Date: Mon, 02 Aug 93 12:14:19 CDT
From: maoh@phyast.nhn.uoknor.edu (Maureen O'Halloran)
Legume and Yogurt Curry
1/2 c. white pea (navy) beans
1/2 c. lentils
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh ginger
1/2 cup fresh cilantro (coriander) leaves or mint leaves
1 teaspoon ground tumeric
1 1/2 tsp. garam masala (see below)
1 1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste, I used 1 tsp.)
1/2 tsp. chili powder, optional (see below)
1/2 cup nonfat yogurt
2 large ripe tomatoes (I used 4 small ones).
extra cilantro or mint leaves to garnish.
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1) Rinse and soak beans and lentils and cook them together. (I used my
1 quart sized "crockette" and cooked them overnight on low). Otherwise
cook as per package directions for beans.
2) Into blender or food processor put onion, garlic, ginger, fresh
cilantro (or mint) leaves. Blend to a smooth paste. At this point it
is is a delightful green color.
3) Put a small amount of water in a non-stick skillet or pan (at least
a 12 inch skillet). Fry blended mixture for 5 minute, stirring around
and adding water as necessary to prevent sticking. Use liquid from
beans if there is excess.
4) Add tumeric, garam masala, chili powder and fry a further minute.
It turn an interesting yellow-green. Use your wooden spoon specially
designated for dishes containing turmeric (you do have one don't you?)
unless you want your plastic utensils to be stained yellow. Don't put
the spoon on your countertop.
5) Stir in yogurt, a spoonful at a time, and tomatoes, fry until most
of liquid dries up.
6) Add beans and lentils, stir and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for
30 minutes, at which point it should be a thick sludge (be careful in
last 10 minutes not to burn).
7) Serve over rice.
____
Chili Powder --- I never have any, so I use some combination of
cayenne pepper, cumin, and paprika. For this dish 1/2 tsp. of cayenne
and 1/2 tsp of cumin makes it reasonably spicy. Use less cayenne and
more paprika if you want less spice.
____
Garam Masala --- is available in Indian food stores and is used in
lots of dishes. Here is one recipe --- 4 T coriander seeds, 2 T
cummin seed, 1 T whole black peppercorns, 2 teaspoons cardomon seeds,
4x7.5 cm cinnamon sticks, 1 tsp whole cloves, 1 whole nutmeg. Roast
each spice except nutmeg individually in a small pan until fragrant.
After cooling, grind to a fine powder in blender or mortar. Finely
grate nutmeg and mix in. Store in airtight jar. (I bought mine).
____
This was originally chicken and yogurt curry and I replaced the
chicken with beans and lentils. The white beans make a good contrast
with the sauce and the lentils sort of disintegrate and blend in. The
recipe is adapted from "The Complete Asian Cookbook" by C. Solomon.
kwlacto lacto