegan Kitchen. She chose the Indian Dosas from the refresh cookbook by Ruth Tal.

I was really pleased with the choice of Indian Dosa. Dosa (or thosai) is rather common in Malaysia and happens to be one of my favourite Indian dishes. Thosai is normally eaten with some form of chutney and it is terrific when consumed right after preparation. It's not a "tapau" food. Once you bring it back home, it turns rather soggy.

This recipe was very easy to follow though the preparation of the ingredients is time consuming. I must say the thosai itself is not exactly what we get in Malaysia and the curry is on the sweet side, rather than fiery hot. Nevertheless, putting aside comparisons, it is a very good dish. The filling has a good combination of vegetables and the curry compliments it well.

This recipe comes in 3 parts, the dosas, the filling and the sauce. It does take awhile to make, but the filling and sauce can be made ahead and frozen if need be. You can serve them as a main course with rice and veggies, or as an appetizer. This does take a little planning ahead, so make sure you read the recipe through before starting.

Serves 4

Equipment needed:
large bowl
whisk
griddle or skillet
ladle (or large spoon)
spatula
vegetable peeler &/or knife
large saucepan
food processor or bean masher

Dosa Pancakes
1 cup (120gm/8oz) spelt flour (or all-purpose, gluten free flour)
½ tsp (2½ gm) salt
½ tsp (2½ gm) baking powder
½ tsp (2½ gm) curry powder
½ cup (125ml/4oz) almond milk (or soy, or rice, etc.)
¾ cup (175ml/6oz) water
cooking spray, if needed

Dosa Filling
1 batch Curried Garbanzo Filling (see below), heated

Dosa Toppings
1 batch Coconut Curry Sauce (see below), heated
¼ cup (125gm) grated coconut
¼ cucumber, sliced

Dosa Pancakes
1.Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl, slowly adding the almond milk and water, whisking until smooth.
2.Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Spray your pan with a thin layer of cooking spray, if needed.
3.Ladle 2 tablespoons of batter into the center of your pan in a circular motion until it is a thin, round pancake. When bubbles appear on the surface and it no longer looks wet, flip it over and cook for a few seconds. Remove from heat and repeat with remaining batter. Makes 8 pancakes.



Curried Garbanzo Filling
This filling works great as a rice bowl topping or as a wrap too, so don't be afraid to make a full batch.

5 cloves garlic
1 onion, peeled and finely diced
1 carrot, peeled and finely diced
1 green pepper, finely diced (red, yellow or orange are fine too)
2 medium hot banana chilies, minced
2 TBSP (16gm) cumin, ground
1 TBSP (8gm) oregano
1 TBSP (8gm) sea salt (coarse)
1 TBSP (8gm) turmeric
4 cups (850gm/30oz) cooked or canned chick peas (about 2 cans)
½ cup (125gm/4oz) tomato paste

1.Heat a large saucepan over medium to low heat. Add the garlic, veggies, and spices, cooking until soft, stirring occasionally.
2.Mash the chickpeas by hand, or in a food processor. Add the chickpeas and tomato paste to the saucepan, stirring until heated through.



Coconut Curry Sauce
This makes a great sauce to just pour over rice as well. This does freeze well, but the texture will be a little different. The flavor is still the same though. My picture of this sauce is one that I had made, had to freeze, then thaw to use. It tastes great, but the texture is a little runnier, not quite as thick as it was before freezing.

1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic
½ (2½ gm) tsp cumin, ground
¾ (3¾ gm) tsp sea salt (coarse)
3 TBSP (30gm) curry powder
3 TBSP (30gm) spelt flour (or all-purpose GF flour)
3 cups (750ml/24oz) vegetable broth
2 cups (500ml/24oz) coconut milk
3 large tomatoes, diced

1.Heat a saucepan over medium heat, add the onion and garlic, cooking for 5 minutes, or until soft.
2.Add the spices, cooking for 1 minutes more. Add the flour and cook for 1 additional minute.
3.Gradually stir in the vegetable broth to prevent lumps. Once the flour has been incorporated, add the coconut milk and tomatoes, stirring occasionally.
4.Let it simmer for half an hour.

Dhal Curry

There used to be a makeshift stall near my house which sells the best nasi (rice) dhalca. It is basically rice with chicken in dhal curry; but the curry was a burst of all-the-right-combination-of-flavours and the chicken meat was so tender, it practically fell off the bone. I'm just salivating right now reminiscing about it.

We have been happily consuming the nasi dhalca for years when one dark day, my dad returned from the nasi dhalca stall and informed us that the seller has decided he wouldn't be continuing with his business any longer. Rage and confusion mingled in me.. what? why isn't he passing on his legacy to his kid or something? how will we live without his curry? why does everything happen to meeeeee??

