You can used pre-cooked kidney beans from a can. Or cook dried beans in a pressure cooker like she does.
Start making the curry paste by pureeing and sauteeing onions.
Cook them until they turn from pink to tan. Then add garlic and ginger pastes.
Add turmeric and a little Indian chili powder (much spicier and brighter than Supermarket chili powder in U.S.)
Cook, stirring until you have a paste.
After 1-1 1/2 hours it will come together in a solid mass.
Mix in tomato paste.
Mix about a half cup of the curry paste into the bean water. Then add extra spices: fenugreek leaves, garam masala, and salt. Reserve most of the curry paste for making fast curries on weeknights. She freezes hers in ice cube trays.
She likes this brand of basmati rice.
Rinse rice until the water runs clear.
Saute cumin and onion in oil before adding rice.
Add water and peas to rice, bring to boil, cover and simmer for 20 min.
Peel and slice potatoes into sticks.
Saute cumin and coriander in oil.
Add potatoes, chili powder, turmeric, and salt.
And look at all this dried mint! Don't be scared. It's delicious.
I just love the color from the turmeric. Don't you?
I also love these spice containers all the Indians I've cooked with use.
This is the flour she uses to make roti.
I'm still working on the roti recipe - I've heard it's as easy as mixing this flour with water and a little oil.
She kept her roti dough in the fridge and made some licketey split for us on the spot.
She used this cool roti rolling pin and board. But you can just use a rolling pin on a smooth countertop or cutting board.
On a hot, dry skillet, roti puffs up like this.
Then they deflate and she cleverly keeps them warm in a rice cooker on warm.
She adds them to yogurt with salt and toasted, powdered, cumin.
Here's how it all comes together.
Photos: Lindsay Sterling. No use without permission. Thank you.
