Cheap Eats: Chickpea Curry

We all have those recipes that we can make blindfolded with one arm tied behind our backs. That used to be boxed mac and cheese in my world, it's an understatement to say that things have changed.

Before going veg, I was basically hopeless in the kitchen, I could do the basics and thats about it. Which meant that I relied far too much on pre-made or packaged meals. I thought that real cooking was either difficult or too time consuming. How wrong was I?

When I went veg, I had to rely on myself a bit more and became much more adventurous in the kitchen. I also watched a ton of food shows to gather inspiration skills and knowledge about flavors, spices and food combinations. This was the beginning of a much healthier and happier relationship with food.

Now the kitchen in my sanctuary, my therapeutic space where anything is possible and failure just another adventure. Plus, I get to eat it. Win-win.

This recipe is warm, comfort in a plate. It's easy and cheap to make, which makes it a staple and a go-to for me for all occasions, from a mid-week dinner to feeding a group of 12 people. I'm pretty sure the price on this one comes out to less than 10$ for a family portion, or two hearty appetites such as ours.

Chickpea Curry

Note: I made the tomato sauce from scratch here, but for an even quicker meal you can use store bought tomato sauce or thicken the sauce with sun-dried tomatoes in the blender to reduce cooking time.

Ingredients:

- 3 large tomatoes, chopped.

- 2 tbsp ginger, chopped.

Blend the tomatoes and ginger until smooth.

- 1 large onion, chopped.

- 2 large red peppers, chopped.

- 1 lb mushrooms sliced

- 1 large can chickpeas.

- 1 tbsp turmeric

- 1 tbsp ground cumin

- 1 tbsp ground coriander

- Cayenne pepper, to taste.

- S/P, to taste. 

In a large sauce pan, cook onions with a bit of water for 2-3 minutes, then add all other veggies and spices. Cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes.

Add tomato sauce and cook until sauce has thickened to desired consistency. Add chickpeas and warm throughout.

Serve over rice or quinoa.

Enjoy!!

Yellow Thai Curry

Thai food has always been on my list of favorites, but for a few reasons, it isn't in my habitual repertoire of go-to recipes or restaurants. The primary reason being that plenty of restaurants use fish sauce in, well, everything and some places won't or can't make their dishes without it. So finding a good, authentic and fish-sauce-free restaurant can be tricky. Nevertheless it is no excuse not to enjoy the delicious flavours that Thai food has to offer. Turns out that there is a veg-friendly Thai place right around the corner, and it was so amazing that I just had to recreate it at home.

I had tried to make Thai food at home years ago, but could never quite get the hang of it. Turns out the recipe I was basing mine on wasn't quite right, although the dish was tasty, it really didn't capture the essence of Thai food. What's a cook without a few failures under her belt?

Is this one authentic? Probably not. I chose to vary the ingredients from the dish I had at the restaurant with what I had on hand. Nonetheless, it was delicious. I could tell by the dead silence that accompanied it's consumption that I wasn't the only one enjoying the contents of my plate. I also tailored it to my dietary guidelines: that being I wanted it to be low-fat, low sodium, oil-free and plant strong. It already being a gluten-free friendly recipe I didn't have to change much.

You might have noticed that I haven't given specific measurements for the spices. This is for two reasons: I rarely measure them myself and I believe that they should be added to taste. They can always be adjusted and so I suggest starting small and gradually increasing them until just right if needed. After a few tries it almost becomes second nature and makes cooking that much more intuitive.

Thai Yellow Curry

This is a large recipe, feeding 2 very hungry people with leftovers. I'm sure it feeds a family of five, so half the recipe if you don't have a family or have a very healthy appetite.

Ingredients:
- 1/2 large Sweet Onion.
- 2 large Portabella Mushroom Cap, diced.
- Several large handfulls Baby Spinach.
- 1 large tomato, diced.

- 2 cans low-fat coconut milk.

- Turmeric.
- Cumin.
- Ground Coriander.
- Fresh Ginger, minced.
- Sriracha Hot sauce or Fresh thai chili.
- White Pepper (can substitute Black Pepper).
- Salt.

1. Heat a large deep pan over med-high heat, once the pan is hot, splash with water and add onion. Cook until starting to soften.
2. Add spices with a little more water, let cook for about a minute.
3. Now add the coconut milk, I added the full cans but you can choose to buy the fuller fat versions and use one full can and just the top off the other for a richer dish.
4. Let this cook down for about 5-10 minutes, then add in all the veggies. Let cook until sauce has reached it's desired thickness.
5. Serve over steamed jasmine rice.