Friday 15 March 2013

MLLA Chickpea and potato curry with mango chutney

Tonight Sylvia decorated a birthday card and stuck stickers on her arms and danced to Scottish music.  I rushed around the kitchen making curry for dinner.  E helped by stirring and tasting the curry.  Like most meals, it was a little later than I had hoped but it was very good.

I recently found a couple of books that I bought on our travels to Scotland last year.  I think they had been put away before I had a chance to acquaint myself with them (or add them to My Cookbook List or Eat Your Books).  Goodness, if they don't get into my systems, they really do disappear down a black hole, wishing on a star that I might stumble upon them.

The BBC Good Food: More Veggie Dishes (Good Food 101) is a great little cookbook with lots of simple ideas for dinner.  I was particularly inspired to see mango chutney in some recipes.  I have only recently bought mango chutney for the first time (not being a fan of mangos) and I knew I have seen lots of recipes using it in the past.  So I chose a curry that would use up the potatoes that are growing eyes and the spinach that is turning to water.  I messed with the flavours and instead of adding all the tomato paste, I used up three tomatoes that were so ripe I was able to peel them like an orange. 

We at the curry with bread because I was feeling too rushed to cook rice and the bread needed to be used.  E told me it needed more spice.  I agreed.  We brought the jar of mango chutney to the table and dolloped extra on.  I have amended the recipe to include more chutney and added it as a condiment for serving.  Yoghurt would have been very nice too if we had some but it was excellent without it too.  I have a feeling I will return to this recipe as it uses just the sort of ingredients I usually have around the kitchen.

I am sending this curry to PJ of Seduce Your Tastebuds for My Legume Love Affair (#57), the monthly event celebrating beans and lentils and legumes, overseen by Lisa of Lisa's Kitchen and founded by Susan of The Well Seasoned Cook.

Previously on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
One year ago: NCR Chang's crispy salad with green burgers
Two years ago:  CC Dried fruit and coconut balls
Three years ago: Awards, happiness, quicklinks and a conference
Four years ago: Hummingbird Cake
Five years ago: Pomegranates - the cruelest fruit?

Chickpea, potato and spinach curry
Inspired by the BBC Good Food: More Veggie Dishes (Good Food 101)
serves 4

300g potatoes (4 smallish potatoes), diced
2 tsp canola oil
2 onions, chopped
1 carrot, chopped into matchsticks
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tsp each cumin, coriander, turmeric, chilli paste
400g tin of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
3 large tomatoes, peeled and diced
1 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp mango chutney
1/4 tsp salt
150g baby spinach, roughly chopped
extra mango chutney, yoghurt and bread or rice to serve (optional)

Cook potatoes in salted water.  Simmer about 10 minutes until just tender and drain once cooked.

While potatoes are cooking, fry onion in oil in a large frypan for a few minutes until translucent.  Add carrot and garlic.  Cook for another 5 to 10 minutes until onion and carrot are soft.  Add cooked potatoes and spices.  Stir for a minute or two.

Add chickpeas, tomatoes, tomato paste, mango chutney and salt.  Cook for another few minutes.  Stir in baby spinach until wilted.  Check seasoning and adjust to taste.  Serve with more mango chutney, yoghurt and either bread or rice.

On the Stereo:
Scotland the Brave: Various Artists

19 comments:

  1. Ooh, that looks right up Rob's alley. I don't eat the chutneys but Rob likes adding them to his random meals. Can't remember which chutney is has open right now, but I know he has a mango coconut something lurking in the pantry. :)

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    1. Thanks Janet - I love chutneys but have never got into mango chutney - it doesn't have the same odd taste that puts me off mangos - but I wonder if other chutneys would work as well

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  2. I LOVE a good curry so I will definitely be making this! I have nights like that also...but they rarely end up in something as delicious as this!

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    1. Thanks Joanne - I imagine you would love this

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  3. That BBC Good Food book sounds appealing and this curry looks appealing. I'm not a huge curry fan but when I find one I like I generally really like it...using mango chutney and chickpeas puts this one in the running for that category!

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    1. Thanks Kari - it is the sort of little book that gets lost in the shelves easily but is nice to flick through. E loves curries more than me which often gives me the nudge to try them but I don't have a favourite. Maybe this would become my favourite!

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  4. YUM! This looks good - will add it to my list of veggo recipes...I'm keen to try and cut meat out of our cooking at home. Dumb question, but what IS chilli paste??? Is it the stuff in the jar from Asian supermarkets?

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    1. Thanks Mel - I chose this one because it had plenty of protein and green veg so it would be a good one for meatless mondays. The chilli paste I buy is just from the asian part of the supermarket or in the herbs and spices section I think it is sometimes sambal olek. Not at all fancy but less spicy than using chilli powder or cayenne powder.

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  5. You've given me a craving now and it's only just after 9 in the morning. A bit early for curry. I love chickpea curry, but never have potato in it, so that is on my to-do list now. I have a great recipe for mango chutney Johanna, if you wanted to have a go at making it. It's a Hot Mango Chutney, but you can leave the chillies out and it is still very tasty.

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    1. Thanks Jac - chickpea curries are great and thanks for the mango chutney recipe - I have been wondering if I should try my hand at making it!

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  6. I've never been a chutney person myself, but then a friend of mine introduce me to roast chicken (sorry!) and mango chutney on salad. Kind of delicious. As long as there was a bottle of chilli sauce on the table too, I think I'd love this! :P

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    1. Thanks Hannah - you would eat well with E - he always has tabasco sauce at hand - I found the mango chutney spicy enough for me

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  7. This sounds delish, and I for one love mangoes.

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    1. Thanks Cakelaw - it doesn't taste strongly of mangos but you might feel happier about it knowing there are mangos in it :-)

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  8. This looks very good and inspiring! Peter and I both like Indian dishes, and Peter is very fond of chickpeas, so I've been making them a lot along with panfuls of veggie curries (lots of spinach! :D). Peter usually adds yoghurt (he recently made some kind of raita from yoghurt, cucumbers, and mint) and I have a small piece of fish or something like that by the side. Thank you for posting this, I'm sure I'll make an adaptation soon! Bookmarking this now! :)

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  9. This looks great! I need a new curry recipe and for some reason I don't have anything like this in my rotation - you've inspired me to make it soon.

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  10. By funny coincidence I am eating a very, very similar curry as I read your post! The main difference is that mine uses cashew butter rather than mango chutney. I'll have to give your version a go next time. :-)

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  11. Lovely curry.Am sure it goes well with rice too. Thanks for sending it across to the event.

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  12. Hi

    I have posted the roundup.

    http://seduceyourtastebuds.blogspot.in/2013/04/roundup-my-legume-love-affair-57.html

    Thanks for participating :)

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