Spicy Red Curry Lentils

No matter how much  you try to focus on having a positive attitude, there will be some days when everything will seem to irritate you and you'll feel like pulling your hair out. For me most recently it was when my neighbor across the courtyard decided to practice his guitar solo with the amp cranked up at 1 am in the morning (yet again!). I got no sleep as it resonated throughout my cottage, all the way back to my bedroom. Not only was the guitar playing loud but it sounded awful- like feral cats having a Battle Royale outside.

(Photo Source)

So the next day, I was exhausted and cranky but I had promised to make Mr.S and Kidlet #1 dinner. I mulled over what to make and settled on lentils. (Kidlet #1 is in training for mountain biking and Mr.S is focused on eating more protein lately, so I thought it'd be a good choice.) One of my favorite slow cooker recipes to make during the winter is my Crockpot Chorizo and Lentil dish but sometimes I just don't have the time to wait 5-6 hours for dinner to cook. A great fall back is this rich and hearty (but low in fat), vegetarian Red Curry Lentils recipe. No pre-soaking of lentils required and it utilizes coconut milk and Soyrizo, perfect if you have vegetarian friends coming over for dinner or are just looking to cut back on your meat consumption. Now before you go, "Ugh! Soyrizo ?!" Give it a chance. My friend Christina recommended it to me a few years ago and I was suspicious, but Soyrizo actually turned out to be pretty good tasting. (Tip: You can buy it for cheap at Trader Joe's.)

Spicy Red Curry Lentils

Ingredients

12 oz. Soyrizo
1 medium onion, diced
4-5 teaspoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
1 1/2 cups lentils (green or brown)
2 tablespoons red curry paste
1/2 tablespoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon brown sugar (optional)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
couple of shakes of your favorite hot sauce (I used Cholula)
a few dashes of paprika
1/4 to 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper (depending on how hot you like it)
1 (14 oz.) can of diced tomatoes or unsweetened tomato sauce
1 tablespoon tomato paste
3/4 cup coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper

Instructions

1. In a large pan, heat up your butter over med-high heat. Sauté your Soyrizo, diced onion and garlic. Set aside.

2. Rinse and pick over your lentils. In a large pot or Dutch oven, cook your lentils per package instructions. When done, add back in your Soyrizo, garlic and onions.

3. Add in red curry paste, garam masala, coriander, curry powder, brown sugar, turmeric, minced ginger, hot sauce, paprika and cayenne pepper.

4. Cook for 2-4 minutes.

5. Add in diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Cook for 1-2 minutes more, mixing so that the ingredients blend well. Add in the coconut milk. Season with salt and pepper. Mix. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed. Reduce heat to a simmer.  Cook thoroughly for 20-25 minutes, stirring periodically.

6. Garnish with green onions, Thai basil or a dollop of Greek yogurt. Serve over jasmine or basmati rice. The dish goes equally well with garlic naan.

7. Leftovers can be frozen.

☺ TIP: If the end product turns out to be a bit too spicy for you, you can adjust the heat by adding extra coconut milk.

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Vegetarian-Friendly: Barley Risotto with Marinated Feta

I've been home from my trip for a week now and my suitcase is STILL sprawled on my living room floor and I've been picking things out of it as needed like a vulture picks at a carcass. Ugh! I don't know why, but unpacking feels like such a chore. Not that packing a suitcase is more fun but at least it has the added aspect that you're packing to go somewhere, an impending travel adventure.

On a related note...do you know what your packing style is? I never gave it much thought until I started dating Mr.S. He starts packing for trips a few days before the trip and packs A LOT. Me? I tend to pack light and the night before (or sometimes even the morning of) a trip. Guess who tends to forget things more often? You got it--him. I think my packing style drives him crazy, but what can he do? And yes, he also is the type that has to immediately (and I mean immediately) unpack his luggage the minute we get home. As soon as we hit the door, he's throwing dirty shirts in the laundry, returning the toothbrushes to their upright position in the bathroom mug and the suitcases are emptied and put away before my butt can hit the sofa.

(photo source: unknown)

Anyhow, if your significant other is like mine, let him sort out and put away the clothing, toiletries and travel souvenirs; while he's doing that, hit the kitchen and make this barley risotto for the two of you. It tastes amazing and is the perfect comfort food for a cold winter's night. My friend, Michelle, ordered a similar dish at a Midtown restaurant (Tuli's) about a month ago and gave me a taste. Inspired by it's many mingling layers of delicious flavors, I looked around for the recipe and stumbled about this version in Yotam Ottolenghi's book, Jerusalem. Be sure not to skip making the feta with caraway seeds- it really add an amazing dimension of flavor to the dish. I had never used caraway seeds in a dish before and was surprised at how aromatic and tasty they are- kind of a nutty, anise-like taste. The barley risotto itself has a nice chewy texture and a deep tomato flavor. This scrumptious dish works great as a main course or as a side dish and is an easy meal to prepare for vegetarian friends. Although barley risotto is definitely less temperamental to prepare than traditional risotto, remember to still stir often so that it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot.

