More East Indian Yumminess

We’re going to be on a tight budget this winter. When we looked at what we spent on food in a month it was a bit ridiculous. Such is the problem when two foodies come together. Anyhoo, so I am taking on the job of planning our menus for each night based on ingredients we have in the cupboards. Good thing we both love curries.

Anyhoo, so last night we had this dhal recipe from Veg Web. It’s pretty good as written, but I always add extra spices and what-not. Usually I don’t make the same Indian recipe twice, but that one I think is my “go to dhal recipe.”

To go with the lentils, I tried out a recipe for butter chickpea curry. I used soymilk instead of milk and that worked out fine. But I’m not sure if it’s the type of tomato soup I’m using or what, but it was too sweet for us (yes it’s unsweetened soymilk). So I added some hot sauce, and then we were left with this sweet & spicy concoction. It wasn’t bad, but I’ve made better chickpea curries and probably wouldn’t make it again.

To go with it, homemade parathas:

east indian feast…

The other night we decided to have East Indian food. I used to cook it quite a bit, but for some reason I haven’t in a few months. *shrug* Anyhoo, I wanted to try out red lentil cauliflower curry from Veganomicon. I used frozen cauliflower, as I remembered I had some stowed away in my freezer that I completely forgot about. As always when cooking this type of food, I tinkered around with the spices a bit until it suited my fancy. I don’t keep track of what I add, I just add some stuff, taste it, and then continue with that until it tastes “right.” The bf really liked this dish too, which actually surprised me. What with the parsnip and the cauliflower and all…I guess the curry just hides the veggie goodness from unsuspecting veggie haters.

I also made a bean curry with a mix of pinto and kidney beans. I guess pinto beans really don’t fit into the theme of the meal, but oh well. I used half a jar (yes, half a jar) of curry paste that a local company makes. We usually go visit them at the farmer’s market, all of their stuff I’ve had so far is magnificent and I can’t rave about them enough. I don’t know if you can their stuff elsewhere though – Chatty’s Indian Spices.

To go with the curries i also made some naan. Unfortunately we were out of basmati rice and I forgot until the last minute, so I had to make just plain old long-grain white rice. Not nearly as good. Note to self: next time make sure you have basmati rice.

East Indian Yummyness & New Cookbooks

Last night for dinner I wanted to use up some cauliflower in the fridge so I made aloo gobi from Madhur Jaffrey’s World Vegetarian. It’s the first recipe I’ve used from that book and man is it good…the spices are perfect! I wouldn’t change a thing.

To go with itI made chana masala. That recipe was okay…a wee bit too much lemon juice for my liking. I am incredibly picky with chana masala dishes…I have yet to find a recipe that i loved enough to make twice. I served these dishes along with baked samosas that I bought from a guy at the local farmer’s market months and months ago (frozen of course) and basmati rice.

As a total aside, yesterday my new cookbooks arrived! I was given an Amazon gift certificate for participating in an online survey so what better way to spend it then with new cookbooks? Yes, I JUST bought Veganomicon…and I don’t know why I waited so long, I have a huuuge list of recipes I want to try from that book alone. I haven’t had a chance to look at the other ones yet.

Curried Spinach with Tofu Paneer

Last night for dinner I made curried spinach with tofu paneer. I feel like the spinach portion needs a bit of tinkering around with. It was still really good though. I served it over a bit of basmati rice…the only thing that would have made it better is if I had some nice warm, fresh naan, but oh well!

Curried Onion Rings

There I was, staring in my nearly-bare fridge, trying to figure out what the heck I was going to have for dinner. Half an onion kept staring at me defiantly. So I accepted it’s challenge. Warning, if you don’t like onions, you’re probably not going to like this. And if you don’t like curry, you’re definitely not going to like this. This recipe was adapted from one in Sensational Vegetable Recipes.

Curried Onion Rings
* 1/2 onion, sliced into rings
* 1 tbsp olive oil
* 1 1/2 tsp curry powder
* 1/4 tsp brown sugar

Heat olive oil in skillet. Add onions and curry. Saute until onions are tender. Mix in brown sugar and serve.

It was a bit too sweet for me, but I can see how some people would like it. Next time I make it for myself I’ll probably use half the sugar, as I prefer more spicy than sweet.