Curry Flavor

            Over the years, I have grown to love curry. So for a Meatless Monday, I used a curry recipe from More-with-Less. Curry powder, as you probably know, is not a single spice the way cinnamon or anise is, for example. Rather it is a blend. Most curry powder recipes include coriander, turmeric, cumin, fenugreek, and red pepper in their blends. Depending on the recipe, additional ingredients such as ginger, garlic, fennel seed, caraway, cinnamon, clove, mustard seed, green cardamom, black cardamom, nutmeg, long pepper, and black pepper may also be included. In fact, my favorite vegetable curry recipe, from the Moosewood cookbook, is just such a mixture. However, I have printed the simpler recipe for Garden Vegetable Curry from More-with-Less below.

Ingredients

·                   3 T oil

·                   2 medium organic onions finely chopped

·                   2 cloves garlic minced

·                   2 T curry powder

·                   1 t tumeric

·                   1 t whole cumin seed

·                   1 c chopped tomatoes

·                   1 medium head cabbage chopped

·                   3 medium carrots diced

·                   4-5 small potatoes cut into cubes

·                   3 c green beans

·                   1 T lemon juice

Heat oil in a 3-4 qt. saucepan on medium heat.  Add onions and garlic and fry lightly for 4-5 minutes (do not brown).  Add curry powder, turmeric, and cumin seed.  Continue frying 3-4 minutes.  Add chopped tomatoes and cook briefly until a thick sauce begins to form.  

Add vegetables.  Stir until everything is mixed well.  Reduce heat and simmer 30-45 minutes.  Add water any time the sauce is below 1/3 depth of vegetables.   

15 minutes before serving, add lemon juice and salt to taste.  Continue to simmer until ready to serve over rice.

I adjusted this to three tablespoons of curry powder and 2 cups of green beans. I also substituted cauliflower for the cabbage.

St. Paul, were he cooking today, might use curry powder as an image for the church. You can read why I say that in I Corinthians 12:12-31. After all, no one would want an all- cardamom curry.