This is a fast, easy to make and delicious curry. I think that many people hear the word, “curry” and think,
“hot!” Curry’s don’t have to be hot at all and if you are cooking for someone who doesn’t want anything that
resembles “hot” not to worry. Curry powders go from very mild to hot and other ingredients can fit the bill as well.
I personally love hot foods, but I have a friend who doesn’t want anything hot so…make the curry mild and everyone
can add the heat to it. There is also chili powder in this dish and the same applies to the powder. Some chili powder is extremely hot and other chili powder is quite mild. This recipe is an adaptation to one I found in The New McDougall Cookbook.
Before I begin I just want to mention the spice, Cumin. Cumin has a very strong flavor and I think a little goes a long way so when I encounter it in a recipe I will cut it in half or even less. Cumin is used in many Mexican and Indian recipes so experiment a bit and find out how much cumin you like in your recipes.
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon ground cumin (I have cut this way down from the original recipe.)
1 Tablespoon chili powder
3 teaspoons curry powder
4 cups vegetable broth (If I don’t have any broth on hand I use vegan low or no-salt bouillon cubes.)
In this case I used two cubes.
1 cup lentils
1 15-oz can stewed tomatoes. I used a can of Diced Salsa Style Fire Roasted Tomatoes put out by Kroger.
Unfortunately unless stated otherwise there is a high sodium content in all canned foods.
2-3 medium potatoes, chopped (Why peel potatoes when most of the vitamin content is directly under or in the skin. Besides the skins taste just fine and saves you the trouble of peeling the potatoes.
2 cups cauliflower florets.
1 carrot thinly sliced
1 cup frozen green peas (don’t bother defrosting them as they defrost very quickly and you don’t want over- cooked peas.
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Place the onion and the garlic in a large pot with the water. Cook, stirring, for a few minutes and then add the spices.
Stir to coat the onion and garlic with the spices. Add the vegetable stock and the lentils. Mix, bring to a boil and then
reduce the heat, cover and cook for 30 minutes.
Add the tomatoes, potatoes and carrot. Continue to cook for another 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and mix in the peas and cilantro. Let sit for a few minutes and serve. You can serve this over brown rice or other whole grains. I think it tastes just fine all by itself.
