Curried Potatoes n Peas

Curried Peas n Potatoes

I love Indian inspired foods and this curried peas and potatoes recipe is very simple and can be eaten as a side dish but is hearty enough to eat as a main dish. I love eating it with plain white rice. The rice soaks up the flavors of the sauce and it is so good for you! You can adjust the amount of curry and spice to your liking....I like it really hot so I add a bit more when I'm making it just for myself.

Curried Peas n Potatoes
4 tablespoons Ghee (you can find this in nice grocery stores with an ethnic food aisle or in Middle Eastern grocery stores (or you can make your own clarified butter or use 3 tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil so the butter doesn't burn)
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 Bay leaves
1 tablespoon Curry Powder

2 teaspoon Cumin seeds (or you can use ground cumin)

2 teaspoon ground red hot pepper
1/2 teaspoon Turmeric
1/2 teaspoon Coriander

pinch of cinnamon
3 Potatoes, peeled, cubed
1 cup green peas (fresh or frozen)
Salt to taste

2-3 cups water

Heat ghee or clarified butter in a medium sauce pan and saute the onion and garlic over medium heat until golden.

Add cumin seeds, bay leaves and cinnamon. Stir fry for 2 minutes. Then add the tomato paste and saute for another minute before adding the red pepper, turmeric, coriander, and salt. Mix well and saute for another minute.

Add potatoes and peas and stir. Pour in water and bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover the pan and simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender and the sauce has thickened.

You can use fresh potatoes and peas or canned potatoes and frozen peas if that's what you have on hand for this recipe. Just adjust the cooking time if your potatoes are canned because they will not need to cook as long or they'll get super mushy.

The peas are packed full of nutrients, including Vitamin K, folic acid and Vitamin B....all very good for bone and heart health!

So maybe you can get your family to eat peas by adding more flavor to them. Doesn't this look much better than a bowl of plain peas?

Baked Coconut Curry Chicken

Coconut Curry Chicken

If you ever ate at my restaurant Avesta Eclectic Cuisine then you may have tried one of our most popular dishes, Curry Chicken. My Curry Chicken was a little different than traditional Indian Curry Chicken but ended up being one of our biggest hits. I have been missing the restaurant a lot lately and decided to make a simpler & quicker version of that Curry Chicken. So if you are one of those loyal customers and have been dreaming of Avesta's Curry Chicken...try this recipe while sipping on a Pomegranate Martini and reminisce about those fun nights in Delaware, Ohio.

Baked Coconut Curry Chicken

2 1/2 pounds chicken (I use chicken legs and boneless, skinless thighs & breasts, but you can use whatever combination of chicken you enjoy most)

1 can coconut milk

2 cups chicken broth

2-3 teaspoons cayenne pepper (depending on how hot you like your food)

2 tablespoons curry powder (again depending on how much you like curry)

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon sugar

salt & pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Wash and pat dry the chicken with a paper towel. Pour the chicken broth and coconut milk in a baking dish then lay the chicken in the broth. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Then sprinkle the rest of the spices all over the chicken and broth.

Cover the baking dish tightly with aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove the dish from the oven, carefully remove the foil and turn chicken and mix up the broth mixture so the coconut milk breaks up. Put the baking dish back in the oven uncovered for another 30-45 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked and very tender.

I cook this chicken a little longer than necessary because I like the thighs and breasts to sort of shred and since the chicken is in a broth, it does not dry out with the extra cooking time.

Once you remove the baking dish from the oven, carefully pour the sauce into a saucepan and add 1 tablespoon butter. Mix using a whisk, bring the sauce to a boil and whisk till smooth and reduced. Taste the sauce to make sure it is spicy enough for your liking...if not...add more cayenne pepper and curry powder. Serve chicken over rice and pour the sauce over the chicken and rice.

This recipe is easy and quick because you basically throw everything in the baking dish.

As the Curry Chicken bakes the sauce starts forming, this is why you pull it out half way through the baking process to give the sauce a mix and turn the chicken.

To thicken the sauce, you pour it in a pan and bring it to a boil and let it reduce. The sauce should be a little spicy and a little sweet.

I sprinkle the top of mine with extra cayenne pepper. I like my curry to be super spicy!

If you don't like using chicken on the bone, you can use just boneless chicken but I do advice you use both breasts and thighs as breasts do tend to be more dry and the dark meat really adds to the dish. If you use all boneless meat, before serving, shred the chicken and mix up the dark and white meat. If you are vegetarian, substitute the chicken with tofu chunks or veggies, but obviously you won't need to cook these as long as chicken.

Still delicious the next day! I like pouring some sauce on my rice the night before and letting it soak up the sauce then warming it up the next day......talk about good stuff! I think it's even better the next day after the rice soaks up all that flavor!!!!

Curried Veggies

Curried Veggies

I get so tired of steamed veggies and so does my son......so tonight....we had curried veggies! I didn't want the veggies to be in a sauce but wanted them to have a nice flavor with a spice other than garlic! A lot of people are afraid of curry but you can use this spice in small portions so that the flavor is not overwhelming but instead adds just enough wow to your dish. This seriously is a simple way to make your veggies stand out and as a side dish it goes really well with just about anything and if you wanted to you could just add some chicken or shrimp or even steak to the dish to make it a main dish with no carbs! I used whatever veggies I had in the fridge. I love broccolini and it was on sale at the grocery store so I bought several packages because usually it is kinda pricey. You can use whatever veggies you have or prefer.

Curried Veggies:

8 oz baby carrots (or you can cut up your own carrots)

1 pound broccolini

1/2 cauliflower head (cut up into florets)

1-2 teaspoons curry powder

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

salt & pepper to taste

1/2 cup water

My son always loved broccolini because he thinks they look like little trees. He's 10 now but since he was introduced to them early and thought they were a fun shape, he still loves them! Don't be afraid to introduce your kids to different veggies...they WILL eat what you teach them to eat! I promise! :)
Don't be afraid of curry powder. It doesn't have to be used in large quantities like some typical curries you've tasted or smelled. Start out by using just a little sprinkle and I promise you'll fall in love with this wonderful spice!
Once you're done cutting up your veggies, turn the burner on medium-high heat and start heating up your pan.

I use a grill pan but you can use any non-stick pan that you have. Once your pan is hot add the oil and butter until the butter starts melting.

Then add your veggies to the pan. Keep your heat on medium-high.

Sprinkle the veggies with all the seasonings.

After you saute your veggies for a few minutes, add the water and let the veggies steam for a few minutes to get tender.
Once your veggies are tender, you're done! If you have any liquid left in the pan, just pour it right over your plated veggies!
I ate at least 3 stalks of broccolini while I plated up these veggies....seriously good stuff! And of course....soooo good for you!

Broccolini has the same health benefits as broccoli but is more tender and has a sweeter taste!