Easy Indian Veggie Curry

Cooking can be a release, a much-needed break from studying or a pleasurable unwinding activity after a long day at work, but it can also be stressful, straining, and annoying when you're hungry/not sure what you're doing/exhausted/the take-out place is right down the block. Such was my week - parental units out of town and studying for a pesky physics exam (tonight), I remembered what it was like not to cook out of merely pleasure (as I have had the awesome opportunity to do recently), but out of necessity. With a hankering for Indian spices and lack of a good, quick and healthy (read: not butter chicken) place nearby (or at least that I know of nearby - I love the places up on Jean Talon but it's much to far of a trek for a quick dinner on a Tuesday night), I decided to trust my internal judgement and go for it on my own, without recipe. What materialized may or may not be true Indian cuisine, but it successfully hit the spot for a hearty-yet-light, warm, easy weeknight dinner, with just enough leftovers to tide me to the next day, but not so much as to overwhelm me. Give it a try, and as always, play around! This would be great with different types of veggies and legumes (as I mention below in the recipe), with a bit of cream or yogurt stirred in at the last minute (if you crave a creamier dish) and served atop rice, quinoa, couscous, or barley. 

Easy Indian Veggie Curry

Ingredients

Olive oil

1 medium onion

3 cloves garlic

1-2 teaspoons fresh chopped ginger

Saffron ** very optional**

1 small-medium eggplant, cut into quarters lengthwise and into 12-1 inch chunks

1 zucchini

1 turnip (optional)

Cumin (essential!)

Hot curry powder, or other spicy powder

Ground coriander (optional)

Cinnamon (optional)

1/2 - 1 cup white wine (optional, but highly recommended)

Canned whole or stewed tomatoes, or 2 large fresh tomatoes in chunks

any other quick-cooking veggies you like! I used cabbage shavings, but feel free to substitute green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, spinach, chickpeas, beans etc.

Water, chicken stock or veggie stock if necessary

Salt and pepper

Chopped cilantro or parsley as garnish

Serve atop quinoa, brown or white rice, couscous, barley, or potatoes!

Directions

Smash garlic with the side of a big knife (using your palm - see photo), remove skin, and chop finely. Cut onion in chunks. Heat oil in a pan slightly and add garlic, onions and ginger (and saffron is using, but very optional! It's $$ and I have leftover from Zanzibar), stirring every so often (lower heat if getting burned/too brown!), about 5-7 minutes. 

Smashing the garlic: Hit the flat side of a big knife with the palm of your hand to crush the garlic, but careful not to cut your fingers!

Some prepped veggies

Softened onions, garlic, ginger and saffron

Add eggplant to pan. Add a touch more oil if the eggplant seems dry. Cook over medium-low heat about 5 minutes until browned. Move eggplant around every couple of minutes but DO NOT stir constantly - the dish will turn into baby mush!

Eggplant addition

Add zucchini, turnip (if using) and about 1 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon curry powder, 1/2 teaspoon coriander, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook over medium heat, about 4 minutes, until slightly browned. The pan should be hot and seem a bit dry. Add 1/2 cup of white wine (or water/chicken stock/veggie stock, if not using white wine), deglaze (aka: scrape) bottom of the pan, lower heat slightly and cover, cooking about 5 minutes.

Turnips - some of the last veggies remaining from my dad's garden (remaining in our fridge, I mean!)

With turnips and zucchini

Spices added

Add tomatoes (squish them though your fingers if they are whole!), anywhere from 1/2 a container to a whole container, depending on your tomato preferences. Stir, and again, cover at a medium low heat, checking and stirring periodically, adding water or stock if it seems dry - there should be some thickening liquid at the bottom - about 10 minutes or until all veggies are soft (pierce with a knife to determine!).

Adding tomatoes (canned or fresh will work!)

Squish them through your fingers - the best part!

Let simmer, covered or not, until soft and the liquid has thickened

At this point I like to taste it and I usually add about 1 more teaspoon of cumin (I love the stuff), some more hot curry powder and salt. Stir to combine. Add any other veggies you're using (quick-cooking ones - see above!), stir, and cover until soft, about 5 minutes. If there is too much liquid, cook it off with the cover removed. Not enough liquid while you're cooking the soft veggies? Add a bit more!

Another remaining veggie from Robin's garden

Soft-veggie addition (cabbage, in my case)

Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and/or parsley and serve!

Ta-daaaaa!

Note: I had leftover chicken, so I sprinkled that on top, but I would highly recommend adding beans or chickpeas at the last step (soft-veggie addition) to ensure a bit of protein in the dish!

