Red curry butternut squash and kale stew

A riff on the original recipe with lots of substitutions and Instant Pot tweaks...

Red curry butternut squash and kale stew

Yield: 12 servings (freezes well)

Ingredients

12 servings

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 butternut squash, peeled and cut into ¾-inch cubes

2 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 can Thai red curry paste

1/2 a head of garlic, minced

3-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated (about 2 tablespoons) [this did not make it into my grocery shop but I would add it next time]

2 tablespoons ground turmeric

8 oz (1/2 bag) of split peas, rinsed

4 cups low-sodium vegetable stock (I used chicken since that's what I had on hand)

2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more to taste

2 (13-ounce) cans full-fat coconut milk

16-ounce bag shredded kale

Fresh cilantro leaves, for serving

Cooked rice, for serving

Toasted unsweetened coconut flakes, for serving (optional)

Method

1. In the Instant Pot, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil on the sauté setting. Add onions and garlic and cook until translucent, about 4-5 minutes. 
2. Add the curry paste, ginger, and turmeric, and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
3. Add the butternut squash, coconut milk, stock and split peas. Put the lid on the Instant Pot and cook for 30 minutes at pressure.
4. Release pressure and add kale to Instant Pot. Replace lid and cook for 15 minutes at pressure.
5. Divide among shallow bowls with a scoop of steamed rice and top with cilantro and coconut flakes, if using.

Pozole Rojo

A and I visited Lazarus 2 and tried their pozole one evening, and loved it so much that I immediately started Googling for recipes so I could make it myself. Simply Recipes had a recipe that formed the basis for what I wanted to make, so credit goes to them for providing me with the bones of a recipe that I then tweaked to make it even simpler and to fit the ingredients that were on hand.

Pozole Rojo

Adapted from Simply Recipes

Ingredients

• 2 ounces dried guajillo chiles
• 2 ounces dried ancho chiles
• Salt
• 2 yellow onions, chopped
• 1 large (108 ounce, 6 lb 12 oz, 3 kg) can white hominy, drained and rinsed
• 3 pounds pork steaks (preferably with bone), cut into 1 to 1 1/2 inch cubes (keep all the fat!)
• 8 cloves garlic
• 1/2 small cabbage, thinly sliced
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 tablespoons dry oregano (Mexican oregano if available)

Optional garnishes (can prep while pozole is cooking):

• 2 avocados, chopped
• 4 limes, quartered
• 1 bunch red radishes, sliced thin
• 1 cup cilantro, chopped

Method

1. Remove and discard the stems, seeds, and large veins from the chili pods. Heat a cast iron pan on medium high and heat the chili pods for a couple minutes, until they begin to soften. Do not let them burn. While the chilies are heating, bring a medium pot with 3 cups of water to a simmer and remove from heat. Once the chiles have softened, add the chiles to the pot hot water and cover. Let the chiles soak in the hot water for 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Heat a tablespoon or two of olive oil (enough to coat the bottom of a large 10-12 quart stockpot) on medium high heat. Pat the pork pieces dry with paper towels. Sprinkle them generously with salt. Working in batches, taking care not to crowd the pan or stir the meat much, brown the meat on all sides. 
3. Once the meat has browned, return all of it to the stockpot and add 5 quarts of water. Scrape up any browned bits at the bottom of the pan. Add the rinsed hominy. Add bay leaves, cumin, and oregano. When you put the oregano in, smoosh together with your hands so that the oregano breaks up more as it goes in. Add a tablespoons of salt. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat and cook for 15 minutes.
4. Prepare the red sauce by puréeing in a blender the chilies, 2 1/2 cups or so of their soaking liquid, a teaspoon of salt, and the garlic. (To prevent the blender from creating too much pressure, it's probably best to start with the chiles and garlic and only a cup of the liquid in the blender, and then adding the rest of the liquid.) Strain the red sauce through a sieve, discarding the tough bits of the sauce. [Note: I did not do this as I am lazy and do not own a sieve. It was fine.]
5. Add red chili sauce to the pot with the pork and hominy. Add another couple teaspoons of salt. Add the shredded cabbage (this is something I did because I love cooked cabbage and I think it makes sure that we eat enough veg as part of this soup - some people would prefer the cabbage to be raw and added to the hot soup as a garnish - you can do it either way). Return to a simmer, lower the heat to just high enough to maintain a simmer, partially covered.
6. Cook for 2 to 3 hours until the pork is completely tender. Skim away excess fat. Taste for seasoning and add more salt to taste (you will likely need more than you expect, perhaps a tablespoon or more.) The resulting soup should be rather brothy, as you will be adding a lot garnishes. Add more water if necessary.
7. When getting ready to serve the pozole, you can prep the garnishes (slice the radishes, chop the cilantro, etc.) To serve, arrange the garnishes in bowls on the table and serve the pozole soup into bowls. Let your guests pick and choose which garnishes they would like on their pozole. HIGHLY RECOMMEND THE RADISHES. They really transform the dish.

