West African Vegetable and Peanut Stew

It's snowing in Nashville right now. Really snowing. My classes were cancelled, and we're allegedly expecting 6-10" before this is all over. It's the perfect day to hibernate with some of this stew that I made last night. Truthfully, this is much more my kind of stew than a heavy beef version. The curry peanut flavor together with the lime and cilantro takes me somewhere warmer, and all of the vegetables fill me up with all kinds of health benefits. This does take some time to come together, but it makes quite a bit more than the 4-5 servings the recipe stated, so you can eat it for days. Judging by the weather, that might be a good thing at this point!

West African Vegetable and Peanut Stew
source: Food and Wine via The Tennessean

Ingredients
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 large garlic cloves, minced
2 jalapeños, seeded and finely chopped
1 Tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger
1 1/2 Tbsp curry powder
1 14-oz can diced tomatoes, with their liquid
4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
2 tsp salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
2 carrots, cut into 1/2-inch dice
2 cups frozen cut okra
1 cup frozen green beans or 1/4 pound fresh green beans, cut into 2-inch lengths
1/4 cup cilantro leaves (optional)
1/4 cup chopped salted peanuts (optional)
Lime wedges, for serving (optional)

Preparation
Heat the oil in a large pot. Add the onion, garlic, jalapeños and ginger and cook over moderate heat, stirring frequently, until the onion is lightly browned, about 6 minutes. Add the curry powder and cook, stirring, until fragrant and lightly toasted, about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, scraping up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. Whisk in the broth and peanut butter, season with salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Cook over moderately high heat for 15 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the sweet potatoes and carrots, cover partially and cook over moderately low heat until the vegetables are just tender, about 20 minutes. Add the okra and green beans, cover partially and cook until all the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes longer. Transfer the stew to bowls and serve hot. Pass the cilantro, peanuts and lime wedges at the table.

Crockpot Red Curry Chicken with Butternut Squash

Somebody recently stated that they don't "get" crockpots. What's not to get? With often minimal preparation, the crockpot makes dinner for you, yielding blended flavors and moist, tender meat. This crockpot meal is relatively prep-heavy, even if you skip browning the chicken like I did, so it's better for a weekend meal, or you could prep it the night before and keep it in the refrigerator. Either way, coming home to a delicious, healthy curry makes any day better.

Next time, I would follow Cara's steps instead of trying to make it faster. I definitely missed some flavor, though the texture was deliciously creamy due to the squash. As an alternative to the fat-laden curries that I like from Thai restaurants, this does the trick. I served it on top of jasmine rice that I cooked using the rest of the coconut milk.

Crockpot Red Curry Chicken with Butternut Squash
source: Cara's Cravings

Ingredients
1 medium onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1lb butternut squash, peeled and chopped (or substitute another winter squash)
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, about 6oz each
1/2-1 tsp each cinnamon, ginger, and cumin
salt & pepper
2 tsp red curry paste
2 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp fish sauce
juice from 1/2 lime
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup chicken broth
1 tbsp cornstarch
fresh basil or cilantro, for garnish

Preparation

Place the onions, peppers, and squash in the bottom of the crockpot.

Cut the chicken into small pieces and toss with the cinnamon, ginger, cumin, salt and pepper. Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat, and saute the chicken for a few minutes on each side, until browned.

Place the chicken in the crockpot. Combine the curry paste, garlic, fish sauce, lime juice, coconut milk, extract, and broth in a blender and process until smooth. Pour over the chicken and vegetables.

Cover and cook on low for 6 hours. Stir cornstarch into 2 tbsp of water until no lumps remain and gently stir into the liquid in the crockpot. Increase heat to high and cook for another 20 minutes to thicken. Garnish with basil or cilantro.

Curried Chicken with Apples

This may not be the most attractive meal I've ever made. I'm aware it's a bit brown, but it really is quite good. I've realized I am really liking fruit in savory contexts, so when I saw this curry with apples, I thought it was a great fall/winter meal. My mom came over last night for dinner before the Vanderbilt basketball game and liked this as well. I threw in some raisins on a whim because I thought they would add a nice textural contrast. The sauce thickened up nicely and went well with the brown rice.

Curried Chicken with Apples
source: Casual Kitchen

Ingredients:
1 pound ground chicken (The original recipe called for cubed or ground pork. You could also use cubed chicken.)
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 apples, peeled, cored and chopped (I used one Fuji apple and one Granny Smith)
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 tablespoons flour
1 to 2 teaspoons curry powder, to taste
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (or one clove garlic, pressed or minced)
2 cups chicken broth
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions:
1) Brown the cubed pork on all sides in oil, on high heat, in a large non-stick pan, about 4-5 minutes.
2) Turn heat down to medium-high. Add apples and chopped onions to the pork. Saute for 4-5 minutes, until starting to brown lightly. Add flour and dry spices, stir well and continue sauteing for another 1-2 minutes.
3) Add remaining ingredients, cover and simmer for 35 minutes. Serve with rice.

Serves 4.