Curried Turkey

This was a pretty fast, super easy recipe for a filling, flavorful dinner. There is a lot of flexibility to this dish as well, you can change up the ingredients based on what you have in the house! Give it a shot. Oh, and it's a one-pot meal too, so clean up is easy peasy.

Curried Ground Turkey with Potatoes

Start with ground turkey (or chicken, or pork...), brown in a skillet with a small amount of oil. My turkey seemed to release a lot of liquid. Give this a chance to cook off, then add chopped onion, chile, garlic and ginger. Saute for a minute or two to soften the onions. Then add the spices. Curry powder or Garam Masala, coriander, cumin and a small pinch of tumeric. Allow spices to toast, then add broth or water, stir to combine.

Add diced potatoes to the mixture. Add a little extra water if you need, to make sure the potatoes are covered. Cover the skillet and cook until potatoes are tender, about 10-15 minutes, depending on the size of the potato. Stir once or twice during that time.

Add some green beans or peas...or other veg would work. Also add diced tomato, canned or fresh. Simmer for 3-5 minutes until the veg are cooked through. These were frozen green beans, so they only needed to heat up. Top with chopped cilantro.

This is a pretty complete meal as is, or you can serve with rice or flat bread. The choice is yours. I loved how easy the meal was. Plenty of good flavor, hearty and filling, and pretty healthy. I only used about 2 teaspoons of olive oil in the whole dish. The turkey was very lean as well.

Curried Ground Turkey with Potatoes
From Simply Recipes

3-4 TB vegetable oil
1 pound ground turkey (thigh meat if you can get it)
1 chopped onion
2 chopped garlic cloves
1-2 chopped fresh red chiles (optional)
A 1-inch piece of peeled ginger, grated fine
1/2 cup water
Salt to taste
1 TB garam masala (or curry powder)
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
2 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
2-4 Roma or other plum tomatoes, diced
1 cup fresh or frozen peas
1/2 cup (loosely packed) chopped cilantro or parsley


1. Heat the vegetable oil over medium-high heat in a large pot with a lid. When the oil is hot, add the ground meat, spreading it out over the pan. Try not to crowd the meat (you may need to cook in batches). Cook the meat without stirring, until it begins to brown.

2. Add the chopped onion and chiles. Stir and sauté for 4-5 minutes, or until the onion begins to color a bit. Sprinkle salt over everything.

3. Add the grated ginger and garlic, mix well and sauté for another 1-2 minutes.

4. Mix in the spices, water, and the potatoes. Stir to combine and cover. Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.

5. When the potatoes are tender, add the diced tomatoes and peas. Mix well and cover the pot. Cook 2-3 minutes. Add salt, if needed, to taste.

6. Right before you serve, mix in the chopped cilantro. Serve alone or with flatbread or white rice.

Serves 4.

Scott's Notes:
*I used only 1-2 teaspoons of olive oil
*There were no red chiles, so I used one jalapeno
*I needed about 1 full cup of water to help the potatoes cook, most of this water evaporates, but you are left with a little "sauce" in the pan
*I used a little extra garam masala and probably 1/8 of a tsp of tumeric
*I used canned diced tomatoes, which I drained, probabaly 1/2 a can. Also used frozen green beans.

Pumpkin Curry Soup

I bought a small pumpkin for cooking this weekend. Even the smallest pumpkin available at our market was still bigger than I needed. So after I got what I needed (another post coming soon!), I had just over 4 cups of cleaned, diced pumpkin waiting for something delicious to happen to it. I could do pie, but I'm probably considered a foodie heathen, but I prefer Libby's canned pumpkin for pies! So that generally means something savory. So soup it was gonna be. But I didn't want straight up pumpkin soup, I wanted something more. Pumpkin Curry Soup! With only a quick search of my books, I didn't find anything adequate, so I just started with my own recipe. Shall we?

Pumpkin Curry Soup

I started with 2 TB of butter, 4 chopped shallots and 2 carrots, peeled and chopped. Saute until the shallots start to turn golden.

