No bread is an island

...entire of itself. (With apologies to John Donne!)
I live and breathe breadmaking. I’m an evangelist who would like everyone to make his or her own bread. I want to demystify breadmaking and show it as the easy everyday craft that it is. To this end I endeavour to make my recipes as simple and as foolproof as I possibly can.

I call my blog 'No bread is an island' because every bread is connected to another bread. So a spicy fruit bun with a cross on top is a hot cross bun. This fruit dough will also make a fruit loaf - or Chelsea buns or a Swedish tea ring...
I'm also a vegan, so I have lots of vegan recipes on here - and I'm adding more all the time.

Saturday 13 April 2013

LENTIL AND POTATO CURRY - THE ULTIMATE COMFORT FOOD!


Ease of making: On a scale of one to ten, with one being dead easy, and 10 being horrendously difficult, this is definitely no more than a two!

When I became a vegetarian, back in 2000, I thought I'd given up on corned beef hash, one of my favourite meals. But then I discovered lentil and potato hash, which gave me the same flavour hit - and realised that it was the potatoes that were the star and not the meat! This is just a curried version of the hash.

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon curry powder* - or however much you would usually use. I use 2 heaped teaspoons
1 large onion chopped 
Clove of garlic, chopped fine
2 large potatoes, diced small

200g red lentils
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
Passata
1 dessertspoon vegan pesto (optional)

Flavouring:
1 dessertspoon soy sauce
1 dessertspoon mushroom ketchup
(Or you could use 2 teaspoons stock powder)
Black pepper

Method:
Place the lentils in a small saucepan with enough water to cover and bring to a boil. Simmer for about ten minutes, or until they are completely soft.

While the lentils are cooking, in a separate pan, gently fry the curry powder in a little oil, then add the onions. Keep stirring, and, when the onions are translucent, add the garlic and fry for another minute.

Add the potatoes and enough water to cover. Simmer the potatoes until they are cooked - I like to leave them until they are almost falling apart.

When the lentils are soft, add the passata, pesto, flavourings and curry paste (if using).

Now combine the lentils and potatoes and leave to simmer, stirring frequently to stop any sticking while you pour yourself a glass of wine and cut the bread into chunks! 

Terrific with home-made crusty bread
Gorgeous fried up the next day!

Notes:
This is my basic recipe. For a curried version in a hurry, I omit the frying stage and include 2 dsps hot curry paste (I use Ferns’ hot curry paste - imported from India, it beats Patak's into a cocked hat, IMO! - from my local wholefood shop).

*Curry powder. I make up my own version - 3 parts chilli powder to 1 part each coriander, turmeric and cumin.

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