Down & Dirty Curry

First of all, a huge thanks to Zeb for requesting this one. I make this all the time, but for some reason, it hadn’t entered the line-up yet so thanks for the suggestion, Zeb. This easy curry is great to make when your pantry is almost bare and you have to feed your man (or woman) in about 15 minutes or he is going to go berzerk. And that’s not pretty. This makes a good amount so you can have leftovers for when you gotta brown-bag it (I mean for LUNCH, guys!).

• 1 Tblsp oil – any kind really
• Spices (use whichever of these you have on hand, about a tsp of each): ground cumin, coriander, mustard seed, paprika, turmeric
• 2 Tblsp curry powder
• 1 onion, minced, about a cup
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp grated ginger (drop it if you don’t have it, it’ll be fine, or use dried)
• 1 – 15oz can tomatoes (diced, or whole and mashed, or pureed, or stewed, I don’t care)
• Assorted vegetables (frozen is fine, about 4 cups total, cut into chunks): carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, broccoli, squash, bell pepper, cabbage, collard greens, peas, really just about anything you have. Cut the starchy ones into smaller pieces than the green ones.
• 1 – 15oz can of beans (chick peas, kidney beans, pintos, whatevs), drained

Heat the oil in your big pot over medium heat ’til it is hot. Throw in your spices of choice (or availability) and stir them around to toast them, about 30 seconds. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, tomatoes and stir that around. It will bubble and pop at you but just tell it to behave and keep stirring. Cook that a couple of minutes.

Add your vegetables. Add a cup or two of water so that the vegetables are almost covered. Now’s a good time to add salt, maybe a half teaspoon.

Stir it all up and cook it, bubbling, about 15 minutes or until the vegetables are soft. Add your beans and heat through.

Throw cilantro on top if you are inclined.

Serve this with rice or, if you have none of that, then tell your man it’s soup and get over it.