Tastes like burning

it’s good to challenge yourself in the kitchen. some recipes are pretty straightforward, but if you can add something to the mix that’s unusual or beyond your comfort zone, all the better. case in point: dinner last night. on the menu was a simple lentil curry (sort of a dal but not really) involving root veg and red lentils – a side of brown rice – and that was it. so to mix things up, we decided to try our hand at cooking up poppadums and not using a ready-made variety. hmmmm.

here’s what we should have done:

but instead we followed the weird instructions on the packet that said something about being healthier and cooking them directly over an open flame. we used one of the hobs on our stove, thus burning the poor little poppa to smithereens. another suggestion involved the microwave. with a paper towel and some oil. another ignition, another burnt poppadum. we gave up after 3 failed attempts.

next time: go the unhealthy route and cook them properly in hot oil!

ah well. plenty of leftovers for lunch today, so i’m not too concerned about a lack of crackers.

easy-peasy lentil curry

from 101 best ever curries

the particulars:

2 tbsp veg oil
2 medium onions, cut into rough wedges
4 tbsp curry paste (we used store-bought medium heat curry paste… the shame)
1.5 pints vegetable stock
3 carrots, peeled and chopped into small chunks
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into small chunks
3/4 cup red lentils
a handful of raisins
a handful of roughly chopped fresh parsley


heat the oil in a large pan. add the onions and cook for about 8 minutes. stir in the curry paste for a minute, then pour in a little of the stock so it sizzles. pour in the rest of the stock.
stir in the vegetables, cover and simmer for 5 minutes. add the lentils and simmer for a further 20 minutes, or until cooked.
season the curry, toss in the raisins and parsley, then serve with brown rice or poppadums and mango chutney or naan. yum.

lesson learned: this curry has a lot of liquid in it, in order to properly cook the vegetables (which can be any root veg by the way, not just carrots and sweet potatoes). so make sure to strain a bit before serving.