Hot, sweet, garlicky and bright with parsley and lemon – the good old parsnip is far more interesting in this company. A real revelation, in fact. The whole winter I’ve been roasting it with honey, red onions and panch phoron. I add the chillies and garlic when the parsnips and onions are nearly done (so that they don’t burn). Sometimes I roast the chillies and garlic only briefly, and sometimes a little longer, depending on how strong I want these flavours to be. I finish off with a sprinkling of parsley, and a squeeze of lemon. Life is always brighter with lemon.
All posts in category Vegan
Vegan, or can be easily adapted to become vegan
Honey-roasted parsnips with red onion, panch phoron, chilli, garlic and parsley
Posted by Maninas on 16 March, 2014
https://maninas.wordpress.com/2014/03/16/honey-roasted-parsnips-with-red-onion-panch-phoron-chilli-garlic-and-parsley/
Spiced carrot and caramelised onions soup
Reminder: Birthday giveaway open until 19 May! Do join in!
This shouldn’t be soup-making time, but unfortunately it is, so let me share with you what has become my favourite way of making soup. The basic method comes from the 1977 edition of ‘Mousewood Cookbook’ via Slashfood, and I blogged about it before with my carrot and rose harissa soup. While the vegetables are cooking, you make a kind of tarka of caramelised onions, nuts and freshly grounded and roasted spices. Then you combine the two and blend to esired thickness. The possibilities are many! Pumpkin works well here, too. You can even use this method to make and flavour vegetable purees.
In this recipe, the nuts give the soup some body, the onions provide an earthy base, while the spices bring it into life. The result is a warming carrot soup fragrant with roasted cumin and coriander, with a hint of heat from the chillies. I love it!
This picture of spices from St George’s market in Breakfast always cheers me up.
Spiced carrot and caramelised
onions soup
SOURCE: the basic carrot soup recipe is from ‘Mousewood Cookbook’ (1977), via Slashfood, adapted by me
PREPARATION TIME: 5 min
COOKING TIME: 20 – 30
CUISINE: ?
SERVES: 6
INGREDIENTS:
1 kg carrots, peeled and chopped
water or stock
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
3 dried red chillies (deseed them if you don’t like hot food)
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tbsp butter
1 large yellow onion
3 cloves of garlic
a handful of almonds, roughly shopped
salt and pepper
a handful of grated cheese (optional)
METHOD:
I. Cover the carrots with water and stock and boil until tender.
II. Heat a pan over medium heat and add cumin, coriander seeds and chillies. Roast until lightly toasted and fragrant (about 1 min), and then put into a pestle & mortar/spice grinder and let cool. Grind into powder and set aside.
III. Heat the olive oil and butter in a pan, then add the onion and cook until the onion starts going golden. Add chopped garlic and nuts and sauté until the onions are caramelised. Then, add roasted spices, stir and cook for a minute or two to give time to the spices to release their flavours.
III. Put the onion mixture and carrots into the food processor and blend until smooth. (It’s easier to blend if you retain some cooking water and add it to the soup later on as necessary.)
IV. Return the vegetable puree to the pan, and check for salt. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add water to achieve desired consistency. Ladle into bowls or mugs ,and if you wish, sprinkle some cheese on top. Add another pinch of freshly ground black pepper and serve. Enjoy!
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Other soups at Maninas:
Celeriac soup (V)
Creamy carrot soup with rose harissa (V)
Fragrant and aromatic salmon soup with noodles
Jerusalem artichoke soup with lemon zest and parmesan (V)
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Posted by Maninas on 16 May, 2010
https://maninas.wordpress.com/2010/05/16/spiced-carrot-and-caramelised-onions-soup/
Sri Lankan-style chickpeas for Lisa
I’ve created this dish especially for a blogging event run by a one of my favourite bloggers, Lisa from Lisa’s Kitchen. The event is No Croutons Required, and the this month’s topic is chickpeas. I really wanted to take part, partly because I haven’t in ages, and partly because I really love chickpeas myself. After a bit of thought, I decided to adapt one of my favourite veggie Sri Lankan recipe, varar, adding caramelised shallots, coriander and lemon juice. The result is a gorgeous warm salad of chickpeas flavoured with caramelised shallots, curry leaves, coconut and lemon juice that goes great with many Indian and Sri Lankan dishes, and it’s also delicious on its own as a snack. I love it. I hope Lisa will like it, too.
A note on chickpeas. I really notice a difference in flavour between tinned and dried chickpeas, and for me, this is one instance when it’s worth taking the time to soak and cook the chickpeas. They’re so much nicer like that! I can even eat them as popcorns after they’ve just been cooked – they really are delicious. But if you really really can’t be bothered, then next time you’re in your favourite Asian supermarket, pick up a tin of East End brand of chickpeas. They’re the tastiest ones I’ve found. Still, for hummus and falafel, I’d soak and cook my own chickpeas.
