Grace Regan’s Cashew and Coconut Korma
By Grace Regan
Image by: Joff Lee and James Lee
SERVES: 4COOKS IN: 1 HOURDIFFICULTY: EASYExtracted from SpiceBox: 100 Fresh, Vegan Curry House Favourites by Grace Regan.
This is, hands down, the most popular curry on the SpiceBox menu. It's been on our menu since the street food days and, from the minute I wrote the recipe in my home kitchen, I knew it was a winner. It's creamy and subtly sweet; it works well with any seasonal veg and the fragrant spicing helps to elevate it to a luxurious level of flavour, without being too heavy.
Ingredients
120g cashew nuts, plus a few to garnish
1/2 large butternut squash, cut into 2.5cm chunks
3tbsp veg oil, plus extra for roasting the squash
1tsp cumin seeds
2 cloves
3 cardamom pods, crushed
2 bay leaves
1 medium white onion, sliced into half-moons
4 large garlic cloves, crushed
A large thumb-sized piece of ginger, grated
1 green chilli, slit lengthways
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 small head of broccoli, cut into florets
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp sugar
100g green beans, topped and cut in half
A handful of frozen peas
11/2 limes, 1 quartered for garnish
Salt
Method
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Cover the cashews with cold water and leave to soak for at least 2 hours.
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Preheat the oven to 200°C. Place the chunks of squash in a roasting tin, drizzle with veg oil and add a generous pinch of salt. Shake the tray so the chunks get evenly coated. Roast for 30–40 minutes, until the flesh is soft and the skin is golden brown. Set aside until ready to use.
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Heat the oil in a large frying pan on a medium heat and add the cumin seeds, cloves, cardamom pods and bay leaves. Fry until the seeds are golden and aromatic. Add the onion and 1 teaspoon of salt and turn the heat down low to cook the onion really slowly. When the onion begins to soften – after about 5 minutes – add the garlic, ginger, chilli and fenugreek seeds, and cook until the onion is completely soft and caramelised (10–15 minutes in total).
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Bring a full pan of water to boil, salt it and carefully drop your gnocchi into it. The gnocchi is cooked and ready when it rises to the surface (this should take about 2-3 minutes), remove and let drain.
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Turn up the heat and add the broccoli, turmeric and sugar, followed by a pinch of salt. Stir-fry for a couple of minutes until the broccoli is well coated with the onion mix and then pour in the coconut milk. Turn down the heat and simmer for 5 minutes until the broccoli is cooked through but still has some bite.
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While the broccoli cooks, make the cashew cream. Drain the cashews and tip into a blender. Pour in 80ml cold water and blitz until a smooth cream is formed. Add the cream to the pan, along with the roasted squash and the green beans, and cover the pan with a lid.
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While the beans cook, heat a small, dry frying pan on a medium heat and toast the leftover cashews until golden brown. Set these aside.
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Add the frozen peas and allow them to cook through, then take the pan off the heat and stir through the juice of 1⁄2 lime. Taste for seasoning. Serve in a bowl, topped with the toasted cashews and a wedge of lime.
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