As we all know, we cannot control everything and everyone. So when I had a hankering for dhal curry recently, I decided to try out several recipes until I find one which is good enough to at least resemble The One. This one is great tasting with the right amount of heat and spices.

This recipe yields 5-6 servings (adapted from the hungry horse)

Ingredients:
2 tsp whole mustard seeds
2 tbsp turmeric
4 cloves
4 tbsp curry powder
2 tbsp of ghee plus 4 tbsp of olive oil
2 cup of chopped red onion
4 slices of ginger, minced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 green chilli, cut into large slices
6 cups of water
450g yellow split peas, soaked overnight
2 small potato, diced
2 small carrot, diced
Salt to taste

Directions:
1) In a small bowl, combine and moisten spices (mustard seeds, turmeric, cloves and curry powder) with a few tablespoons of water so it won't burn when they are fried later.
2) In a heavy pot, heat ghee and olive oil over medium­-low heat.
3) Sauté onions, ginger and garlic until onions are translucent, about 2­-3 mins. Add in the moistened spices and green chillies and continue sauteing until mixture is fragrant, about 2 mins.
4) Add water, split peas, potatoes and carrots and give a good stir.
5) Bring curry to a boil and let simmer over low heat for 1 hour, stir occasionally.
6) The dhall curry is ready when the split peas are soft and begin to break apart. You can add more water if curry is too thick. Check seasoning and serve with naan or hot rice.

Creamy Carrot with Curry Soup

Creamy soups are one of my comfort food although we rarely have a cold day here. Curry is also a weakness of mine and when I came across this recipe in AllRecipes, it sounded too good to pass up, and boy was I glad I tried out the recipe. The soup was delicious; a strong carrot flavour with subtle spice aftertaste. Gorgeous!

This recipe yields 4 servings (adapted)

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3/4 pound peeled carrots, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1/2 large onion, cut into large dice
• 1-1/2 teaspoons butter
• 1/2 pinch sugar
• 1-1/2 large garlic cloves, thickly sliced
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• a dash of ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin
  
• 1-1/2 cups chicken broth, homemade or from a carton or can
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Instructions:

1. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a large, deep saute pan until shimmering.
2. Add carrots, then onion; saute, stirring very little at first, then more frequently, until vegetables start to turn golden brown, 7 to 8 minutes.
3. Reduce heat to low and add butter, sugar and garlic; continue cooking until all vegetables are a rich spotty caramel color, about 10 minutes longer.
4. Add curry powder, cinnamon, cumin and nutmeg; continue to saute until fragrant, 30 seconds to 1 minute longer.
5. Add broth; bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer, partially covered, until carrots are tender, about 10 minutes.
6. Using a blender, puree until very smooth, 30 seconds to 1 minute. (Vent it either by removing the lid's pop-out center or by lifting one edge of the lid. Drape the blender canister with a kitchen towel. To 'clean' the canister, pour in a little whole milk, blend briefly, then add to the soup.)
7. Return to pan (or a soup pot); add enough whole milk so the mixture is souplike, yet thick enough to float garnish. Taste, and add salt and pepper if needed. Heat through, ladle into bowls, and serve.

Malaysian Chicken Curry

Malaysians love their curry. Indian, Chinese and Malay curries are equally tasty. It great eaten with rice, rotis, or western type bread. I made mine last night with French bread to swab up every little bit of the delicious curry. The quality of the curry lies on the type of curry powder you choose to use.

This recipe yields 4-6 servings

Ingredients:
1 chicken, cut into small parts
5 garlic, finely chopped
3 inch ginger, finely chopped
1 big onion, finely chopped
1 star anise
1 cinnamon stick
4 cloves
6 tbsp chicken curry powder, mixed with water to form a thick paste
1 1/2 cup whole milk (most curries are made with coconut milk)
6 potatoes, cut into chunks
Salt, to taste

Instructions:
1) In a hot pot, pour in a generous amount of oil (about 1/2 cup). When the oil is hot enough, add in garlic, ginger and onion. Stir for 30 seconds.
2) Add in star anise, cinnamon stick and cloves. Stir all ingredients until golden brown.
3) Add in curry paste. Stir regularly until oil becomes separate from the paste.
4) Add in the chicken. Stir until all is coated with the paste.
5) After 5 minutes, add in milk and stir well. Add in water to obtain the right consistency depending on your taste and preference.
6) Add potatoes and salt. Cook until chicken and potatoes are soft and tender.
7) Serve with rice or bread.