curry – morestomach

incidentally when i think of Indian food
i think of Ethiopia.
when we lived in addis ababa
there were only two restaurants
we frequented:
an italian cafe that boasted
the most impeccable service
and an Indian place
where i had my first ever taste of
goat.

Indian food also makes me think
of a Bangladeshi boy who used to leave
me love poems in my locker.
we always ran into him and his family
when we dined at the Indian joint.

since africa
(a place i still dream of)
my experience with Indian food
has been a love/hate battle.
the harmony between spices
and ingredients
perfectly balanced with
rice or
naan
but is just havoc on my system,
particularly if butter or cheese
plays heavily in the dish.

this dish, for me,
is a godsend
i love eggs,
in any form
and while it does play a
minor role against the heavy
punches of cardamon and even cinnamon
i am appeased
because hello
Indian food at home is the best

just a note,
i have attempted two different
recipes,
one from the beautiful Journey Kitchen
that was lovely
but the one i feature today is from playful cooking
which really satiated my cravings

also, the recipe calls for
unsweetened coconut flakes
yeah, i couldn’t find the unsweetened
stuff in my pantry
so sweetened went in
it wasn’t cloyingly saccharine
but i would imagine the
dish could do without the
added sugar

last,
just so you know,
again, we lived in Africa for just under
two years, i was only in
8th & 9th grade,
and always heavily chaperoned
on the rare occasions i would
venture out of the compound
i barely remember my time there,
i can only recall the
loveliness of the landscape
the cold climate living in Mt. Entoto‘s shadows
injera
the quiet dignity of ethiopians

i received an email from a dear blog friend recently.
the usual words:
catching up
swooning
lamentations
a song

and she ended the note with colors:
Mint green, coral, raspberry describe my days…
how lovely

lately, my days have been burnt yellow:
bright
warm
promising

it’s been a mild spring,
some days venture below the 50s
i made this curry some weeks ago,
when summer was just a tease,
winter was still fresh
and i needed some
burnt yellow

what color would you describe your days right now?

Portuguese Chicken Curry with Chorizo + Olives
loosely adapted from Tasting Table’s Chef’s Recipe, which was adapted from Abraham Conlon, Fat Rice, Chicago

1 lb package of chicken, breast or thighs, though i recommend thighs as it’s got more flavor
kosher salt/black pepper
3 TBL cornstarch
3 TBL olive oil, divided
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 1″ piece of ginger, finely minced
1 TBL curry powder
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 cans coconut milk
handful of baby red potatoes, scrubbed cleaned. if you want, peel but i kept the skins on (be sure they’re organic)
handful or two of dried tomatoes (original recipe calls for fresh cherry tomatoes, sliced)
4 ounces chorizo, sliced
12 oil-cured kalamata olives, pitted (original recipe calls for black morroccan olives)
1 small bunch flat-leaf parsley, stems removed and leaves roughly chopped
steamed white rice, for serving

on a plate or cutting board, season chicken pieces with salt/pepper. sprinkle with cornstarch on both side, coat evenly. in a large pot or dutch oven set over med-high heat, add in a bit of oil and brown chicken. do this in batches. once you place the chicken in the oil, try not to move it until it’s ready to be flipped. transfer pieces back to plate or cutting board.

in the same pot or dutch oven, add the rest of the oil, onion + ginger, sauteeing until onion is soft and translucent. add in the curry powder and cayenne pepper, stirring often. pour in the coconut milk, add the potatoes & browned chicken pieces. bring liquid to a simmer. reduce heat to low & cover. continue to cook until chicken and potatoes are cooked through, and the sauce has thickened, 45 min – 1 hour.

remove lid, throw in the dried tomatoes, chorizo and olives. cook until warmed through. garnish with chopped parsley, serve with steamed white rice.