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Sri-Lankan-style chickpeas salad
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SOURCE: Inspired by Jasmine’s varar
PREPARATION TIME: 2 min, if the chickpeas are ready
COOKING TIME: 5 – 10 min, again, if you’re not soaking your own chickpeas
CUISINE: Sri Lankan
SERVES: 1 as a salad, 2 as a small side dish
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INGREDIENTS:
a little vegetable oil
2 medium shallots, halved and then sliced thinly
1 green finger chilli
a small handful of (preferably fresh) curry leaves
a little salt
1 tsp tempering spices (a mixture of brown/black mustard seeds, cumin seeds and fennel seeds – see Sri Lankan spices for recipe)
a pinch of turmeric
1 cup of chickpeas (cooked, or tinned)
a handful of desiccated coconut
fresh lime juice to taste
1 heaped tsp chopped coriander leaves
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METHOD:
- Heat the oil in a wok (or frying pan) and add the shallots and the chili. When the shallots start going brown, throw in the curry leaves and a little salt. Stir and cook until the shallots are completely caramelised. Then, remove half of the mixture and set aside. (This will be sprinkled on top when the dish is done).
- Return the pan to the heat, and add the tempering spices and turmeric. Stir.
- Add the chickpeas to the pan, and a couple of tbs of water (or chickpeas soaking water), and warm the chickpeas through. Then in goes the coconut and a pinch of salt. Stir it and cook for 30 s, again until it’s warmed through.
- Just before serving, add lemon or lime juice, chopped coriander and some more salt if needed. Sprinkle with the remaining shallots and serve. Enjoy!
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More Sri Lankan food at Maninas:
The aroma of curry leaves: Sri Lankan cooking (Introduction)
Sri Lankan spices (including recipes for Sri Lankan garam masala, curry powder and more!)
Varar – Sri Lankan cabbage and leek with coconut (V)
Sri Lankan Pineapple Curry (V)
Sri Lankan Fish Curry (Meen Kulambu)
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And more chickpeas recipes:
My version of Catalan chick peas with tomatoes and almonds (V) – This is a must-try, with its delicious flavours of saffron, garlic, tomatoes, almonds and coriander!
My Moroccan-inspired chickpeas (V)
Chana Masala (V) for RCI Punjab
Chana masala from scratch (V) – No shop bought spice mixes!
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I’m also submitting this post to to MLLA-21 hosted by Mirch Masala, and started by Susan, The Well Seasoned Cook.
Posted by Maninas on 19 March, 2010
https://maninas.wordpress.com/2010/03/19/sri-lankan-style-chickpeas-for-lisa/
Sri Lankan Pineapple Curry
We’re continuing on the fragrant Sri Lankan curry leaf trail. Next stop: a gorgeous pineapple curry. Hot, sweet and sour, permeated with the addictive fragrance of curry leaves.
The trick is to cut pineapple into medium chunks, and warm them through gently, taking care not to overcook them. In this way, as you bite into the pineapple pieces, fresh juice oozes out, delicious and tart.
The photo below was taken by my friend A.
Sri Lankan Pineapple Curry
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SOURCE: Jasmine
PREPARATION TIME: about 15 min
COOKING TIME: 3- 5 min
CUISINE: Sri Lankan
SERVES: 3 – 4 as a side dish
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced OR two small shallots, thinly sliced
1 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
a handful of curry leaves
1 dsp Sri Lankan chilli powder (or less if you prefer less heat)
1/2 large pineapple, chopped into 2 cm chunks
METHOD:
1. Prepare your ingredients first, as the cooking happens in quick succession. Chop the pineapple, slice the onions, get everything ready.
2. Time to start cooking! Heat some oil, in a wok or a wide pan, on medium high heat. Add mustard seeds to hot oil, and when they pop, the onion and the curry leaves. Cook until the onion is soft.
3. Next, add the chilli powder, and fry for about 30 s or so.
4. Add the pineapple, and stir fry for a few minutes, taking care not to overcook it. You just want to heat the pineapple through and coat it with the spicy mixture.
Serve this side dish as a part of a larger meal, Sri Lankan, or even Indian. I even served it with a Thai red curry once, and it worked really well.
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More Sri Lankan Food at Maninas: The aroma of curry leaves: Sri Lankan cooking (Introduction) Sri Lankan spices (including recipes for Sri Lankan garam masala, curry powder and more!) Varar – Sri Lankan cabbage and leek with coconut (V) Sri Lankan Fish Curry (Meen kulambu)
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This is my entry for this week’s WHB, hosted by Huan from Eat.Read.Live.
Posted by Maninas on 7 March, 2010
https://maninas.wordpress.com/2010/03/07/sri-lankan-pineapple-curry/