Eggplant Coconut Curry (V)

Cooking skills focus: Knife skills, roasting, sauteeing, balancing flavors

Ingredients:

3 eggplants, striped (partially peeled) and cut into 1” slices

½ t salt

2 # Yukon gold potatoes, diced medium (1/2” on each side)

2 T cooking oil

1 T Madras curry powder (from World Spice Merchants)

Salt & pepper TT

3 C jasmine rice

Salted water for cooking

3 T cooking oil

2 yellow onions, diced

½ head celery, stalks peeled & sliced ½” thick

1 head garlic, cloves peeled and thickly sliced

3 T Madras curry powder

Salt & pepper TT

1 bu lacinato kale, sliced ½” thick

1 ½ # English peas, shelled

1/4 C water

1 small can coconut milk

3 bell peppers, cut into bite-sized strips (julienne, then cut in half)

2 lemons, juiced

Salt & pepper TT (if needed)

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. Toss the eggplant slices with the salt in a large bowl. They will start to exude water. After 15 minutes, gently squeeze a little more water from them, then cut into bite-sized chunks (this removes some bitterness and lets them absorb other liquids like the curry sauce we’ll be making).

3. Toss the potatoes with the first 2 T cooking oil, 1 T curry powder, salt & pepper. Roast in the oven for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Set aside when done.

4. In the meantime, cook the rice: Rinse it, put it in a saucepan and cover it with water until the water comes up to the first knuckle of your finger when your fingertip is touching the level of the rice. Salt the water moderately, with about 1 ½ t salt. Simmer covered for about 20 minutes on low heat. (This is the way to cook nearly any kind of rice; see Ryan with any questions about the procedure.)

5. Heat a large sauté pan over high heat. Add the last 3 T cooking oil, then add the onions and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Then add the garlic, celery, last 3 T curry powder, salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to medium-high and continue to cook for 10 minutes.

6. Add the eggplant, kale, peas, water and coconut milk to the sauté pan and cook for 7-8 minutes more. Then add the bell peppers, roasted potatoes, lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste.

7. Serve the curry over the rice.