Butternut and chickpea curry
As winter approaches we start getting excited about one pot dishes. Well I’m always excited about one pot dishes. Because they are warm and nutritious and oh so good for the digestion. The spices in curries are transformed into superfoods as they react with the oils and vegetables bringing many health benefits. I like to cook my chickpeas from scratch because I don’t enjoy canned anything but if you like to save time you can use organic canned chickpeas.
Butternut and chickpea curry recipe
2 x small cloves garlic chopped
thumb of ginger chopped
medium chilli (red or green) chopped
10 x curry leaves
1/2 onion
4 x small tomatoes
1/2 large butternut
2 cups cooked chickpeas
1 tbs coconut oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp turmeric
salt to taste
a little water
Method
Soak the chickpeas over night, rinse and cook in the pressure cooker for 15 - 20 minutes. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, use canned or use a hot bag. Set aside.
In a pan, heat the coconut oil. When it is hot, add the cumin seeds. Allow them to sizzle for a few seconds then add the mustard seeds and let them get nice and hot. Add the curry leaves and mix ingredients together. Add your ginger, garlic and chilli and fry just until the fresh ginger smell goes. It will be about 30 seconds. Now add the onions and allow them to get soft. I find red onions don’t get as soft as white onions but you will know when they are cooked. Refer to the video above. Once the onions are soft add the chopped tomatoes. Now you want them to be very cooked and sticky. The oils will start releasing and the tomatoes will clump together. The time it will take will differ depending on your stove (gas or electricity or where you live). Once the tomatoes are cooked, you can add the spices, salt and lemon. I don’t like to use a lot of salt because one can always add salt as a seasoning when serving. You want just enough salt to bring out the taste of your food. Maybe half a teaspoon. Mix well and allow a couple of minutes for those spices to meld into the food. Now add your butternut. Fry for a few minutes adding a little water as needed. Make sure that the butternut is properly cooked - around 20 minutes - before adding the chickpeas. You want to just heat the chickpeas through. I made red rice with this dish, a simple Indian salad of carrot, cucumber, tomatoes and pickled onion that my boyfriend made a few days ago. I also made a coconut coriander chutney a couple of days ago and wanted to finish it.
Last but not least, in keeping with the Ayurvedic thought where the six tastes of sour, sweet, salty, astringent, bitter and pungent are important, I gobbled up a couple of squares of my Sugar Free Raw Chocolate for the bitter taste which quite honestly should be a staple in any house.