Potato & Eggplant Curry

with coconut milk, cardamom and mint … Adapted from The Bojon Gourmet

A hearty, meatless dish with comforting potatoes to balance out the exotic spices in the curried coconut sauce and meaty roasted eggplant. Serve with yogurt if you need to tame it a little.

I would typically serve a curry like this over basmati rice … we had it with quinoa (since Dad had no rice on hand) and pitas and I witnessed quite a bit of both going on at our table, sometimes tucked into the pita, sometimes just using the pita to soak up all the sauce. My sister went on and on and on about how I put too much salt in the quinoa (she would just not let go of that … seriously, it was perfectly salted, but she cuts back on salt a LOT because of her migraines so I think her taste buds are a little askew), but even she admitted the curry was perfect. I spooned the curry over the quinoa to let it soak up the flavors, then used the pita bread to soak up the remaining sauces.

I’ve been having trouble finding time to blog lately … I told my daughter this last night and she said that she thought you would forgive me. I hope so! You see, there is a new man in my life (which explains the hands below …) and since my life was already very full with blogging and work and yoga and teenagers, it’s a bit of a challenge to find time for him. I seriously do not mind this challenge–he’s an adventure I totally didn’t expect. I really thought I was happy before he came along, but now the joy in my life has increased thousandfold.

I’m happy to report that he loved the curry, too … and ate two huge plates full of it.  He told me after the meal that he has never liked curry before. I said perhaps you’ve just not had the RIGHT curry before. There are lots of kinds of curry and some may be more to your liking than others. I have had curry in the past that I didn’t like too … but once I found one that I loved, well, that changed everything. The same might be said of eggplant. If you think you don’t like eggplant, well, perhaps you ought to try it again. It might just surprise you and turn into a crazy new love story. You just never know …

Potato & Eggplant Curry

• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 20 minutes
• Total Time: 40 minutes
• Yield: 6 - 8 servings 1x

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 4 – 5 Japanese Eggplant (about 3 lbs.), cut into chunks (about 3 – 4 cups)
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds (or more) (or use 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 Tablespoon turmeric
• 1 yellow onion, roughly chopped
• 4 – 6 garlic cloves, peeled & chopped
• 1 – 3 fresh hot peppers, chopped
• 1 inch chunk of ginger, peeled and chopped
• 1 large or 2 medium yellow or red potato, chopped in small chunks
• 3 – 5 medium/large fresh garden tomatoes, chopped
• 1 can light coconut milk
• 1/2 cup yogurt
• A handful of fresh cilantro or parsley leaves, chopped (about 3/4 cup)
• Several fresh mint leaves, chopped

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Cut the eggplant into chunks, toss with olive oil and spread out on a large baking sheet. Set the sheet in the oven to roast for about 15 minutes or until the eggplant is tender.
2. While the eggplant is roasting, heat a large saute pan over medium heat and melt the butter, then add the whole coriander seeds and toast for several minutes, stirring. Use a spoon to remove the coriander, then add the ground spices to the butter in the pan and stir to toast these spices. Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onion is tender and translucent.
3. Meanwhile, use a spice grinder or mortar and pestle to grind up the coriander a bit and add it back to the pan.
4. Add the peppers and ginger and saute a few minutes longer, then the potato, tomatoes, and eggplant. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for a while until the tomatoes have broken down, then stir in the coconut milk. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are tender.
5. Right at the end, stir in the yogurt, cilantro and mint (saving a bit of the herbs for garnish on the top).
6. Serve with basmati rice or quinoa or pitas with Greek yogurt on the side.

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Notes

RECIPE SOURCE: http://www.sumptuousspoonfuls.com/

© Copyright 2015, Sumptuous Spoonfuls. All images & content are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to publish any of my images, please ask first. If you want to republish this recipe as your own, please re-write the recipe in your own words or link back to this post for the recipe.

This recipe was shared at Tuesday’s Table, What to Do Weekends, Weekend Potluck and Clever Chicks Bloghop.