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Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Bean Curry

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I have a bit of a spice problem. You see, my kitchen is rather small. Cute, but small. I don't have a pantry and cabinet space is limited. It's the reason my panini press is in the office, my pie plates are in the dining room, and my servingware is in the family room closet. In case you couldn't guess, a large kitchen is on our "must have" list for our next house. So it goes without saying that my spice cabinet is overflowing. I'm well aware of this and yet I can't seem to stop myself from buying new spices frequently. Garam masala was my most recent random spice purchase. Since I bought it several weeks ago, I've been meaning to make a recipe that included the spice. You know, so I could convince myself that I wasn't just wasting cabinet space. I eventually settled on this bean curry, because I already had almost all the ingredients on hand (and hey, clearing out the stuff I have means I get to go buy more!!)

This was good, really good. It might not have been the smartest choice for a 95 degree day in St. Louis, but when you're already sweating why not eat a spicy dinner and sweat some more, huh? This was a bit soupier than I anticipated, and I wished we'd had some rice to eat it over. Instead we sopped up the juices with sliced pita bread, which was also delicious. Ryan took the leftovers for lunch and said it was just as good the second day.

What other garam masala recipes can you share? I have a BIG spice jar to get working on! :)

Bean Curry
adapted from My Kitchen Cafe


Ingredients:
-1 tbsp canola oil
-1 onion, chopped
-1 1/2 tsp minced garlic
-1 tsp freshly grated ginger
-1 large tomato, chopped
-pinch cayenne
-1/2 tsp tumeric (I omitted, that's one spice I haven't yet acquired!)
-1/2 tsp salt
-1 tsp paprika
-1 tsp garam masala
-3/4 cup half and half
-1 cup chicken broth
-1 can black-eyed peas, drained
-1-2 cups fresh spinach
-2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:
1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and saute until translucent. Stir in garlic and ginger and stir constantly for 30 seconds. Add tomato and cook for 2 minutes.
2. Stir in spices and stir constantly for 30 seconds. Add half and half, broth, and black-eyed peas. Reduce heat. Stir in fresh spinach. Simmer for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in cilantro. Serve immediately.