Eat with love, while Skyping with a BFF in Australia (hi Ali!)

Risotto-esque Barley with Mushrooms and Kale

I always forget how much I like risotto until I sneak a bite of it off someone else's plate in a restaurant. It's not something I'm ever inclined to make, it's not something my mother makes, and while it definitely is a comfort-y food, I rarely crave it. Something about risotto isn't quite nutty enough for my liking. And it can come dangerously close to tasting like baby food. While that doesn't bother me with something sweet like rice pudding, I'd like to still chew my meal (for the most part) while I still have teeth/before I need to get dentures, you? But still, I wondered... could the idea of risotto be co-opted and applied to another grain? Could a risotto-like dish be made with barley - a nuttier, crunchier, healthier substitute for rice? (it's low in fat, cholesterol-free, it contains tons of soluble and insoluble fibre, and it's a source vitamins and minerals like B3, B1, iron, magnesium and zinc, just to name a few. NOT gluten-free for any celiac's out there). I decided to venture and give it a go sans-recipe (apart from glancing at the proportions of barley-to-water). I think this one's a keeper! It makes a hearty, umami-filled vegetarian main, or a great side to fish, seafood, and chicken (maybe a bit heavy to pair with a red meat, but to each his own!). Many riffs can be made on it and I encourage you to explore! What would it taste like with a few baby tomatoes thrown into the pan at the last minute? What about some artichokes? or some chunks of good quality feta (not quite risotto-esque, but I'm sure delicious nonetheless!). Try it and let me know :) Happy cooking!

Risotto-esque Barley with Mushrooms and Kale

Ingredients

Olive oil

2 medium onions

1 cup pearled barley

lots of water (exact amounts specified in the directions)

1 bay leaf (optional)

about 2 cups of a variety of mushrooms, preferably at least half dried and reconstituted (so we can use the mushroom water later!)

Herbs e.g. thyme, sage, oregano (optional, but highly recommended)

2-3 cups of kale, swiss chard or spinach, central ribs removed, torn into smaller pieces

1 cup white wine

balsamic vinegar

salt

pepper

1/2-1 cup shaved parmesan (optional)

Directions

Make 1 cup of barley according to package directions (or according to MY directions!); saute a small-to-medium onion in 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium heat until browned and softened, 5 minutes. Add 1 cup barley, 2 cups water and bay leaf, if using. Bring to a boil, then lower heat, cover and simmer for about 25 minutes or until most of the liquid is absorbed - check periodically to ensure the barley doesn't burn! (Note: You would usually stop here if you were just making straight-up barley). At this point, boil a few of cups of water and pour about 2 cups of water over your dried mushrooms. Let sit at least 20 minutes, or longer.

Saute those onions!

Putting the barley to simmer for 25 minutes (it's kind of like putting a baby to bed)

Don't dried mushrooms have a lovely, musky smell? It's reminiscent of the decaying leaves in a fall forest - all in a little nugget of joy! (I'm getting a little flowery with the words here, eh?) 

Once the barley is ready, fluff it with a fork. It is okay if there's a touch of extra liquid, you're going to add even more! Add about 1/2 of the broth from the soaked mushrooms (but NOT the mushrooms themselves!). Keep the barley on a low heat and stir occasionally ensuring the bottom doesn't burn. Once the liquid is reduced by about half (on my stove it took approximately 7 minutes) add the remaining mushroom liquid. Repeat again with any extra mushroom liquid, and the last time with about 1 cup of white wine. (Got it? Mushroom liquid, mushroom liquid, more mushroom liquid or water or chicken stock, white wine. If you find by the second one it's pretty mushy, skip the third and just add the wine!)

Fluffing

While that's going on, grab a saucepan, cut the remaining onion in chunks (not TOO small!), and again, saute in 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium heat until soft, about 5 minutes. I chopped up some sage and threw it in here (it would be a good idea to add sage, thyme or rosemary at this point, about 2-3 tablespoons). Then add mushrooms, stirring occasionally until wilted and cooked through, about 7-10 minutes. Add about 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar and let bubble until most is gone, then add 1 cup white wine, scraping up bits from the bottom of the pan, and let wine cook down.

Onions and sage 

Adding the mushrooms

Bubbling wine concoction

Add the kale, stir in and cover until wilted, about 5 minutes (feel free to add a touch more wine or balsamic if it looks very dry!). Stir into barley. Add a TON of salt and pepper (if you weren't adding as you were cooking) and about 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar if you want it a touch more moist. If adding parmesan, stir in thoroughly while warm. Enjoy!

Pre-wilted kale

Kale and barley 

Stirring it all together

The finished product!