The "L" Word: Curried Coconut Chicken Soup

It may still be sunny, but there's a chill in the air. I hear leaves crunching underfoot as children walk by the house on their way to school. Agriculturist and author J. Hector St. John de Crevecoeur first coined the term "Indian Summer" in 1778 in his Letters from an American Farmer, describing it as a season when "the rain is followed by an interval of calm and warmth…its characteristics are a tranquil atmosphere and general smokiness."

Tatsoi, an Asian brassica.

It's the season to turn on the stove again after a long, dry summer and think about soups and braises, stews and one-pot suppers. I'm back to my weekly habit of roasting a chicken, making sure to buy the largest available so there are leftovers for salads, tacos and soups, not to mention slowly simmering the picked-over carcass in water to make stock—yes, that's what "bone broth" is—that'll go into risottos, soups and myriad other dishes.

As I was casting about for something to make for dinner the other night (a situation that occurs all too often around here) I came across some of that leftover chicken in the fridge then found a couple of cans of coconut milk in the pantry. A glance in the vegetable bin revealed a bunch of spinach-like tatsoi (photo, above left) and a finger of ginger, and I was off to the races.

Thai-Style Curried Coconut Chicken Soup

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 onion, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1-2 Tbsp. curry powder, to taste
2 c. chicken stock (or corn stock or water)
2 13.5-oz. cans coconut milk
2 c. cooked chicken
2 kaffir lime leaves
2” finger of ginger, peeled and halved
4 c. tatsoi, chopped (or bok choi, spinach or other greens)
1 Tbsp. harissa (or 1/4 tsp. cayenne or to taste)
Juice of 1 lime
Salt, to taste
Cilantro leaves, chopped roughly (optional)

Heat oil in a large soup pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Add onion and sauté until tender and translucent. Add garlic and curry powder and stir to combine. Add remaining ingredients except for lime juice. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer and cook 30 minutes to an hour*, stirring occasionally. Just before serving stir in lime juice and adjust salt to taste. Garnish with cilantro leaves.

* If you like, while the soup simmers, put on a pot of rice and serve a scoop of it in your soup.

Read more The "L" Word posts about creative (and delicious) uses of leftovers.

Meatless Monday: Curry in a Hurry!

Dinner is my nemesis. I know it sounds weird for a food lover, not to mention someone who writes about the subject for a living, to say that, but cooking dinner every night is drudgery, dang it. Sure, inspiration strikes, some fantastic recipe crosses my path, a gorgeous (and budget-friendly) cut of meat calls to me from the butcher's case or friends coming for dinner sets me off on a quest for a new menu to try.

But there's also the curse of having been raised on the concept of a "balanced meal," that mantra of meat-starch-veg, the om shanti om of my mother's generation. If we happen to be low on green stuff, I practically grovel for my family's forgiveness at committing such a grave disservice to their colons.

Suffice it to say that I was sans ideas last night when it occured to me that it was time to start dinner, something that conveniently slips my mind with startling regularity, as in "What? How did it get to be 5:30 so soon?" Rummaging through the fridge and scanning the pantry, I came up with a typical list that might be given to a contestant in a black box challenge.

"Kathleen, here are six ingredients that have nothing in common. It's your job to make a nourishing and delicious meal out of them. Go!"

Hm. Rice. Part of a can of leftover tomato sauce. A bunch of kale. Onion. Garlic. Two potatoes. It occured to me that it was Monday, so meatless could be a way to go. I'd been craving curry lately, we had some chutneys in the fridge and my family is pretty game for Indian flavors. I was on my way. A half hour later we sat down to what I have to say was a pretty darn satisfying dinner, all in all.

Unfortunately, now I have to start wondering what to make for dinner tonight. Dang it.

Tomato Vegetable Curry with Rice

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (optional)
2 medium potatoes, sliced in 1/2" cubes
1 bunch kale, sliced in 1/4" ribbons
2-3 c. puréed or crushed tomatoes
Salt to taste
1 1/2 c. rice

Heat oil in deep skillet over medium heat until it shimmers. Add onion and sauté till translucent. Add garlic and sauté briefly, then add turmeric, cumin, coriander and red pepper flakes (if using). Sauté until they're very fragrant, then add potatoes and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent sticking. Add kale and tomatoes and bring to a simmer, stirring until kale wilts. Add water if it seems too thick. Cover and simmer over low heat until potatoes are tender. Add salt to taste.

While curry cooks, bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Add rice and when liquid returns to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover, simmering for 20 minutes or just until the water has been absorbed. Serve curry over rice with selection of chutneys on the side, if desired.

Feel free to add other vegetables like peas or broccoli, or substitute cooked chickpeas for potatoes. Add cooked beef, chicken or shrimp for a carnivorous twist, and add more depth by drizzling in a splash of fish sauce. (In other words, this recipe is endlessly adaptable and hard to mess up. Have fun!)

The Greening of Dinner

Here's a list of things I didn't expect when I started this blog:

• That anyone, aside from a few friends, would ever read it.
• That it would start me on the path to a new career as a writer.
• That I would still be doing it more than four years and some 1800-plus posts later.
• That I would get on e-mail lists for nice things like media dinners but also on those promoting the latest books from new age/horror/makeover authors (wait, is that a new genre?).
• That boxes would appear on my front porch containing books, locally roasted coffee, snack chips and garbanzo beans.

Yes, garbanzo beans. Flash-frozen green garbanzo beans. Which I had never cooked with before. And now I had a case of them.

