This fantastic curry hails from the sleepy backwaters of Kerala in southern India. This recipe uses a ‘tarka’ for added depth of flavour, which involves heating mustard seeds in oil, and really elevates a simple dish into something spectacular. You’ll find mustard seeds in the spices section of most supermarkets.
Typical nutritional content (per portion)
4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
3 tablespoons rapeseed oil
300g button mushrooms, cleaned
2 large onions, sliced
1 thumb-sized piece of ginger, finely chopped
1 hot green chilli, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground turmeric
1½ tablespoons curry powder
1 tin of reduced-fat coconut milk
½ bunch fresh mint, leaves only
2 tablespoons brown mustard seeds
Juice of 1 lemon
300g frozen peas, thawed
Freshly ground black pepper
300g brown basmati rice
Preheat the oven to 190°C fan. Toss the sweet potato in a teaspoon of rapeseed oil and roast on the parchment-lined tray in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, heat a teaspoon rapeseed oil in a frying pan and fry the mushrooms over a high heat until nicely browned. Set both aside once cooked.
For the curry sauce, heat a tablespoon of oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over a high heat, sauté the onions until they begin to brown and then lower the heat. Add the ginger, chilli, cumin, curry powder and turmeric to the onions, allowing the spices to cook for a minute before adding litre of water. Simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes to reduce slightly.
Cook the basmati rice according to the instructions on the packet.
Add the coconut milk and mint and remove from the heat. Blend to a smooth velvety cream using a stick blender.
To prepare the tarka, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a small pan. When it is very hot, drop in the mustard seeds, which will sizzle and pop immediately and release a lovely aroma. Remove from the heat and quickly pour this into the curry sauce. Stir well then add the lemon juice, cooked sweet potatoes and mushrooms. Season with black pepper, stir through the peas just before serving, serve with the rice and garnish with a few mint leaves.