Add 1 1/2 TB of mild curry powder, 1 TB garam masala, 1/8 tsp of cayenne pepper, 1/4 tsp tumeric, salt & pepper. Add 1 TB grated ginger. Stir and let the spices bloom in the butter! Mmm, blooming in butter!

Add about 4 cups of diced pumpkin, 1/2 can of diced tomatoes and about 3 cups of broth. Chicken or veggie. Stir to incorporate. Simmer for 10-15 minutes, until pumpkin is tender. Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender or food processor until smooth. Return to the pot, taste and adjust spices. Optional, but OMG so good, add about 1 cup of coconut milk. Stir to incorporate. Taste and adjust seasoning again. Serve hot!

I had some left over toasted pumpkin seeds. I garnished with those. The texture was nice, but these were spiced and the flavors conflicted. If you have some plain roasted seeds, they might be nice. Or some fresh herbs. Enjoy!

Trade Winds

One of the great things I've experienced while learning to cook is how inter-connected our global cultures are. Last night's dinner is a great example of the tangled web we humans create. The island nation of Trinidad and Tobago, the southernmost islands in the Caribbean Sea and just off the coast of Venezuela, has a cuisine indicative of the local region and a global influence. With roots as far reaching as the Indian sub-continent, Africa, Europe and as local as the Caribbean Sea and the Latin nations of Central and South America, these flavors are sure to awaken your palate and liven your senses. So as summer approaches the northern hemisphere, dim the lights, light the torches and turn on some steel drum and Calypso music and enjoy.

Trinidadian Chicken Curry

To start, you need time to marinade the chicken. A couple hours minimum, overnight is nice. Onions, tomato, garlic, jalapeno and I forgot the cilantro. A spoon of mustard and a little drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper. Basically a salsa/pico de gallo.

When you're ready to cook, get the spices ready. I used a standard brand of curry and added a teaspoon of Jerk Seasoning to bring some Caribbean flavors to the party. Plus some tumeric, which has good health benefits. And great dying ability. Tumeric can and will stain things. Including wooden spoons and some plastic utensils. Mix these spices with water to make a slurry.

The first step in cooking is to get some oil hot. Use regular vegetable oil if you like. Or do as I did and use some olive oil and butter. That's how I roll. Butter is a good thing. To the fat you will add the slurry and cook until it becomes a thick paste.

After the slurry has become a paste, add some sliced onions and cook until soft.

To the onions, add the marinated chicken. Shake off the excess marinade, but don't worry if a few bits and pieces stick around. They will cook up in a minute. Cook chicken for a few minutes on one side, then turn. I like using boneless/skinless chicken thighs best. Great flavor! But chicken breasts will work as well.

The recipe I tried also suggested the addition of potatoes. So, I sliced up some leftover fingerling potatoes I had and tossed them in. Add potatoes will require a little bit longer of cooking time to give time for the potatoes to become tender. The dish also screamed out for some tomato to me. So I added 1/2 cup of diced tomatoes.

Top off the ingredients with broth and water as needed. Bring to a boil, drop the temp to keep at a low simmer. Cover, leaving partially open to let the steam escape and the sauce to eventually reduce some. At this point, if you added some warm spices (cinnamon/allspice) and some golden raisins, you basically have a Moroccan-style Tagine.

Having cooked for about 25 minutes. We're ready to go.

Along the Tagine lines, I served the chicken curry with couscous (from a box, with flavors, didn't like it. won't try it again). Traditionally, it would be served with white rice. If you don't keep forgetting the cilantro, you can toss some on as a garnish. Add some roti or flatbread for a wonderful meal! Spicy, rich, tender, amazing flavor.

Trinidadian Chicken Curry

Adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks
Click over for great photos.


For 2

4 boneless/skinless chicken thighs
1 tsp salt
Fresh black pepper
1 tsp yellow mustard
1 whole medium onion, halved
1 whole tomato, quartered
1/2 jalpeno pepper
8 cloves garlic
8 sprigs cilantro
1 TB curry powder
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp Jerk seasoning
1 TB olive oil
1 TB butter
1/2 cup diced tomato
1 cup chicken broth + 1 cup water (if needed)


Place chicken in a bowl. Sprinkle with salt and add mustard.