I'd seen green garbanzos once before in their husks (left) at the Forest Grove Farmers' Market. Fortunately someone had already done the work of de-husking these, making them much more attractive when it came to actually doing something with them. Asking around, I heard they made great hummus and could be used in stir fries, soups and stews.

So when I was stuck (again) for something to make for dinner last night and, ever the optimist, opened the door to the freezer to see if some fairy might have magically left a whole frozen lasagne buried under the bags of parmesan rinds, nuts and bread ends, I saw one of those big green bags staring at me. Since I'd been hankering for some curry, I grabbed it and some rice and tomatoes from the pantry and, within a half hour, had dinner on the table. Talk about side benefits!

Green Garbanzo and Tomato Curry

2 Tbsp. canola oil
1 yellow onion quartered and thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, quartered and thinly sliced
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/8 tsp. coriander
2 c. crushed tomatoes
2 c. green garbanzo beans
Splash fish sauce (optional)
Salt to taste

Heat oil in deep skillet. When it shimmers, add onion and garlic and sauté over medium heat till the onion is transparent. Add the red bell peppers and sauté till tender. Add spices and stir for 30 seconds, then add tomatoes and garbanzo beans. Salt to taste and, if desired, add a splash of fish sauce. Simmer for 15-20 minutes. Serve with rice and chutneys (we particularly like Patak brand, especially their Lime Relish).

Farm Bulletin: Bitter Discovery

The stacks of Chester blackberries at the Ayers Creek stand at the Hillsdale market were looming over Carol Boutard last Sunday, though customers were decimating the towers at an astonishing clip (take that, David Karp). While waiting to buy mine, I noticed a bin of strange-looking knobby green gourds. Wondering if Ayers Creek was branching out into the sex toy business, I asked about them and Anthony Boutard assured me that, no, they were not trying to expand their customer base and the odd-looking cucurbits were actually bitter melons.

Karela is the Indian variety of bitter melon. It is a beautiful fruit that is eaten before it ripens. The fruit is intensely bitter, but also considered a good liver restorative and helps reduce blood pressure. Regular customer Rahul Vora has provided a recipe from his family:

Bitter Melon and Potato Curry

Here's my mom's Gujarati style karela (my favorite).

1 lb. bitter gourd (karela) - Indian or Chinese
2 medium potatoes like yukon gold
Vegetable oil
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. turmeric powder
1/2 tsp. red chili powder or cayenne or hot paprika
1/2 tsp. coriander powder
1/4 tsp. cumin powder
1 Tbsp. lime juice

If using Indian karela, scrape the skin to smooth it out a bit with a peeler. Slit the karela lengthwise and scoop out all the seeds and pulp. Discard. Cut the seeded karela into 1" x 1/2 " strips. Sprinkle salt on the strips and let drain for at leat 1 hr. Squeeze to drain as much as possible.

Peel and cut potatoes into similar-sized chunks.

Heat oil in a wok or large sauté pan. Add the karela and the potatoes. Stir-fry at high heat for 3-4 minutes, browning the vegetables. Lower heat to medium and continue to stir fry for another 3-4 minutes or so. Add all the powder spices and sugar. Add salt carefully, making sure not to over-salt (depends on how much salt was retained after the de-bittering step). Stir on low heat for another 3-4 minutes or so until the spices are fully incorporates and the vegetables are fully cooked and a little crispy. Sprinkle the lime juice. Serve with wheat tortilla or chapati or pita bread. It can also be served with rice and dal.

In Season: Souping It Up

First, a confession. I can only handle about half an hour in a mall before my eyes glaze over and I start drooling and babbling incoherently. In fact, it's so bad that my friends are trained to guide me to the exit at the first signs of VOS (visual overstimulation).

So when I went to the farmers' market a couple of weeks ago, as usual, my brain started whirling with possibilities. A chiffonade of lacinato kale salad with salt and lemon. Apple crisp with eau de vie-soaked currants. A medley of roasted root vegetables served alongside roasted chicken.

But it was the stunning color of the Musquée de Provence squash (top photo) that pushed me over the edge and into a full-blown attack. With a burnished copper skin and its flesh a deep orange-red, this squash was going to find its best and highest use as a main course for dinner that night (left), though its fabulous color would also make a gorgeous side dish chunked and drizzled with sage butter.

See what I mean about the VOS? Fortunately, all it took in this case was the application of a fresh berry tart from the stand across the aisle and I was on my merry way.

Roasted Squash Soup with Lime Creme Fraiche
Adapted from From the Earth to the Table: John Ash's Wine Country Cuisine

For the soup:
3 Tbsp. unsalted butter or margarine
3 c. yellow onions, chopped
1 Tbsp. minced ginger
3 c. squash, roasted
6 c. chicken or vegetable stock
1 Tbsp. Madras curry
1 Tbsp. honey
1 c. half-and-half or heavy cream (I substituted 1 c. tofu sour cream)
3 Tbsp. dry sherry
Salt and pepper to taste

For the creme fraiche:
1 c. creme fraiche (or tofu sour cream)
2 tsp. lime zest, finely grated
1 Tbsp. lime juice
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large sauté pan, melt the butter and sauté the onions and ginger until very soft but not brown. If using a food processor, transfer the onion-ginger mixture and the roasted squash to the processor and process till smooth, in batches if necessary, then add remaining soup ingredients. If using an immersion blender, stir together the onions, squash and remaining soup ingredients and blend until smooth. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

To make the creme fraiche, in a medium bowl mix the creme fraiche, lime zest and lime juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour for flavors to develop.

Ladle the soup into warm soup bowls. Garnish with a drizzle of the lime creme fraiche.

Photo of Musquee de Provence squash from I Love Farms.