Chickpea and Vegetable Korma Curry

There are some days when I just crave a curry. My Korma curry recipe is much the same formula as a lot of the curries I make. A little chicken or other kind of meat, a good quality curry paste, organic coconut milk, and lots of vegetables to make it more nutritious and flavoursome. 

If you like tofu, then this is the perfect dish to eat it in as well. It is also very tasty and healthy even without meat, so it's a  perfect Meat Free Monday meal for the family, and it's low in calories. Happy and healthy Monday dear readers. I hope you have a few nice things planned this week, even if you are working or in lockdown, though I realise that is challenging. 

I make most things from scratch when I cook, but not curry pastes. I'm happy to buy a good quality one from the supermarket when I need it. However there are plenty of good curry paste recipes available if you wish to. For many people now in lock down, eating out is not possible unfortunately, and whilst this recipe might not be fully authentic, it is really delicious and a cinch to make for an easy week night curry, and it doesn't cost much compared to buying take away. Curry doesn't have to be hot or spicy or expensive, just full of flavour and nutrition. We were happy to eat this a couple of nights running, it was that good.

Cooks Tips:

Buy a packet of dried chickpeas, soak them overnight in a bowl of water, then cook them the following day with a few herbs until soft but not shedding their skin, and they will be delicious in your curry. There will also be plenty left over for hummus, to eat with salads, or to add to grain salads, the skies the limit really and they are full of protein and fibre as well. However tinned chickpeas will be great for this recipe if you are short on time.

If after the first meal of this curry you have a lot of extra sauce, just add more cooked vegetables the following day to stretch it further.

The curry flavour keeps improving over a few days so it can be cooked a day ahead.

Add a handful of curry leaves to the mixture if you have them. I've mentioned before that I have a curry tree growing in our backyard, and it is a very healthy tree.

If you have some fresh turmeric, grate a little of that in too, remember though it has a strong flavour.

I've tried not to overload this curry recipe with ingredients, as simple is also delicious, however adding extra ingredients such as curry leaves, turmeric, and home cooked chickpeas will make it even more authentic.

Ingredients:

Serves 4-6 people

300 g chicken thigh fillet or lamb, diced into 2 cm pieces

2 x 400 g cans organic coconut milk

4 cups (or enough to fill a 2 litre pyrex bowl) of chopped raw vegetables, such as broccoli, cauliflower, carrot, green beans, snow peas, zucchini, mushrooms, baby eggplant, cherry tomatoes

1 handful of curry leaves (optional)

1 cup (185 g) basmati or brown rice

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 onion, finely sliced

145 g korma paste ( or half a jar), choose mild, medium or hot according to your taste

1 x 400 g tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed (or cook your own chickpeas from dried chickpeas after soaking them overnight)

Method:

Add the olive oil to a large saucepan, (I used a scanpan,) and place on a medium heat. Add the onion, korma paste, and chicken or other meat, if using. Saute until the onion is softened and translucent.

Add the coconut milk to the pan and stir all of the ingredients together.

Then add the chickpeas, curry leaves and the vegetables and mix into the liquid. It should just cover the vegetables.

Meanwhile place the rice on to cook.

Bring the meat, chickpeas and vegetables to the boil, and then lower the heat of the saucepan to a simmer. Cover loosely with the lid, and allow to cook for 15 to 20 minutes until the vegetables are quite soft. Stir it occasionally to prevent the mixture from sticking.

To serve, divide the rice among the bowls, then top with the curry, a sprinkle of toasted almonds for some crunch, and coriander leaves. 

I also like to serve my curry with my homemade Mango chutney and a dollop of yoghurt. However sliced cucumber and sliced banana coated in coconut are also nice healthy sambals to serve. Frozen roti are available from the Indian supermarkets, which make a curry meal even more authentic. However it is also easy to make your own flatbreads. Find my delicious flatbread recipe at this link.

We have our second AstraZenaca jab tomorrow, it's been a long time coming, and then I will be so relieved that in a couple of weeks we will be fully vaccinated, until next year anyway. Hoping where you live that you can be fully vaccinated and starting to have confidence that travel is on the not so distant horizon.

Warmest wishes,

Pauline