The Ramadan Cookbook
By Anisa Karolia
Vegetable karahi
1 hr 35 mins (Prep 45 minutes, Cook 50 minutes)
Not Too Tricky
serves 5
About the recipe
Try this for a lighter iftar meal, packed with vegetables in a spicy masala made with warm spices, curry leaves to infuse some warmth and chilli powder to add heat. My grandmother used to make this delicious curry in a karahi, a deep wok traditionally made of cast iron, used in South Asian cooking. It distributes heat evenly, meats brown better and vegetables cook faster and it lasts a lifetime. If you don’t own one, you can still make this dish in a nonstick pot. Just as delish!
Recipe From
Ingredients
1 potato, peeled and cut into 3cm chunks
1 carrot, peeled and cut into 1cm slices
1 small dhoodi (bottle gourd), peeled and cut into 3cm chunks
1 aubergine, cut into 3cm chunks
1 drumstick, peeled and cut into finger-length pieces
2 onions
200g tinned chopped tomatoes
4 tablespoons oil
5–6 curry leaves
1 teaspoon ginger paste
1 teaspoon garlic paste
1 teaspoon chilli paste
100g frozen peas
100g tinned sweetcorn kernels, drained
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon chilli powder
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
60ml water
½ red pepper, chopped into 3cm chunks
½ green pepper, chopped into 3cm chunks
salt
chopped fresh coriander, to garnish
Top Tip
You can also add sliced courgettes with the peppers – so healthy and delicious and no need to peel.
To add some creamy goodness to your karahi, you could stir in 4–5 tablespoons of coconut milk.
Method
- Heat a large saucepan of boiling water on a high heat. Add the potato, carrot, dhoodi, aubergine and drumstick and cook for 15–20 minutes until the vegetables are almost tender but still have a bite. Drain in a colander and set aside.
- Dice one onion finely and purée the other onion in a food processor to give the karahi texture. Remove from the food processor and blitz the tomatoes in it until smooth, then set aside.
- Heat a large, wide saucepan on a medium heat, add the oil, curry leaves and all the onions. Cover and cook for 15 minutes until golden. Add the ginger paste, garlic paste and chilli paste and cook for 1 minute to cook off the rawness. Add the partially cooked vegetables, peas and sweetcorn, ground cumin, ground coriander, chilli powder, turmeric and puréed tomatoes. Season with salt and mix gently, making sure not to break the vegetables.
- Cover and cook on a medium heat for 10–15 minutes. Add the water and red and green peppers and cook for a further 5–6 minutes. Serve garnished with chopped coriander.
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