Mumbai Mix-Up

Garam Masala is a dried blend of spices used in Indian cooking; it traditionally contains ground coriander, cumin, black pepper, cinnamon, black and green cardamom, bay leaves and cloves. Widely available and for myself, a store cupboard must have. It gives a curry flavour without heat, so is useful for adding a bit of depth to quick cook recipes.

Update the classic Bombay potatoes with a mixture of whatever vegetables you fancy or have lurking in the fridge drawer.

This serves around 2 ish but is so delicious you may eat it all to yourself! 

So be on your guard!

For this version I used;

1 red onion (sliced thinly)

1 green pepper (sliced thinly)

4 small carrots (chunky slices)

4 or 5 new potatoes (halved)

1 small head cauliflower (broken into florets)

100g green beans (whole)

4 Birds Eye chillies (whole, careful these can be very hot!)

1 or 2 teaspoons of Garam Masala

1 or 2 teaspoons of curry powder (very much down to individual taste)

Rapeseed oil for frying

Salt

Start by scrubbing the carrots and potatoes, wash the other veg and separate the cauliflower into florets.

I’m not much into kitchen gadgets but there are a couple of bits of kit that since I got them I really wouldn't want to live without, one of these is my steamer pan.

I more or less use mine every day and think it a very wise investment if you have any cash to splash.

The other ‘can't live without/ how did I manage before’ item, in case you were wondering, is my hand-held blender.......so useful for soups, sauces, purees, chopping super finely (it has an attachment!) .........I realise I'm going a bit kitchen geek here and so shall stop and get back to the point.

So, we have carrots and potatoes (in together in the same tier if they fit) in the steamer ready to go. If you don't have a steamer, they can be microwaved or boiled (just don't overdo it, they need to be firm but cooked).

Put the steamer on the heat and bring to the boil. when boiling, reduce the heat slightly but high enough to maintain the steam. Also the cauliflower can go in the second tier of the steamer after a couple of minutes and right at the end, throw in the green beans for a quick blast.

In a large based pan, a deep frying pan is perfect, put the oil on a low heat. When warm add the sliced onion, the idea is to sweat the onion off and release all the natural sugars whilst evaporating all the water. This requires a little bit of patience, so keep the heat low for now while the magic happens.

Once the onion is translucent and looking nice and glossy, turn the heat up to moderate and add the green pepper, chillies, curry powder, Garam Masala and salt. Don't let anything stick so keep it moving around the pan, you're looking for some caramelisation of the onion but not all out burnt!

About now the steamed veg should be done, so check that and take off the heat.

Add the green beans to the onion mixture and cook through for about 3 or 4 minutes.

Continue by adding the rest of the steamed vegetables and turn over to coat with the curry spices

Great just like this or serve with rice or as part of a larger, full on Indian feast!