In a food processor, chop half the onion, tomato, cilantro, garlic, and black pepper and/or jalapeno.

Add mixture to the bowl. Stir the whole mixture together so that the chicken is totally coated in the seasoning ingredients. Allow chicken to marinate for at least two hours, or overnight.

After chicken has marinated, make the curry slurry: Add curry powder and turmeric to a bowl. Pour in 1/3 cup water and stir until dissolved.

In a large skillet, heat the oil and butter over medium-low heat. Pour in the curry slurry and cook for a few minutes, stirring constantly. Curry slurry will deepen in color. If the mixture becomes too dry during cooking, add a little water.

When the curry slurry has become a thick paste, Slice the other half of the onion and add it in. Allow the onions to soften, then add in the chicken. Stir to coat the chicken, then cook, half covered, for five minutes. Turn the chicken, then add in the broth and water if needed to nearly cover the chicken. Shake the pan to let the broth distribute. Add the diced tomatoes. Allow the chicken to cook until done, stirring every five minutes. Cook for about 20 to 15 minutes.

At the end, be sure to taste and adjust salt and pepper. Serve chicken over rice; spoon sauce over the top.

Mulligatawny Soup

Yesterday's dinner was a pot of Mulligatawny Soup. A spicy Indian curry soup. With just a few steps, you too can have a bowl of this exotic soup; warming your belly and clearing your sinuses!

The recipe starts by making an elixir of ginger and garlic. This brings a very robust punch of flavor to the finished soup. I'm not fond of it and in the future, I plan to skip this step. I will maintain the quantity of ginger and garlic, because I like those flavors, but the intention is that they remain uncooked at the end. Uncooked garlic and ginger taste metallic and sharp to me, so I'll pass in the future.

The main recipe starts with butter, onions and tomato paste. Season with salt and pepper.

Add garlic and ginger. Stir in some unsweetened coconut and all the spices and flour (to thicken the soup.) A note on the coconut; I can't find unsweetened coconut at my grocery stores. We're not that sophisticated. So I bought the regular, sweetened coconut and steeped it in boiling water and rinsed in hot water. I did this three times. Here's what happened; the extra sweetness was removed, AND the basic essence of the coconut. If you can't find unsweetened coconut, skip it altogether from the recipe. In its place, perhaps add a 1/4 to 1/2 cup of coconut milk to the soup at the end, for flavor.

After you get the spices into the mix, add the broth of your choice. I used chicken this time, as it's what I had on hand. Use vegetable broth to make a vegetarian soup. Simmer until the vegetables are tender. Oh, and there's banana in the soup! It's there for texture and slight sweetness. You don't taste banana when you taste the soup. No hint of banana at all!

After the soup has cooked, give it a whiz through the food processor or in the blender. Serve with rice if you like, dollop of plain yogurt and chopped cilantro. You can also serve with cooked lentils for an authentic, protein rich, vegetarian meal!

Curry Killz Cancer

Tumeric
Image Source

Studies are showing that chemicals in Turmeric can kill cancer cells. Turmeric also stains things yellow! But yeah for cancer kill agents! Might have to make some curry soon, just to be safe!

Curry spice 'kills cancer cells'

Curry & Shrimp

Last night I took a recipe from a recent Penzey's catalog and reworked it a bit to make Coconut Curry Shrimp. The recipe had lots of promise, but I think we were thwarted by less than stellar ingredients. Sadly, without driving all over town, I didn't get the best quality shrimp for this dish.

All that being said, this could be a really good curry base for other main ingredients including chicken, lamb and/or vegetables.

Onions and butter with a blend of curry blends, little salt and some pepper.

Onions, curry, diced tomatoes, lemon juice, coconut milk. A great simmer sauce!

I was preparing to cook the shrimp and I was fascinated by the way the butter was melting in the pan.

