Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Spring Onion and Chickpea Curry

Yum
Here is another recipe I made out of necessity.  My local Asian Market had Spring Onions on sale 4 bunches for $1.  I stocked up and then realized that I have to come up with a recipe to cook them.   I was first going to just use spring onions in this dish only.  But I wanted some other texture and color so I decided to add chickpeas. I loved the pairing in the end.  This dish has a subtle sweet and tangy flavor and goes great with any rice and curry meal.

To start you will need:
1 medium onion chopped
1 tsp of mustard seeds
1 Tbs of grated garlic
2 Tbs of grated ginger
Handful of curry leaves (available at Indian Grocers)

Heat 2Tbs of canola oil in a wok or large frying pan on medium-high heat.  Once heated add your mustard seed and curry leaves.  Allow to fry for about 30 seconds.  The mustard seed will splutter so be careful.





 Then add the onions, ginger and garlic to the pan and saute until the onions begin to soften (about 1-2 minutes).






Now slice about four bunches of Spring Onions.  You will want to chop the white part of the onion smaller and the green tops little larger and longer.

Add your spring onions and drained chickpea can into the pan and saute.

The Seasoning:
1/2 tsp of turmeric
1 tsp red pepper flakes (or to taste)
1/2 Tbs of curry powder
2 Tbs of Fish Sauce
1 Tbs of Soy Sauce
1/2 tsp of sugar
1 Tbs of Rice Wine Vinegar
Note 1 :  If you want to make this dish vegetarian just add 3Tbs of soy sauce and omit the fish sauce. 
Note 2:  Fish and Soy Sauces are used as salt in the dish so no salt is required.
Note 3:  Rice Wine Vinegar is a slightly sweet and mild vinegar.  If you decide to use cider, white or a stronger vinegar, I suggest first putting a tsp of the vinegar and adding more if you would like it more tangy.

Add the dry spices into the pan and saute for another minute.

Now add the Fish/Soy Sauces to the pan and allow to cook for about 3-5 minutes.  Taste for seasoning.  If you have a good balance of salt/sweet and sour then you can turn off the stove.

Serves about 4-6 people.  Enjoy with rice and other curries.

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