Indian cooking is famous for its classic, fragrant, spicy curry, which lends flavor to meats, vegetables, and beans. I think curry makes everything taste better. The curried dishes in Indian restaurants are drenched in fat and loaded with heavy cream. The dishes I grew up with were simple, low in fat, and almost always without cream. Sometimes, whole spices, ginger, and garlic were added to make a delicious, finger-licking chicken curry.
Once the curry sauce is ready, adding meat, vegetables, or beans and letting it simmer until it is cooked is all it takes for a delicious dish. I usually prepare a double batch of the basic curry, freeze some to pull out later, and whip up a quick meal. Here is the recipe with some hacks and variations.
ingredients:
2-3 Tbsps. oil or ghee
1 1/2 tsps. salt
2 cups chopped onions (see notes)
2 tsps. minced ginger
2 tsps. minced garlic
1 Tbsp. Rashmi’s Blend
1 Tbsp. Curry Powder
1/2 – 3/4 cup tomato puree
1 1/2 cups of water
1 tsp. Garam Masala
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
notes:
To speed up the onion frying time, watch this video.
You can also substitute half a cup of pre-fried onions at Indian grocery stores. In that case, add only one tablespoon of oil to the pan, toast the spices, add ginger and garlic, then add onions, tomato, salt, and water.
preparation:
- Heat oil in a heavy-bottom saucepan on medium heat.
- Add onions and salt and saute until the onions are golden brown, about 10-12 minutes. (see notes)
- Add ginger and garlic. Stir.
- Add Rashmi’s Blend and Curry powder, mix, and toast for 30 seconds until the spices turn fragrant. Do not overcook, or they will burn.
- Add tomato puree and water. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for 5-10 minutes. If the onions have not completely broken down, they will break down when you add the meat or vegetable and continue to cook. You can blend the curry with an immersion blender with a smooth texture.
- Add Garam Masala, stir, and remove from stove.
- Your curry is ready! Add cooked or raw meat and/or vegetables and simmer until tender. You can add cooked or canned beans such as garbanzo or kidney beans.
- Taste and adjust seasonings.
- Add cilantro just before serving.
variations:
Add 4-5 tablespoons of heavy cream for a creamy curry before serving.
Add 1-2 tablespoons of almond butter/powder, cashew butter/powder, and/or one tablespoon of coconut powder for a change.
You can use coconut milk instead of water.
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