Monday, October 21, 2013

jamie oliver's money saving meals - veggie korma

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving last weekend. Since the previous Saturday I’ve been fighting this flu bug that’s making the rounds and missed out on both of our family Thanksgivings. Eating was pretty much the last thing on my mind. Dealing with a fever in pregnancy at the same time is no treat because you don’t have many options as far as relief. After a couple days I arose from the bedroom and tried to recuperate on the couch. It was no treat to be bombarded with TV commercials for all the OTC cold & flu medications you can’t take while pregnant. But while relaxing I did get a chance to watch Jamie Oliver’s new show, Jamie’s Money Saving Meals (this guy does not slow down, does he?). I really loved the concept behind this new show. Jamie shares budget and nutrition conscious family meals along with loads of helpful kitchen/cooking tips. It only took one episode before I was convinced we needed to try his Vegetarian Korma recipe. Because I couldn’t find the recipe online, I jotted cooking notes and decided to make it on Saturday night. Below is my reinterpretation of Jamie’s recipe.

Jamie's Veggie Korma Curry
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 sweet potatoes, peeled & cut into 1 inch chunks
1 red onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 thumb-size knob of ginger, grated
1 small chili, finely chopped
Curry leaves, small handful
Korma paste, 1 heaping tbsp
1 can of chickpeas, with liquid
50 grams feta
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/4 c plain yogurt
Slivered almonds, handful
Coriander leaves, handful

Heat vegetable oil over medium. Sautée onion, garlic & sweet potato till soft and sweet potato is golden on all sides. Season with salt & pepper. Add ginger, chili and curry leaves and cook until incorporated. Add korma paste, chickpeas can and full can of water. Bring to a simmer, cook for half an hour or until thickened. Taste for seasoning. Once finished add juice of half a lemon. Garnish with feta, dollop yogurt, coriander leaves and slivered almonds.

Instead of water and the chickpea liquid, you can always substitute coconut milk or even plain yogurt for a little more body and flavour.

Jamie suggested serving this curry over cauliflower ‘couscous’ instead of rice. It’s one way of adding a veggie to the meal and the idea behind this really intrigued me. You’ll love how easy this is to do. Simply blitz cauliflower florets in the food processor until small crumbs (resembling couscous) form. Be careful to not go overboard or you might risk turning it into cauliflower paste. From there, season with salt & pepper and microwave your cauliflower with a couple tablespoonfuls of water until heated through. This is a surprisingly nice option as the cauliflower really does work as a nice substitute to the standard carb you’d associate serving a curry over.

Overall, this recipe is not the most full-flavoured or delicious curry I’ve ever tasted, but for something healthy and easy this was a great option.