Prawn and Courgette Curry...

This recipe is an old one that I got from Good Food Magazine last Summer, and had

forgotten about until fancying a prawn curry the other day!!
It is great for using up a glut of courgettes...and is a lighter, Summery curry...this recipe serves 2, but is easily doubled...

Pork Mince Keema...

Lisa Faulkner style...I got around to making another dish from Lisa Faulkner's book the other day, a Keema style Lamb curry that is mild enough for the whole family, but adaptable if you fancy it with a little (or a lot) more heat!!!

Aubergine and Lentil Daal...

and day 5 of 5 in our 'National Vegetarian Week Challenge" (yes, I know 5 days do not make a week...but prior engagements meant 5 days were the most we would manage)...this is an old favourite of ours...and one of my most made 'veggie meals'...it's actually called a 'curry' in the book I got the original recipe from, but in my mind the texture is more of a daal...hence my name for the dish...

Friday Night Veggie Indian Feast...

...so now I have finally posted all the recipes from last Friday's Veggie Indian Feast...The menu was...

...Although the Torte and ice-cream got bumped to Saturday in the end as we were too full, it was too late and to be honest, I couldn't be bothered to bake the torte on Friday!!! Oh, and the homemade pizzas on Saturday were for the 4 smallish people!!! We had the Pasta Bake, that will be posted later on...


If you missed any of the Indian food posts you can find them here...


1 - Paneer and Spice Fritters
2 - Pea and Potato Samosas
3 - Cucumber and Mint Raita
4 - Saag Paneer
5 - Chickpea Curry
6 - Pilau Rice...this one is just below...


I Don't really have a formal recipe for this, but I will share with you how I cook my Pilau Rice...
Serves: 6 ish...or in this case, 4 and leftovers!!
Prep time: 5 mins plus 30mins soaking time
Cooking time: 5mins ish...
Ok, so I start by rinsing about 12oz of basmati rice in cold water...I rinse a couple of times to get most of the dust and starch out...then to the pan of now wet (but drained) rice I will add about 1/2tsp turmeric, 1tsp garam masala, 1tsp chilli powder, 4 split green cardamom pods, 2 crushed cloves of garlic and about and inch of peeled, grated fresh ginger...give it a stir and leave until about 30  mins before you want to cook it...
About 30 mins before you are going to cook it, add enough cold water to the pan to cover with about 2inches extra water...leave to soak for about 30 mins...
Once 30mins is up add a little salt and bring to the boil...turn down and simmer for about 4 mins, testing after 3mins...we like ours firm, not raw!!! But with a bite to it...there is nothing worse than soggy rice!!! Once cooked to your liking, drain and serve!!
I'm sorry there are no photos to show how great this rice turns out...maybe next time I cook it I will post some!
Oh, one more thing, I also use this rice to make veggie pilau, for that one I stir fry some veg of choice...leeks, broccoli, cauli, peppers, mushrooms, peas...and add drained cooled rice to pan, mix and reheat...for that you only need about 9oz rice to start...that will feed four and give leftovers!!

Chickpea and Cauliflower Curry...

...Doesn't really sound that appetising, but it has to be tasted as it is a really good veggie curry...and is the last of the recipes from Friday night's Indian Veggie Feast...it joins the others so far...Herb and Spice Paneer Fritters, Pea and Potato Samosas, Mint and Cucumber Raita, Cheat's Saag Paneer and now...Chickpea and Cauliflower Curry....

Cheat's Saag Paneer...

...well, kind of Cheat's Saag Paneer at least...in that I have used a curry paste to flavour and spice it up, rather than using whole spices...but my excuse is that I've made a Chickpea and Cauliflower Curry from scratch (using whole spices), a Chocolate Fudge Cake Tray Bake, some Herb and Spice Paneer Fritters, some Pea and Potato Samosas and Mint and Cucumber Raita...(the links for everything else will appear as I post the recipes) so I've been a little bit busy!!! The reason?? Friends are coming to dinner - and in fact for the weekend...so we are all set for a Veggie Indian Feast tonight!!!

Midweek Veggie Night...

...Hubby and I like to have at least one night each week that is meat-free...and this week, tonight is the night!!

Squash, Aubergine & Potato Curry..(with a bean and pea or two thrown in!!)

It is another of my "whatever is in the cupboard/fridge goes in the pot" meals!! So there is no set recipe, just my usual method for this type of curry...which is the same as the one back here... Except in this case, you need to add only veggies to the mix...no chicken allowed on meat-free nights!
So tonight I diced an aubergine and about 1/4 of a squash plus about 200g potato also diced - always try to keep the diced veg the roughly the same size - it helps with cooking times!

Saturday Night is Curry Night...(Winter Warmers pt4)

We're trying to stop ordering out for dinner...so I am making my own versions of our favourite take-out meals...Last night was Curry Night...and the curry I made also fits into my Winter Warmer classification. I do make 'proper' curries from time to time, but more often than not they tend to be tomato-based, whatever is in the fridge/cupboard type meals...although, as I tend to have similar ingredients around most of the time, my curries tend to be pretty similar! Last night's was... 

...Chicken, Aubergine, Spinach and Mushroom Curry...