This vegetable curry has bold flavors to keep everyone happy
Vegetable curries are a great hearty choice for a vegetarian
meal. Filled with bold flavors and a good variety of vegetables, they can be
healthy, satisfying, and delicious — as long as the vegetables are well cooked
and the flavors are balanced.
To nail the bold flavor we turned to a few pantry-friendly
items like curry powder, garam masala, garlic, and tomato paste while fresh
ginger and a Serrano chili pumped up the flavor even more. A combination of
sweet potatoes, canned diced tomatoes, eggplant, green beans, and chickpeas
guaranteed everyone would walk away from the table satiated.
We started by cooking the sweet potatoes since they would
take the longest to become tender, followed by the eggplant and green beans. We
also found that 20 minutes of simmering eliminated any tinny taste in the
tomatoes and allowed the chickpeas to turn from crumbly to creamy.
Finishing the dish with a generous handful of cilantro and a
dollop of Greek yogurt helped to add brightness and brought our flavors into balance.
You can adjust the spice level of this dish by either including less of the Serrano
chili or adding its seeds.
INDIAN-STYLE VEGETABLE CURRY
Servings: 6
Start to finish: 45 minutes
Ingredients:
1 (14.5 ounce) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes
3 tablespoons canola oil
4 teaspoons curry powder
1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala
2 onions, chopped fine
12 ounces sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
Salt and pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 Serrano chili, stemmed, seeded, and minced
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon no-salt-added tomato paste
1 pound eggplant, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
8 ounces green beans, trimmed and cut into 1 inch lengths
2 cups water
1 (15 ounce) can no-salt-added chickpeas, rinsed
1/4cup minced fresh cilantro
2/3cup 2 percent Greek yogurt
Pulse tomatoes with their juice in food processor until
nearly smooth, with some 1/4 inch pieces visible, about 3 pulses.
Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering.
Add curry powder and garam masala and cook until fragrant, about 10 seconds.
Add onions, sweet potatoes, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring
occasionally, until onions are browned and sweet potatoes are golden brown at
edges, about 10 minutes.
Stir in garlic, chili, ginger, and tomato paste and cook
until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add eggplant and green beans and cook,
stirring constantly, until vegetables are coated with spices, about 2 minutes.
Gradually stir in water, scraping up any browned bits. Stir
in tomatoes and chickpeas and bring to simmer. Cover, reduce heat to low, and
cook until vegetables are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Off heat, stir in cilantro
and 1/2 teaspoon salt and season with pepper to taste. Serve with yogurt.