Sauted shrimp. I seasoned the shrimp with another Penzey's spice blend-Balti Seasoning.

Stir the shrimp into the sauce and simmer for a minute or two. Serve with rice.

Coconut Curry Shrimp
adapted from Penzey's

For 2 large servings

1 lb shrimp, raw, peeled and deveined
1 TB Balti Seasoning
2 TB butter
1 small onion, finely diced
1 tsp, fresh grated ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
2-3 TB Sweet Curry Powder
1 tsp Hot Curry Powder (optional)
1 tsp Garam Masala (optional)
1 TB fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 14 oz can, diced tomatoes, drained (reserve the juice)
1 14 oz can, coconut milk
salt/pepper to taste

1) Clean the shrimp and toss with the Balti Seasoning. Hold in the fridge until ready to cook.

2) In a large pan, saute onions over medium heat, in 2 TB of butter. When translucent, add the garlic & ginger. Cook until fragrant. Add curry powder(s) and Garam Masala. Saute for 5 minutes. Add the lemon juice, simmer for one minute. Add the tomatoes. Stir to incorporate, simmer for 5 minutes.

3) Add the coconut milk and bring to a low simmer. Taste and adjust seasoning.

4) Time to cook the shrimps. In a pan over medium high heat, quickly cook shrimp with oil or butter. Cook for up to 2 minutes per side. If the shrimp are not completely cooked through, it's ok, they will continue to cook in the simmer sauce.

5) Serve hot and over rice.

Catch Up

Sorry for the lack of postings this week. First week back to work after vacation takes a lot out of you. Then a night with no power severely limits what you can do. So far this week...

Quesadillas made with some of Sunday's left-over chicken, roasted peppers and great tortillas from the Cheverly Community Market.

There was also some curry. Here, I've sauted some onions, garlic cloves and ginger slices in olive oil, then added the curry spices, which I allowed to toast in the pan for a minute. Add broth, coconut milk, rice and some chicken...

...allow to cook for awhile, then add some veggies during the last 5-8 minutes, they will steam on top of the rice & chicken...

...creating a warm bowl of coconut chicken casserole! Creamy, spicy, easy and filling!

On Sunday, I made a braised pork roast. I allowed it to cook for 3 hours in beer, tomatoes and onions. I used some of the pork in the quesadillas we had on Monday. Here we had some of the roast, sliced, with mashed potatoes. And later, we'll have the pork a 3rd way! Woo hoo. Cook on the weekend for great meals thru the week. All different!

Sorta Curry

I've been avoiding the grocery store again. If I am not in the mood to be there, it's my own personal H-E-L-L. Get me out!!!!

But I have to say, I'm starting to run out of stuff to make and will soon find ourselves eating pasta with butter & salt (Mmmm) if I don't go soon.

So last night I figured we were going to have fried eggs, toast and bacon. But I really wasn't in the mood for eggs. And I didn't think I wanted to make dinner. But after foraging through the freezer I had a protein in hand and the beginning thoughts of something else.

I had a package of pork chops frozen solid. Knowing I wouldn't be able to thaw them complete to fry them up, I decided on a braise. But what flavors? Why not something new? We recently had a visit to Penzey's in Rockville, where I picked up a small jar of Balti Seasoning. A wild, highly spiced, but not spicy, curry blend. And it worked Good!

Balti Spiced Braised Pork with Potatoes

Sear your chops (seasoned with salt & pepper) in a deep pan or dutch oven with olive oil. When browned, but not cooked through, remove to a plate and quickly saute one cup of shallots.

When the shallots are translucent, add 1 TB of the Balti seasoning and 1 TB of tomato paste. Stir for one minute.

Add about two cups of chicken broth, stirring and scraping up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Add the chops into the seasoned broth.

Add three chopped potatoes. They should be mostly submerged in the liquid. Bring to a simmer, cover and place in a 400 degree oven for 45 minutes. Remove the cover and cook for another 15 minutes.

Pierce the potatoes with a fork or knife to make sure they are tender. Scoop out to a plate, leaving the liquid in the pot. Bring the sauce to a boil and allow to reduce by a third. Swirl in one TB of butter, optional.