Turmeric Cashew Chicken

This sauce. This sauce! It is so easy and so delicious that I am slightly upset I only discovered this recipe in 2023.

I've tweaked it, obviously, as it didn't have enough delicious curry flavors the first time I made it, and I had more spices on hand that I thought would work, so I've noted what are additions from the original recipe. I'm also lazy, so skipped the step where you marinate chicken in chopped garlic and ginger, and instead just threw everything into the blended sauce. Trust me, you won't notice a difference.

Turmeric Cashew Chicken

Serves 4

Adapted from Bon Appetit January 2023 issue

Ingredients

2/3 cup raw cashews

5 garlic cloves

1 2" piece of ginger, roughly chopped (I leave the skin on too, after I wash the ginger)

1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts (original recipe called for boneless skinless thighs, which is probably more delicious but not what I've been cooking with)

1 tsp kosher salt

2 red Thai chilies (or 1 jalapeno in original recipe)

2 tbsp lime juice

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 1/2 tsp turmeric (1/2 tsp in original recipe)

1 tsp garam masala (my addition)

3 big handfuls of baby spinach or kale (my addition)

Steamed rice, cilantro sprigs, and lime wedges (for serving)

Method

1. Place cashews in a small bowl and pour in hot water to cover. Let sit until softened (you should be able to crush a nut easily between 2 fingers), 15-20 mins.
2. Drain cashews and transfer to a blender. Add  garlic cloves, ginger, red Thai chilies, 2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice, 1 tsp. cumin seeds, 1 ½ tsp. ground turmeric, 1 tsp garam masala, ½ tsp. kosher salt, and 1½ cups water to blender and blend until smooth. Set cashew sauce aside.
3. Heat 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Cook chicken, sprinkling with 1/2 tsp. kosher salt, tossing occasionally, until cooked through, about 3 minutes. Add reserved cashew sauce and cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce is slightly thickened, about 6 minutes.
4. Add spinach or kale and stir to wilt completely, about 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Divide steamed rice among shallow bowls and spoon cashew chicken over; top with cilantro sprigs. Serve with lime wedges for squeezing over.

Coconutty Beans & Greens

Some may remember a 9-month period where A and I attempted to be vegan (at least at home). It introduced me to a lot of new recipes and was a good way for us to be a little more mindful of how much meat we have in our diet, and we still mostly use milk substitutes at home now (A is particularly fond of coconut milk for the flavor it adds to his teas and coffees).

This recipe happens to be vegan, but I think it's so flavorful that it beats a lot of non-vegan recipes for me. A feature by Zaynab Issa, associate food editor at Bon Appetit, says this is a take on mbaazi wa nazi, an East African pigeon pea dish, so I should clearly go seek that out as this dish was a big hit. The picture above shows how many jars of this are ready to go for quick lunches during the week.

Coconutty Beans and Greens

Adapted from Bon Appetit, February 2023 issue

6 servings

Ingredients

1 medium onion, coarsely chopped

1 plum tomato, coarsely chopped

3 garlic cloves

1 1" piece ginger, scrubbed

2 red Thai chilies (I bought a fairly large size bag of frozen ones at the Asian grocery and so always have them in the freezer)

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp kosher salt

1 13.5oz can of unsweetened coconut milk

1 medium sweet potato, peeled and sliced into 1/4" rounds and then quartered 

1 16oz package baby spinach & kale (my substitution for chard)

2 15oz cans navy beans (a substitution for cannellini, butter or gigante beans)

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Optional: baguette

Method

1. Puree onion, tomato, garlic, ginger and chiles in a blender until smooth. I had to add 1/4 cup of water to get this to work, but it's fine, it cooks off in the next step.
2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a deep pot over medium heat. Add blender mixture and 1/2 tsp salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until moisture is evaporated and mixture is paste-like in consistency and beginning to stick to bottom of pot.
3. Stir in coriander, cumin, and 1/2 tsp salt. Pour in coconut milk and 2 cups water and stir to combine. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to buil. Add sweet potato and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 10-12 minutes.
4. Add beans, spinach and kale and cook, stirring occasionally, until spinach and kale is wilted, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice. Taste and add more salt and lemon juice as needed.
5. Spoon into bowls and serve. If using baguette, slice it and toast it in a pan with a small amount of oil, then serve on the side of bowls.