Yotam Ottolenghi's Barley Risotto with Marinated Feta (you can find the original recipe in his book, Jerusalem)
makes 4 servings

Ingredients

1 cup pearl barley
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 stalks celery, diced
2 small shallots, diced
4 cloves of garlic, diced
4 sprigs thyme
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 bay leaf
4 strips of lemon peel
1/4 teaspoon chile flakes
1  14-oz can chopped tomatoes (I used Muir Glen fire-roasted tomatoes)
1 1/4 cups of passata (I used Pomi's strained pureed tomatoes instead)
scant 3 cups vegetable stock
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
10.5 oz  feta, crumbled
1 tablespoon fresh oregano
salt, to taste

Instructions
1. In a mesh strainer, rinse the barley and leave it to drain.

2. In a large pot, melt the butter and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the celery, shallots and garlic. Cook over a low heat for about 5 minutes, until softened. Then add the barley, thyme sprigs, smoked paprika, bay leaf, lemon peel, chile flakes, chopped tomatoes, pureed tomatoes, stock and salt. Stir to combine.

3. Bring the mixture to a nice boil, then reduce the heat and allow the mixture to simmer for about 45 minutes (uncovered). Stir frequently to prevent the barley from sticking to the bottom.

4. While your barley risotto is cooking, toast your caraway seeds in a small, dry pan until they start to impart a toasty, nutty smell. Remove from heat immediately. Place in a bowl (or with a mortar and pestle set) and gently crush the seeds.

5. In a medium sized bowl, combine your toasted caraway seeds, crumbled feta and remaining (4 tablespoons) olive oil. Mix to combine.

6. When the barley is soft and most of the liquid has been absorbed, remove the pot from the heat. Divide your barley portions into bowls and top with marinated feta and a sprinkle of fresh oregano.

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KC Grill and Kabob

8611 Hauser Court, Lenexa, KS 66215. (913) 541-1900.
http://www.kckabob.com/

Wow! I feel like I haven't posted forever. Sorry for the lack of posts but I was away for ten days visiting my folks in Kansas City, MO- home of the Kansas City Chiefs, finger lickin' BBQ and some notable jazz musicians like Charlie Parker and Count Basie. I had a lovely time. My mom's doing really well post-chemo (her hair's even starting to grow back) and my dad and I had fun hanging out, grabbing coffee and watching TV. KC itself is a bit mellow for my taste (I didn't grow up there) but it's always nice to see my parents. Usually when I go to visit- it's freezing, there's snow and ice on the roads, and insanely strong winds are blowing...but this time, the weather was actually pretty mild. After ten days though, I was clicking my heels together and chanting, "There's no place like home. There's no place like home." I guess I'm just a California girl at heart- I missed Mr.S., my cottage and Pepper pup.

Anyhow, on my last trip to KC (in February), my dad took me to this fantastic Middle Eastern restaurant located in Lenexa called KC Grill and Kabob. They offer a superb lunch buffet with the best baba ganoush I've ever had.  The dip was the perfect blend of creaminess, smokiness and combo of spices. The baba ganoush was so good that I begged my pop to take me there again. If you're ever in the Kansas City area, hit this place up for lunch. It's located in the corner of a small shopping center next to a Japanese restaurant, off W 87th Street Parkway. The restaurant has a nice homey atmosphere, lots of interesting Middle Eastern photos on the walls and comfy booths along the perimeter. The owner is a friendly Iranian gentleman named Hamid Tafreshi and he looks just like the genie from Aladdin (minus the blue skin and Robin Williams voice).

 

The lunch buffet is set up in the middle of the room. It's not huge but there's a nice variety of dishes. Once you're seated, the waitress will take your drink order and bring you a basket of naan; after that, you're on your own. There's usually a soup of the day (during our recent visit it was lentil) and a few different kinds of salad. I loaded my plate with hummus, baba ganoush, crispy falafel, tangy pickled veggies, kabab koobideh, a delicious cucumber-yogurt sauce, basmati rice with currants, saffron rice, lamb, and shirazi salad. I ended up going back for seconds- another heaping helping of baba ganoush (I couldn't get enough of their version), a mound of dill rice, a taste of the potato salad with chicken, and some more kabab. There were a number of other dishes on the buffet line including tandoori chicken, some sort of stew, a curry, a jalapeno-cilantro chutney, large chunks of roasted veggies and some braised greens. On my return trip to the buffet, Mr. Tafreshi pointed out a dark dip that he described as being a "spicy Iranian baba ganoush" and suggested that I sample some. I tried it and really liked it. It had a totally different flavor profile from the regular baba ganoush- much spicier and mintier. At the end of our meal, we were offered some Persian ice cream that sounded incredibly enticing (rose, saffron and pistachio flavor) but I was so stuffed that I couldn't bear the thought of eating one more bite. I did notice though that the restaurant also offered baklava, rice pudding and cream puffs on their dessert menu.

 

I'm so glad we paid KC Grill and Kabob another visit. Everything I had there was fresh and flavorful. The service was spot-on, the buffet price was reasonable and the owner was very welcoming. (I love that he takes the time to ask guests if they've enjoyed their meals.) I seriously can't wait to patronize this small business again and binge on that incredible baba ganoush.

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