Spoon some of the enriched sauce over the chops and potatoes.

This was delicious. The pork played very well with the sweet, fragrant spices of the Balti seasoning. The potatoes were light, tender and a perfect complement to the sauce. All very good. I'll make this again and probably throw some more veg in there, when I have them from the store.

mmm, curry

This was a tasty curry dish.
Chicken Colombo

Chicken, curry, coconut, tomato, sprinkling of cinnamon...

Chicken Colombo

2 TB olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 can (14 ounces) peeled, chopped tomatoes
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 pound), cut into strips
2 TB curry powder
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
½ cup coconut milk
2 pinches ground cinnamon
Cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped, for garnish

• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
• Add onions and garlic and cook, stirring, until golden brown.
• Add tomatoes, chicken, and sprinkle over curry powder; season with salt and pepper.
• Reduce heat to low, and cook, stirring, until mixture has thickened and chicken is cooked through, 15 to 25 minutes.
• Add coconut milk and stir until well combined; cook 5 minutes more.
• Sprinkle over cinnamon.
• Serve over rice.

Recipe from The Martha Stewart Show

This was a very easy recipe and very tasty. The original recipe called for red rice, or purple rice. Rice I couldn't find at my stores. So I used jasmine rice. Perfect. The process is very simple. Use a type of curry powder you like. I had a few different types, so I actually blended them together and had a fiery curry. Here's an unassuming dish and you take a bite and your mouth starts to sing out a bit from the heat. If heat isn't your thing, you can find curries that are not spicey and have a much more mild, yet rich flavor.

Creamy, Chicken-y and Nutty

Mughlai Chicken

next time...also garnish with some cilantro or parsley to make the plate a little nicer looking.

Recipe by Nigella Lawson, see Scott's edits below

1 (1-inch) piece ginger, peeled
4 cloves garlic, peeled
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
½ tsp dried chili flakes
4 TB ground almonds
½ cup water
5 cardamom pods, bruised
1 cinnamon stick, broken in half
2 bay leaves
4 cloves
¼ cup vegetable oil
3 pounds boned chicken thighs, each cut into 2
2 onions, finely chopped
1 cup Greek yogurt
1 cup chicken stock
½ cup heavy cream
½ cup sultanas (golden raisins)
1 tsp garam masala
1 TB sugar
1 tsp salt
¾ cup flaked almonds, toasted, to garnish

Put the ginger, garlic, cumin, coriander, and chili into a food processor, or into a mortar and pestle, and blend to a paste. Add the ground almonds and water and then blend again, set aside.

Heat the oil in a large pan and add the chicken pieces - in batches so they fry rather than stew - and cook them just long enough to seal on both sides, then remove to a dish.

Add the spices and turn them in the oil. Add the onions and cook them until softened and lightly browned, but keep the heat gentle and stir frequently, to avoid sticking. Pour in the blended paste, and cook everything until it begins to colour. Add the yogurt, half a cup at a time stirring it in to make a sauce, then stir in the stock, cream, and sultanas.

Put the browned chicken back into the pan, along with any juices that have collected under them, and sprinkle over the garam masala, sugar, and salt. Cover and cook on a gentle heat for 20 minutes, testing to make sure the meat is cooked through.

It's at this stage, that I like to take the pan off the heat and leave it to cool before reheating the next day.

So either now, or when you've reheated it, pour into a serving dish and scatter with the toasted flaked almonds.

NOTES:
I used boneless, skinless chicken breast tenders. They are fine for this. You don't get as much flavor as you do from the thighs. That's ok, there's plenty of flavor from all the spices and herbs. And I just used a pound and a half, not three pounds.

I bought a packed of slivered almonds and ground them to a powder in the food processor. Great fun. Pulse the machine, so they don't run too long. I'm guessing that like peanuts they could turn to a paste/butter???

I forgot the cardamom. Bummer.

I used 2 TB of oil, not 1/4 cup!

My store does not stock Greek yogurt. I bought plain yogurt and dumped it into a cheese cloth lined strainer and let it sit for an hour. Probably 1/4 cup of liquid ran out, leaving a nice dense yogurt.

I only used about 1 teaspoon of sugar.

For the process, I followed the directions and all seemed to be well. I didn't make the dish a day in advance, but I did have it as leftovers. Served over rice, it doesn't hold up well over night. But I'm sure if it is kept separate, it will be much better.

After you add the cream and stock, the dish is really soupy and running. By simmering for 20 minutes, it thickens up to a great consistency! Stir often though, to avoid burning and scorching.

Overall, this is an easy recipe. There are multiple steps, but taking your time and doing each step, one at a time, will give you a great final dish worthy of an International dinner party.


MORE PICTURES LATER

Work in progress

Curious...good...will give it a shot again and see if there's a way to improve...

Curried Chicken & Noodles

Poached chicken pulled apart. Sauted onions, garlic, three different curry blends, carrots, corn in a chicken broth/roux sauce. With fat noodles we picked up at the Amish market in Hagerstown last weekend. Fun. But missing just that little 'something.' We'll see what that is in the future.

$295 for that one bag of noodles...!?!!?? Well no, but they are good!

Great Green Curry

I was searching for something to make for dinner tonight. Of all the recipes I have nothing was really hitting me as exciting. But as I was about give up, I found a recipe I had typed up awhile back for a friend. It was for a Thai Green Curry Paste. Curryious! I wasn't sure what I would use it with. I remembered that I had a sealed up pork tenderloin in the fridge. And it only had one or two more days until it was bad. Sure, why not! Green Curry and Pork Tenderloin?! Let's see how it turned out.

Thai Green Curry Paste
About 1 cup

This fragrant and spicy paste is excellent on meats and seafood, or stirred into soups, rice, pasta and other grain dishes.

Combine in a small dry skillet over medium heat and toast, shaking the pan often to prevent burning, 2 to 3 minutes:

2 tsp, coriander seeds
1 tsp, cumin seeds
1 tsp, fennel seeds
1 tsp, black peppercorns

Remove from the heat, let cool to room temperatures, and grind to a fine powder in a spice grinder, coffee grinder or blender or with a mortar and pestle. Transfer to a small bowl.

Combine in a blender or food processor and process until finely chopped, about 4 minutes:

1/3 cup tightly packed fresh cilantro leaves
2 ¼ inch slices fresh ginger, peeled
12 Serrano peppers or 6 fresh jalapeno, seeded and chopped
2 large shallots, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
Grated zest of 1 lime, plus the juice
1 ½ tsp, salt
1 tsp, freshly grated nutmeg

Add the spices and with the machine running, slowly pour in:

¼ cup grapeseed oil

Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. This paste will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to 1 week.

Slightly adapted from: The All New All Purpose Joy of Cooking: Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker and Ethan Becker (1997)

When the Curry Paste was done, it hung out in the fridge for a few hours while I went off on some errands. Then it was time to figure out how to make the dinner.

I took the tenderloin and cleaned up, I cubed it. I also chopped up a some red bell pepper and half an onion.

Following the idea behind the Coconut Chicken Curry, I pulled out the can of coconut milk.


In a wee touch of oil, I quickly sauted the pork cubes. When the pork was browned, just two minutes per batch. Because we know not to try to crowd the meat in the pan or else it will steam and get nasty. So after about 4 batches, I removed all the pork to a plate. Tossed in the onion and sauted them for a brief minute. Then poured in about half a cup of water to help deglaze the pan. Then I added about one cup of the green curry paste. (My batch gave me about a cup and a half.) I stirred the onions and the paste together. Then poured in the coconut milk. Stir to combine. Add the pork bites back into the pot of green coconut curry. Turn the heat to medium-low. Add the bell pepper pieces. Simmer for a few minutes until the pepper it just tender. Serve with Rice and garnish (optional) with chopped peanuts and chopped mint. Mmmmmm! I loved this and can't wait to have my leftovers!